# Long-term use of magnesium oxide



## mobilene

I've been dealing with IBS-C for about five years now. I feel very fortunate that the medication regimen that I've settled into is mostly effective. I have a handful of bad days each year that cause me to miss work, and a few days a month where I feel fatigued and irritable because things are moving slowly, but for the most part I can life my life. I consider this to be a reasonable outcome!I take one dose of Miralax with breakfast and one with dinner. At bedtime, I take between zero and 2,000 mg magnesium oxide, depending on how my guts behaved that day -- more if things were slow, less if things moved along well. The mag. ox. has no discernible side effects -- it just works. It is the boost the Miralax seems to need.My gastro suggested the magnesium oxide, but my internist mentioned a concern about daily use over the long haul affecting how much calcium I absorb. I absolutely don't get enough calcium -- milk bloats me, calcium supplements constipate me. So I'm concerned. I've done some Internet research but have found precious little out there about long-term use of magnesium oxide in doses of this size.Does anyone here have any experience or knowledge with this to share?Thanks,-Jim


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## songbird

mobilene said:


> I've been dealing with IBS-C for about five years now. I feel very fortunate that the medication regimen that I've settled into is mostly effective. I have a handful of bad days each year that cause me to miss work, and a few days a month where I feel fatigued and irritable because things are moving slowly, but for the most part I can life my life. I consider this to be a reasonable outcome!I take one dose of Miralax with breakfast and one with dinner. At bedtime, I take between zero and 2,000 mg magnesium oxide, depending on how my guts behaved that day -- more if things were slow, less if things moved along well. The mag. ox. has no discernible side effects -- it just works. It is the boost the Miralax seems to need.My gastro suggested the magnesium oxide, but my internist mentioned a concern about daily use over the long haul affecting how much calcium I absorb. I absolutely don't get enough calcium -- milk bloats me, calcium supplements constipate me. So I'm concerned. I've done some Internet research but have found precious little out there about long-term use of magnesium oxide in doses of this size.Does anyone here have any experience or knowledge with this to share?Thanks,-Jim


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## songbird

Hi Jim: i have been taking magnesium for 20 years; i took milk of magnesia for 10 years but it made me feel really lousy so i switched to mag citrate. Miralax did not help me. Magnesium is the only thing that works for me. It has made me feel somewhat weak sometimes and in the past two years i have decided to cut it down; About two year ago i began not feeling well and decided that much magnesium on a daily basis for so many years cannot be a good thing. I take 1600 mg of mag citrate every other day, most days. Now sometimes even 1600 doesn't do the job so i have to take it two days in a row.The bad thing about it is that it takes two hours to work in the morning so i am chained to the bathroom for at least two hours; fortunately i can get to work a little later.I take 1200 mg calcium citrate every day (calcium citrate is not constipating; calcium carbonate is constipating. Another thing you should do is have your magnesium levels checked from time to time as well as kidney function. I don't know your age, i am 65 and so I make sure i get my mag level checked and my kidney function checked once a year because poor kidney function can cause magnesium to build up in your blood. I truly hate that I can't have a BM without taking Magnesium and it has been this way for 20 years. I hope you don't have to take the stuff that long.Take care


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## mobilene

Hi Songbird, Thanks for replying. I'm 44 and have been using magnesium with Miralax for about eight months now. It generally works. Sometimes I wind up impacted, a handful of times a year, but otherwise it works. I just worry about what taking so much magnesium could be doing to me. I don't know if it's safe.Thanks,-Jim


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## Kathleen M.

I think that you are not taking it every day that makes it a little better. Most people's kidneys can clear magnesium pretty well. If you were taking it every day the usually safe maximum is considered to be 1,000 a day, but if you are taking occasional breaks from it that should help keep the average closer to that. The minimum is 400 a day.Now I would keep an eye on your kidney function and make sure you drink plenty of water to help flush any excess out. One of the better things about magnesium oxide is that some doesn't get absorbed which is why it helps with the laxative thing so that makes it a bit harder to overdo it.


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## songbird

Hi Kathleen: thanks for your insights regarding magnesium; i take the citrate since it works better for me than the oxide. I drink 40 oz of water on the days i take magnesium; most of the time i take it every other day and occasionally i take it two days in a row but try not to. the way i figure it, it averages out to 800 mg a day. Sometimes things get backed up really bad anyway and I have to take the liquid mag citrate to just basically dynamite it out of there if you know what I mean ( don't know any other way to say it). I have mag levels and kidney function checked yearly and sometimes more often, depending on how i am feeling. thanks again. This site has remained very informative for me for over 10 years.


