# Magnesium-rich foods list (printable)

Her Vitals, hervitals.co.uk. Information only, not medical advice. Not a substitute for a registered clinician.

Magnesium figures are milligrams (mg) of magnesium per 100 g of food, from McCance and Widdowson's Composition of Foods Integrated Dataset (CoFID), 2021, Public Health England / Food Standards Agency. Reference daily amounts and supplement advice are from the NHS.

How much magnesium you need each day (NHS):
- Women aged 19 to 64: 270 mg a day
- Men aged 19 to 64: 300 mg a day

## Magnesium-rich foods, mg per 100 g
Nuts and seeds:
- Brazil nuts: 410 mg
- Sunflower seeds: 390 mg
- Sesame seeds: 370 mg  (tahini paste: 380 mg)
- Almonds, whole: 270 mg
- Cashew nuts, plain: 270 mg
- Pumpkin seeds: 270 mg
- Peanuts, plain: 210 mg
- Peanut butter, smooth: 180 mg
- Walnuts: 160 mg

Grains, beans and pulses:
- Quinoa, raw: 210 mg
- Porridge oats, unfortified: 114 mg
- Oatcakes: 101 mg
- Wholemeal bread: 66 mg
- Edamame beans, boiled: 65 mg
- Soya beans, boiled: 63 mg
- Houmous: 62 mg
- Wholewheat pasta, boiled: 46 mg
- Brown rice, boiled: about 44 to 48 mg
- Chickpeas, canned, drained: 44 mg
- Red kidney beans, boiled: 40 mg

Other:
- Yeast extract: 160 mg
- Dark (plain) chocolate: 89 mg
- Dried figs, stewed: about 41 to 44 mg
- Baby spinach, boiled: 112 mg  (mature spinach, boiled: 34 mg)
- Banana: 27 mg

The NHS notes magnesium is found in a wide variety of foods, including spinach, nuts and wholemeal bread, so a varied diet supplies it for most people.

## Safety
- The NHS advises that 400 mg or less a day of magnesium from supplements is unlikely to cause harm.
- Taking more than that short term can cause diarrhoea. The long-term effects of high supplemental doses are not clear.
- Magnesium from food is not a concern; the supplement figure above is what to watch.

Sources:
- Magnesium food figures: McCance and Widdowson's Composition of Foods Integrated Dataset (CoFID) 2021, Public Health England. https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/composition-of-foods-integrated-dataset-cofid
- Daily amounts and safety: NHS, Vitamins and minerals: Others (magnesium). https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/vitamins-and-minerals/others/

Information only, not medical advice. Speak to your GP or pharmacist before starting a magnesium supplement, especially if you take other medicines.