Can Magnesium Interact With Antidepressants?

We are in a mental health crisis right now. This is a hard time for many people. A lot of people feel stress because of this. People need to get help, not only with therapy, but from things like medicine too. Medicine cannot make all the sad feelings go away. But it can help people while they work with their therapist on their problems. This gives them time and space to find out the real reason for what they feel.

What are the biological causes of depression?

Depression is a big problem for mental health. It can come from many things. The brain has some small things called neurotransmitters. These are chemicals like serotonin, dopamine, and norepinephrine. These help with mood and how people feel every day. If these chemicals are not in balance, people can feel sad or low for a long time. A family history makes a difference too. If someone in the family, like a parent or brother or sister, has depression, others in the family may get it as well. Changes in the body’s hormones can play a part. This may happen when someone is pregnant, right after the baby is born, during menopause, or because of problems with the thyroid. These changes in the body can mess with how the brain works and bring on depression.

What are the psychological factors that influence depression?

Psychological factors play a big part in what causes depression. Some people are more at risk because of the way they think or feel. If you have low self-esteem, if you are hard on yourself, or if you often view the world in a bad way, you get a bigger chance to feel depressed. Thinking things will always go wrong or having a lot of negative thoughts also makes the risk of depression higher.

When someone has had hard times in the past, such as being abused or ignored as a child, it can shape the way they feel and deal with stress later on. This can make it easier for them to feel depressed as they get older.

How do environmental and social factors contribute to depression?

Environmental and social factors are also very important in why people feel down or sad for a long time. Stress that doesn't go away, like from work, money problems, or arguments with those close to you, can wear you out emotionally. This makes it hard to feel good and can cause you to feel even worse. Big life changes, like losing someone you love, going through a divorce, or losing your job, can also add to these feelings. These times feel harder if you do not have anyone around to help or support you.

When you feel alone or feel you don't belong, this can also cause sad and gloomy feelings. People need to feel close and connected to others. Being around good company is a key part of life and keeping your mind healthy. Using drugs or drinking alcohol can make these feelings stronger or make the ones you have feel even worse.

Can medical conditions and medications cause depression?

Medical problems and some medicines can make people feel very sad. Long-lasting health issues like diabetes, heart disease, cancer, or always having pain are often linked to feeling down. This is because the stress and hard changes from these problems make life tough for the person. Some medicines, like corticosteroids, beta-blockers, or things to help you sleep, can also make your mood feel worse because of what they do to your body. So, when doctors give anti-depressants, they want to help people manage all these things and feel better.

Could magnesium deficiency be the root cause of depression?

However, many times when anti-depressants are given, doctors and people both want to know what is really causing the issue. They often look at what you eat and ask if you have enough nutrients, like magnesium.
Low magnesium can make you feel more sadness or feel down. It can get in the way of several important things happening in your brain and body that help keep mood steady. Magnesium is used in more than 300 jobs in the body, many with the nerves. One big job magnesium does is help with brain chemicals like serotonin, which many people call the "feel-good" chemical. Serotonin helps keep your mood steady and helps you feel good. If your body does not get enough magnesium, serotonin cannot work well. Then the chemicals in your brain might not be made or used the right way. This can make you feel more sadness and other mood problems.

How does magnesium affect stress and neuroinflammation?

Magnesium plays a big part in how the body handles stress. It does most of its work using something called the HPA axis. This system helps the body let out cortisol, which is the main stress hormone. When there is not enough magnesium, the HPA axis may work too much. This causes cortisol to go up and stay high for a long time. The body stays stressed in this state. This leads to feeling worried, getting angry, having trouble sleeping, and feeling sad. Magnesium is known to calm the nervous system. Without enough, the body stays in a stressed mode.

Low magnesium has been linked to more swelling in the brain. This can hurt brain cells and make it hard for the brain to send clear signals. This may make people feel sadder. Magnesium helps shield the brain from the harm caused by stress. If there is not enough magnesium, swelling can happen and make the mood feel worse. Magnesium also helps the body manage melatonin, the main hormone for helping people fall asleep and wake up. Poor sleep and being tired can happen if magnesium is missing, which can show people feel low and also cause them to feel low. The body needs magnesium to give energy to its cells. A missing amount of magnesium can leave people feeling weak both in their bodies and minds, and this can make feelings of sadness feel stronger.

Can magnesium be taken with antidepressants?

So, can you just take magnesium with your antidepressants and be done with it? No.

Magnesium is sometimes used with these drugs because it may help antidepressants do their job better. This is true for drugs called SSRIs and SNRIs. Magnesium helps manage some chemicals in the brain, like serotonin and dopamine. A lot of these drugs target the same chemicals. Studies say that using magnesium may help you feel better, feel less stress, and sleep well. These things may help your medicine work better. Some people feel really sad and do not get better with medicine alone. These people may have less magnesium in the body. In some cases, adding magnesium can help your medicine work better.

What precautions should be taken when combining magnesium and antidepressants?

Magnesium is good for most people to use, but there are things you should know if you take it with antidepressants. The main point is that magnesium can slow down how some drugs work if you take them both at once. For example, magnesium might stop your pills from working right if it sticks to them in your stomach. That’s why it’s best to take magnesium at least two hours before or after your antidepressant.

Magnesium can help you feel calm, but it may also make you feel tired or sleepy. This effect can get stronger if your antidepressant also makes you feel sleepy, like some tricyclics or mirtazapine. Sometimes this is helpful if you do not sleep well, but it can be a problem if you feel sleepy during your day. If you have kidney problems, talk to your doctor before using magnesium, because it can build up in your body. When this happens, it may cause issues, especially if you are also taking drugs that change how your body works with salts and liquids.

So, we do not suggest you take both at the same time. It is better to keep time between doses, or try magnesium by itself first to see if you need it.

If you want to try something new, check out our Upgraded Magnesium today!