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## mobilene

Hi Kathleen, thanks for replying. I'm taking up to 2,000 mg Mag. Ox. every day, so it looks like I'm over the limit. My internist is asking me to try Amitiza and, if it works, to ramp off the Mag. Ox., so we'll see how it goes. Day 1 on the Amitiza left me dizzy and bloated and irritable, where the magnesium has no side effects. -Jim


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## songbird

mobilene said:


> Hi Kathleen, thanks for replying. I'm taking up to 2,000 mg Mag. Ox. every day, so it looks like I'm over the limit. My internist is asking me to try Amitiza and, if it works, to ramp off the Mag. Ox., so we'll see how it goes. Day 1 on the Amitiza left me dizzy and bloated and irritable, where the magnesium has no side effects. -Jim


 HI- I have never taken Amitiza precisely because of the potential for dizziness.


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## mobilene

I took the Amitiza at bedtime last night -- figured I could sleep through the side effects. I did. The Amitiza seemed to work overnight. I'll try again tonight.


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## alixswann

I have had IBS-C since I was in my teens and I am now 41. I started using Milk of Magnesium about a year ago after finding out about it on Dr. Oz. Before I was taking Miralax and I hated it because I had to take so much. Well I have been taking the concentrated version of Phillip and I know I take more than the recommended dosage but it is the only thing that works. I do spend a lot of time in the restroom but its better than being constipated. Everything has been fine for the past year. I also have RA and suffer from a lot of pain from all the joint damage. About a month ago I started feeling very week and every time I go to the doctors office my blood pressure has been extremely low. I have no energy and my memory is terrible. I started reading some scary affects about long time use of Magnesium Sulfate but is that the same thing as Magnesium Oxide/Hydroxide? The long term affects from the M. Sulfate matches my symptoms from the Phillips Magnesium. My blood pressure is so low I am scared. Does anyone know anything about this? Is Sulfate and Oxide the same thing? Could this be causing my blood pressure to go down so low?


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## Kathleen M.

I'm pretty sure the magnesium is the same and I think that is the part that causes the side effect rather than which thing the magnesium is a salt with. I would talk to the doctor and get your blood levels checked out to see if it is part of the problem (may not be all of it as a lot of things could be involved).


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## Amber girl

alixswann said:


> I have had IBS-C since I was in my teens and I am now 41. I started using Milk of Magnesium about a year ago after finding out about it on Dr. Oz. Before I was taking Miralax and I hated it because I had to take so much. Well I have been taking the concentrated version of Phillip and I know I take more than the recommended dosage but it is the only thing that works. I do spend a lot of time in the restroom but its better than being constipated. Everything has been fine for the past year. I also have RA and suffer from a lot of pain from all the joint damage. About a month ago I started feeling very week and every time I go to the doctors office my blood pressure has been extremely low. I have no energy and my memory is terrible. I started reading some scary affects about long time use of Magnesium Sulfate but is that the same thing as Magnesium Oxide/Hydroxide? The long term affects from the M. Sulfate matches my symptoms from the Phillips Magnesium. My blood pressure is so low I am scared. Does anyone know anything about this? Is Sulfate and Oxide the same thing? Could this be causing my blood pressure to go down so low?


I have the same issues. I take 1000 mg of magnesium oxide every night. Have for over 5 years. It is the only way to keep my bowels moving. But I have low blood pressure all the time, dizziness, weakness, and terrible fatigue. Have been to the doctor so many times about it that I give up. I am going to start tonight and not take the magnesium. I cannot take this constant fatigue and weakness. Now I just wonder if I have somehow damaged myself. I have told all my doctors that I take it and none have ever told me that it was a problem of taking too much or even too long. I have fought constipation since I was a child. Dairy makes it much worse. Eating corn does help, so maybe instead of the magnesium every night I will eat corn every evening starting tonight! I will try to remember to update my results. The past 2 years I have not had any energy at all! Now on to research to see if I have done any permanent damage or I am just worried for naught!


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## songbird

Amber girl said:


> I have the same issues. I take 1000 mg of magnesium oxide every night. Have for over 5 years. It is the only way to keep my bowels moving. But I have low blood pressure all the time, dizziness, weakness, and terrible fatigue. Have been to the doctor so many times about it that I give up. I am going to start tonight and not take the magnesium. I cannot take this constant fatigue and weakness. Now I just wonder if I have somehow damaged myself. I have told all my doctors that I take it and none have ever told me that it was a problem of taking too much or even too long. I have fought constipation since I was a child. Dairy makes it much worse. Eating corn does help, so maybe instead of the magnesium every night I will eat corn every evening starting tonight! I will try to remember to update my results. The past 2 years I have not had any energy at all! Now on to research to see if I have done any permanent damage or I am just worried for naught!


