Serenity and Fire with Krista

The Mineral Krista Swears By for Better Sleep + Less Stress

• Krista Guagenti

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Happy Labor Day, friends 💚

Today’s episode is a short one, but it kicks off something I’ve been wanting to do for a while now—a deeper dive into one of the most overlooked minerals in wellness: magnesium. Honestly, I could talk about it forever (and over the next 2–3 weeks, I just might).

Magnesium quietly powers over 300 processes in your body—from sleep quality and mood regulation to muscle recovery and heart health. Yet nearly three out of four Americans aren’t getting enough. And chances are, you might not even realize you’re deficient.

In this quick episode, I share:
ʉϬ Why magnesium is such a game-changer for stress, sleep, and energy
ʉϬ Common signs of deficiency (that your blood test might not catch)
 âœ¨ The difference between oral and topical magnesium—and what to watch out for
ʉϬ Why I believe magnesium deserves a top spot in your wellness toolkit

This is just the start. In the coming weeks, we’ll go even deeper into the myths, truths, and different forms of magnesium so you know exactly what’s worth your time (and money).

So whether you’re spending this long weekend resting, traveling, or soaking up the last bit of summer—take me along for the ride and start learning why magnesium might just be the mineral your body has been begging for.

💚 If you found this helpful, share it with a friend who could use a little more balance in their life. And don’t forget to subscribe so you don’t miss the next two episodes in our magnesium series.

Speaker 1:

Welcome to Serenity and Fire, the podcast where wellness meets grit. I'm your host, krista Guagenti, founder of Panacea Luxury Spa Boutique. Join me as we dive into the intriguing world of biohacking, clean living, cutting edge spa trends and the hustle, grind and grit of entrepreneurship. From my personal battles with weight management, infertility and a 30-year journey to create and launch my dream business to building a sanctuary for those who have been touched by cancer, I'm here to share real talk, inspire big dreams and spark a passion for holistic living inside each and every one of you. So let's dive in. Welcome back to Serenity and Fire.

Speaker 1:

I want to first start by saying that it is heavy ragweed season here in Ohio right now, so my voice is super raspy. I hope it's not too distracting for you throughout today's show, but we're going to roll with it and see how things go. And today we're diving into a mineral that quite literally runs over 300 biochemical processes in our bodies, but chances are you're not getting enough of it and you don't even know it, and that mineral is magnesium. I know that other supplements like vitamin D, omegas, collagen and even things like probiotics are talked about a lot in the health and wellness world and even in some of my episodes on this podcast, but what you'll soon learn is that this mineral, magnesium, is just as powerful and should be right up there at the top of our list as well. So here's the deal with magnesium it's essential for almost everything from nerve function to sleep quality, to mood and to heart health. It's what helps your muscles relax, it keeps your stress response in check, and it even plays a role in how your brain forms memory. But here's the kicker Nearly three out of four Americans are deficient in magnesium, and most people don't even know it. And this isn't just a modern fad statistic. There are real reasons why Soil depletion has stripped magnesium out of our produce. We eat more processed foods that have very little magnesium left in them, and then lifestyle factors like stress, alcohol, caffeine can all deplete magnesium even faster.

Speaker 1:

Now you might be wondering if magnesium deficiency is so common, why don't doctors always catch it on a blood test? In reality, only about 1% of your magnesium actually floats around in your blood. The rest is stored deep in your bones, your muscles and your tissues. So a blood test might say you're fine, but meanwhile your body could be running low where it actually matters. That's why symptoms things like restless legs, migraines, poor sleep, anxiety, high blood pressure or just feeling more fatigued than usual can sometimes tell the real story better than the lab work.

Speaker 1:

Here's what deficiency can look like in everyday life. You might have trouble falling asleep or you might wake up in the middle of the night. You might also feel your eyelids twitching. I know I get that a lot like underneath my eye. I always feel like it's like a little frog, like gizzard thing, what, how do you call that? The where they like, they like ribbit, like where they're anyways. So funny, okay. Okay, here's what deficiency might look like in your daily life. You might have trouble falling asleep or you might wake up in the middle of the night, and some of the other things that you can notice are muscle cramping or that restless leg feeling when you're trying to wind down at the end of the day. For women, pms symptoms can get worse with low magnesium, and for some people it shows up as anxiety or even migraines. Now, in terms of daily needs, adults generally need between 310 and 420 milligrams of magnesium a day, depending on your age and gender, but the safe upper limit for supplements meaning what you would take on top of the food that you consume is 350 milligrams a day for adults. Kids have lower safe limits and pregnancy has its own range too.

Speaker 1:

Now let's talk about overdosing. What happens if you take too much magnesium? Because, as I mentioned, there's oral forms and then there's sprays and butters and baths as well. So can we have too much of a good thing? Oral magnesium, meaning those pills or powders. The first thing you'll notice is diarrhea, nausea or stomach cramping. That's your body basically saying nope, that's too much all at once. So that is definitely a sign that you're getting too much in your body. With topical magnesiums, though, when we talk about sprays, butters and baths, the risk of overdose is actually really low.

Speaker 1:

Your skin is super smart and it knows how to regulate the magnesium it lets into the body, because your body has its natural skin barrier, and it lets things into the body through sweat glands and pores, but also blocks things out of the body when it can be too much or when it can be harmful to the body. So your body knows how to self-regulate in that respect, and the most you might feel when taking any of these topical magnesiums is tingling or mild irritation of the skin, which usually will go away after continued use. But one important safety note about magnesium is if you have kidney disease or a condition called myasthenia gravis, magnesium can actually be dangerous for those people. So if you have this condition, definitely always check with your doctor before trying any magnesium products. So here's the big picture. Magnesium is one of those quiet heroes in the body. It doesn't get the hype that supplements like vitamin D or collagen do, but it's absolutely essential to feeling well, sleeping deeply and functioning at your best, and most of us are running low without even realizing it.

Speaker 1:

In the next episode we're going to get into the myths and truths about magnesium and break down all of the different forms. There are actually 10 pretty common forms, everything from citrate, glycinate, chloride, threonate and more, so you'll know exactly which ones are worth your time and which ones to skip. If you found today's episode helpful, share it with a friend who could use a little more balance in their life and be sure to tune in next week to hear more about this powerful mineral. Before we wrap up today, please remember that everything shared on Serenity and Fire is meant for general information and inspiration only. The topics we discuss are not intended to diagnose, treat or replace personalized medical care, so please always consult with your healthcare provider before trying anything we talk about. Your health is unique and your care should be too.

Speaker 1:

Okay. That's it for today's episode. Remember, if you want to start biohacking your way to better health, start at Panacea Luxury Spa Boutique. You'll save 10% on a hyperbaric oxygen therapy or whole body LED light therapy session when you book your first treatment using the code Serenity10. And don't forget to share this episode with your loved ones. Please also leave a review and hit subscribe to the Serenity and Fire show wherever you get your podcasts. This helps us reach more people like you, so we can spread the word of health and wellness to the masses. People like you, so we can spread the word of health and wellness to the masses. Until next time, keep balancing serenity with fire. I'm Kristen Mageni and I'll talk with you in our next episode.