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As many of you know, I am a huge fan of magnesium because it is so critical to our overall health. While minerals are very important for our health, magnesium stands a bit above the rest just because it is required for SO many bodily functions. Recently, I wrote a post about the health benefits of magnesium. You can read that here.
In addition, I’ve written about the importance of magnesium supplementation via transdermal (skin) application that you can read here. And, Lydia and I did a detailed Vibrant Health Podcast episode on miraculous magnesium as well. Listen to that here.
I do supplement with magnesium internally, but as with all supplements that only works well if your digestion is working optimally (which mine is not right now). So, in addition to internal supplementation, I also use a lot of transdermal magnesium (meaning it’s absorbed via the skin).
I won’t go into a lot of detail in this post about transdermal magnesium supplementation because I already wrote an in-depth article about it that you can read here.
Using Magnesium Transdermally
Many people don’t like plain magnesium oil spray because it can make their skin feel tingly and itchy. Lotions and gels are a great way to avoid that, as the other ingredients help soothe the skin when using the oil. But, these products can be expensive, especially when you use as much as me.
Also, another very important thing is that for those with impaired digestive function (which is honestly almost all of us today), oral supplementation may not provide you the benefits you desire simply because your body is unable to break down and assimilate the magnesium efficiently.
Also, Epsom salts are not an effective way to supplement magnesium. That is because Epsom salts are made from magnesium sulfate, which is rapidly excreted from the body and does little to boost internal levels. While Epsom salt baths have been used for soothing aches, pains, and sprains, soaking in this form of salts won’t give you the boost in magnesium that you may be looking for. For transdermal applications with the desire of boosting magnesium levels, you need magnesium chloride NOT magnesium sulfate.
Today, I want to show you the easiest way to make your own magnesium lotion and body butter at home. I’ve made a lot of body butters (and some lotion) and they always require me to buy a variety of ingredients that I will never use for anything else. I recently found a box of butters, waxes, and oils that I had to toss because they were so old. 🙁
It kills me to waste ingredients like that, so I was thinking there had to be a better way. Then, I was talking to my mom one day and she shared what she had been experimenting with — adding magnesium oil to pre-made lotion. She has been using transdermal magnesium (with great success) and I am so excited she shared her method with me. Thanks, Mom! <3
I was inspired and got to work and subsequently found that it works really well AND does not require that you buy any fancy ingredients other than your favorite lotion or body butter and some magnesium chloride flakes!
The Easiest DIY Magnesium Body Butter and Lotion Ever
For this super easy recipe, you really only need two ingredients:
Magnesium Chloride Flakes (or pre-made Magnesium Oil)
These are different from Epsom salts and a much better form for transdermal application (read this post for why you don’t want to use Epsom salts for this).
I use the Ancient Minerals brand that you can buy on Amazon here (sometimes local health food stores will carry this brand too). I also buy it from Perfect Supplements. It depends on where I’m placing my order at the time.
Your Favorite Lotion or Body Butter
For this recipe, I used my favorite coconut oil lotion and coconut oil body butter from Tropical Traditions. I have used these products for over a decade now and they remain some of my favorite products and work well for my skin. I always stock up on these when they run them on 2-for-1 sales, so it brings the cost down significantly (especially if it coincides with free shipping too!).
You should be able to adapt this recipe for whatever brand you like. Just make sure you’re always using a brand that is clean and does not have chemicals or artificial junk in it. That is why I love the Tropical Traditions products — they are super clean with very few ingredients.
If you want to make your own lotion or body butter for the base, then I have recipes for how to do that (but they will require buying some additional ingredients):
Essential Oils (optional, but nice)
For this recipe, I use the unscented lotion and cream from Tropical Traditions. That way I can create my own scent combinations to suit my own needs. You could use whatever essential oils you like to this recipe. Some of my favorites include:
- Lavender
- Peppermint
- Frankincense
- Cedarwood (nice with Vetiver for nighttime use)
- Vetiver (nice with Cedarwood for nighttime use)
- Citrus (just make sure you use this on the skin that is not exposed to UV rays, as some citrus oils are phototoxic and can cause the skin to burn)
As far as brands of essential oils that I recommend, there are several quality brands that I like, including:
You can learn more about my opinions on essential oil brands here.
Magnesium Body Butter and Lotion Recipe
Tips & Tricks for Lotion and Butter Success
- As stated above, you can use whatever lotion or body butter you want, but please make sure that you use one that is made with clean ingredients and does not have toxic oils, chemicals, artificial colors fragrances, etc.
- A hand mixer or stand mixer works best, though if you don’t have one you can whisk by hand. I find that the end product is better if you do use a hand or stand mixer though.
- These lotions and butters will keep at room temperature for 6-12 months. You’re making it in such small batches and will (hopefully) be using it regularly so it won’t have time to go bad. You can make this in really large batches if you need to use more.
- To use, simply apply to your skin like you would normal lotion or body butter. Best absorption happens on the feet and torso. I like to use these before bed and I find that I sleep more soundly when I get that hit of magnesium prior to bed.