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## songbird

Hi Amber: I have taken magnesium for 20 years; first it was milk of magnesia for 10 of those years but honestly, i know it made me dizzy and weak so 10 years ago i found (thanks to this forum) Magnesium citrate pills which i now take every other day (1600 mg). I have no doubt that magnesium has affected my health but when i describe this to doctors they don't seem to take it seriously. I had to cut it down to every other day and i do feel somewhat better; i could never take it every day again. I know magnesium has adversely affected my health but it works and without it i couldnt go to the bathroom. I don't know if it has permanent damages, I know that my health has been affected and I am pretty old now. You know when i first starting taking MOM all the docs said, oh, take it, don't worry about it; you can take it every day. so i did. i don't think everybody gets dizzy and weak but i think some people do and if you read the side effects, dizziness and weakness can occur. Even with magnesium I have to take roughage like corn or green beans or salad or it doesn't work as well. I also drink 40 oz water every day. Don't know if this helps you or not. Let us know how you do with stopping the magnesium and eating corn. I wish you luck; people have no idea how chronic constipation can impact your life. It really has changed my life and not for the better. My life revolves around going to the bathroom or not going to the bathroom.


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## RAO

Amber girl said:


> I have the same issues. I take 1000 mg of magnesium oxide every night. Have for over 5 years. It is the only way to keep my bowels moving. But I have low blood pressure all the time, dizziness, weakness, and terrible fatigue. Have been to the doctor so many times about it that I give up. I am going to start tonight and not take the magnesium. I cannot take this constant fatigue and weakness. Now I just wonder if I have somehow damaged myself. I have told all my doctors that I take it and none have ever told me that it was a problem of taking too much or even too long. I have fought constipation since I was a child. Dairy makes it much worse. Eating corn does help, so maybe instead of the magnesium every night I will eat corn every evening starting tonight! I will try to remember to update my results. The past 2 years I have not had any energy at all! Now on to research to see if I have done any permanent damage or I am just worried for naught!


Hey,I have been taking mag citrate in powder form which you mix with water for the past month plus. I take it 3 or 4 times per day in small doses, which is absorbed by the body better. If you are low in magnesium in your body, not necessarily your blood, it will help. This may eventually help constipation, and I think it has helped mine, though not all the time. I take about 500 mg daily. I do think it makes me sleepy at times, probably because it causes muscles to relax,. If you are type A that is a good thing although I don't drive right after I've taken it. My gynecologist said magnesium was water soluble & as long as I was not on dialysis I would be fine taking it. It would give me diarrhea first if I was taking too much. LOL (not really as diarrhea is bad too), I just mean that'll be the day. Honestly I don't read anything ominous about magnesium on the internet. Lots of us are supposed to be low in magnesium. I hope I don't have to take it for years, but as long as I am taking it the way I am I am not worried. I tried mag oil (chloride) too, but it stings my skin & I guess I have to dilute it which sounds like a mess to me. Lots of folks swear by that one though.RAO


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## maineresident

Here is my experience with magnesium oxide. I regularly take milk of magnesia to relieve the constipation that has plagued me most of my life. I started to purchase magnesium oxide at the health food store in a powder form and mixing it with water each evening. I found this considerably less expensive than Milk of Magnesium. However, after a year I started to get stomach aches. I went on line and found that magnesium oxide is not readily absorbed and that it can accumulate in the stomach and intestines. In the worst case scenario, surgical remediation may be necessary. I switched back to milk of magnesium, which is a slightly different formulation. You may want to discuss this with your physician.


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## Dennis N

My mother and sister had similar problems with constipation... Things got better with increased fiber intake along with prunes or prune juice. You many want to supplement your magnesium with some prunes or prune juice and see it doesn't help you to lower your magnesium intake. At this stage I'm not suggesting that your replace magnesium with prunes but simply supplement it. Aloe-vera juice is also supposed to work well.. I've never liked the taste... Here's an article on prunes .

http://www.buzzle.com/articles/prunes-for-constipation.html

Another link for other natural and safe remedies as well.

http://www.buzzle.com/articles/constipation-remedies.html

You may want to alternate between remedies


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## rmsmi

I agree with Dennis. Prune juice or prunes is the best natural food that'll help resolve constipation. It works best for me when I have glass before and after a meal. Prepare for some bathroom time. Between that and magnesium supplements, it should give your body the time it needs to rebound from too much of one thing.


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## flossy

Can anyone please tell me.... what is magnesium oxide exactly supposed to do for someone who is always constipated? I have a bottle of them and have taken a couple of pills every day for the last few weeks, but I don't feel it's doing anything, so someone else mentioned getting magnesium citrate instead. I bought some and just started taking them last night.

Again my question is exactly what are they supposed to do?

w/b and thanks!!!


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## annie7

according to this article by Dr. Barbara Bolen, the laxative effect magnesium can have apparently comes from two different mechanisms:

it relaxes the muscles in the intestines which allows for a smoother rhythm.

it also attracts water. increased water in the colon softens stool and makes it easier to pass.

http://ibs.about.com/od/constipation/a/magnesium.htm


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## flossy

Thanks for the reply, Annie7!


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