Magnesium mocktails: Sleep improver and stress reducer? Or is it made up?

The sun went down hours ago. You’re lying in bed, hoping to sink into sleep. But as the minutes tick by, your mind flits from stressor to stressor. One second, you’re mentally rehearsing a work conversation, the next you’re unpacking a recent argument.

Would a magnesium mocktail help you sleep? For some people, the answer is a hard yes.

An Instagram content creator who posts about fitness described her usual cherry mint mojito magnesium mocktail to followers.

“Magnesium is heavily researched and science-backed,” she said. “It’s scientifically proven to help reduce anxiety, help you sleep better, so don’t trust me — trust the scientists.”

Other fitness and lifestyle influencers have also promoted different magnesium mocktail mixes — including the tart cherry juice “sleepy girl mocktail” that became popular in 2023 — for their purported sleep and stress management benefits. You can get flavored supplement mixes with magnesium in all flavors: orange, mixed berry, pineapple, lemon lime, cherry limeade, strawberry limeade and chai.

Do these drinks really work? They might taste good, and magnesium does have benefits. But science doesn’t conclusively show these drinks help sleep.

Limited research on magnesium, sleep and stress

Overall, the evidence supporting magnesium as a sleep aid comes from small studies, integrative medicine specialist Dr. Naoki Umeda told Cleveland Clinic.

The essential mineral and dietary nutrient is proven to help the body regulate calcium and blood pressure; produce protein; and maintain bone, nerve, muscle and heart function.

Supplements offer various types of magnesium. Claims around stress relief and sleep benefits commonly refer to magnesium glycinate. Magnesium citrate and oxide, meanwhile, can have laxative effects.

A 2021 review of randomized, placebo-controlled trials found no strong evidence for physicians to recommend older insomnia patients use oral magnesium supplements. Given the supplements’ low cost and wide availability, researchers said even the substandard evidence showing potential benefit could make it helpful in relieving insomnia.

A 2022 review of both observational studies and randomized controlled trials found inconsistent results and concluded there’s no sufficient evidence to definitively say whether magnesium intake and sleep quality are linked.

The observational studies largely found an association between higher magnesium levels and sleep quality. And among five randomized controlled trials, two found that a magnesium supplement could improve sleep efficiency and sleep time and reduce wakefulness. But the other three found no significant sleep quality improvement compared with a placebo.

A 2025 placebo-controlled study of 155 adults who self-reported poor sleep quality found that a daily supplement of 250 milligrams of magnesium bisglycinate “modestly improved insomnia severity.”

A 2017 review examined 18 studies that looked at whether magnesium supplements — sometimes in combination with other interventions — alleviated anxiety and stress. Research participants were vulnerable to anxiety, including people with hypertension, premenstrual syndrome and mild anxiety. Nine of those studies showed magnesium had positive effects on anxiety outcomes.

Researchers warned of limitations.

“The quality of the existing evidence is poor,” they wrote.

In 2023, registered dietitian Devon Peart told Cleveland Clinic that the “sleepy girl mocktail” drinks might help people relax and fall asleep faster, but it’s not a guaranteed way to improve sleep.

“I would put it in the category of ‘it’s worth a try,’ as long as you don’t have any medical conditions that make it risky,” Peart told Cleveland Clinic. “If your options are something like a sleepy girl mocktail versus a medication sleep aid, I’d say it’s OK to try something like this first before turning to medication.”

Dr. Pieter Cohen, an associate professor at Harvard Medical School who studies supplements, told The New York Times in 2024 that magnesium might help people with restless leg syndrome, which can reduce sleep quality, but generally if people think these mocktails work for them, it’s probably the placebo effect.

Most people get some magnesium through food

One reason you may consider taking a magnesium supplement is if blood or urine tests show you have a deficiency. Such deficiencies are often linked to malnutrition, gastrointestinal conditions like Crohn’s disease, kidney disease, alcohol use disorder and certain medications.

Your diet provides much of the magnesium your body needs. It’s found in many foods such as dark green, leafy vegetables; fruits including bananas, dried apricots and avocados; nuts; peas and beans; soy products like tofu; and whole grains.

If you eat a single serving of spinach, an ounce of almonds and a banana, you’ll get about 190 milligrams of magnesium, according to Harvard Health Publishing. That’s approaching half the amount of magnesium recommended for men each day — and more than half the recommended daily allowance for women.

The Food and Nutrition Board at the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine’s recommended dietary allowance for magnesium is:

• 400 milligrams per day for men ages 19 to 30 years old; 420 milligrams per day for men ages 31+
• 310 milligrams per day for women ages 19 to 30 years old; 320 milligrams per day for women ages 31+.

Although about half of the U.S. population doesn’t get the full recommended allowance each day, prolonged shortages are what can lead to symptoms of a deficiency — including nausea, reduced appetite, fatigue, numbness, tingling and abnormal heart rhythms.

It’s possible to get too much magnesium, which can cause side effects including diarrhea, nausea, headache and stomach cramps. You’re at the highest risk of these side effects if you take a supplement with more than 350 milligrams of magnesium each day. Be aware when buying magnesium drink mixes online, especially if you also take other supplements containing this mineral: We found formulas with 100 milligrams, 320 milligrams and 420 milligrams on the ingredients list.

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