The Easiest DIY Magnesium Body Butter and Lotion Ever
If plain magnesium oil bothers your skin, try a magnesium lotion or body butter! You can buy these products pre-made, but they are expensive. This tutorial will show you how to make your own at home for a fraction of the price.
Ingredients
BASIC MAGNESIUM OIL RECIPE
- 1/2 cup magnesium chloride flakes
- 1/2 cup hot filtered water
MAGNESIUM LOTION RECIPE
- 8oz. of your favorite body lotion (I use this one from Tropical Traditions)
- 4 tbsp. magnesium oil from the recipe above (or you can buy magnesium oil here, although this increases your DIY cost)
- Favorite essential oils (optional - see note above this recipe)
MAGNESIUM BODY BUTTER RECIPE
- 4oz. of your favorite body butter (I use this one from Tropical Traditions)
- 4 tbsp. magnesium oil from the recipe above (or you can buy magnesium oil here, although this increases your DIY cost)
- Favorite essential oils (optional - see note above this recipe)
Instructions
BASIC MAGNESIUM OIL INSTRUCTION
- Place your magnesium flakes in a glass jar.
- Pour hot water over the flakes.
- Stir until flakes are dissolved (will only take a minute or two)
- Let cool to room temperature, seal tightly with a lid, and label jar.
- Will keep at room temperature almost indefinitely.
MAGNESIUM LOTION INSTRUCTION
- Pour your favorite body lotion in a small bowl.
- Add your magnesium oil.
- Using a hand mixer or whisk, mix the oil into the lotion until the magnesium oil is thoroughly combined (1-2 minutes on medium-high speed).
- Add any essential oils that you are using and mix thoroughly.
- Pour into a bottle (the bottle it came in works great) and store at room temperature.
- Shake well before use.
MAGNESIUM BODY BUTTER INSTRUCTION
- Place your favorite body butter in a small bowl.
- Add your magnesium oil.
- Using a hand mixer or whisk, whip the oil into the lotion until the magnesium oil is thoroughly combined (1-2 minutes on medium-high speed).
- Add any essential oils that you are using and mix thoroughly.
- Scrape into a bottle or jar (the container it came in works great) and store at room temperature.
- If it ever separates, you can easily stir to re-mix, but I have found that if the butter is whipped well when made that it does not separate.
Recommended Products
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How Much Magnesium is in These Butters and Lotions?
OK. Let’s see how good my math is because I know I will get questions about this. Math is not my strong suit, so if you notice an error, please let me know. 🙂
For all of my transdermal magnesium use, I prefer the Ancient Minerals brand because I trust the quality and personally feel like it works better than other brands I’ve tried in the past. According to them, one cup of their magnesium chloride flakes contains 15 grams of magnesium.
Based on that, the basic magnesium oil recipe above would contain 7.5 grams (15 divided by 2) of magnesium total (for the 1/2 cup of oil that you made).
The magnesium lotion (8oz) uses 4 tablespoons (or 1/4 cup) of magnesium oil, which would be 3.75 grams per bottle (or 3,750 milligrams). For the ease of measuring, let’s say you used 1 tablespoon of lotion with each application and there will be roughly 16 tablespoons of magnesium lotion (there will actually be a tad more, but let’s keep it simple!). So, 1 tablespoon of magnesium lotion would then contain roughly 234.38 milligrams of magnesium (3,750 milligrams divided by 16 tablespoons).
The magnesium body butter (4oz) uses 4 tablespoons (or 1/4 cup) of magnesium oil, which would be 3.75 grams per container (or 3,750 milligrams). For the ease of measuring, let’s say you used 1 tablespoon of body butter with each application and there will be roughly 8 tablespoons of magnesium butter (there will actually be a tad more, but let’s keep it simple!). So, 1 tablespoon of magnesium lotion would then contain roughly 468.75 milligrams of magnesium (3,750 milligrams divided by 8 tablespoons).
OK. Hope my math is right. 😉
Now, of course, it is really hard to know exactly how much of that magnesium is then absorbed by your skin. According to the Ancient Minerals website, 1 teaspoon of their magnesium lotion (this one) delivers approximately 185 milligrams of elemental magnesium, so that gives you a rough idea.
If you really want to focus on boosting your levels of magnesium through a transdermal application, consider running an RBC Magnesium blood test so that you get a baseline for where you’re at. Use the transdermal magnesium daily and then re-test in 1-3 months and see if your numbers have changed. This is what Lydia, my nutritional therapist, is going to have me do so that we can really see where my mag levels are at.
Resources for Further Research
If you are interested in learning more about magnesium, then I suggest the following resources:
- The Health Benefits of Magnesium
- How to Make Magnesium Oil for Transdermal Application
- Magnesium 101
- The Magnesium Miracle by Carolyn Dean
- Full Library of Minerals for Health Articles
- Healing with Mineral Analysis Facebook Group
- Mineral Balancing via Hair Tissue Mineral Analysis
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