Magnesium Glycinate, Malate and Taurate: What the Different Forms Actually Do
Magnesium is one of the most commonly supplemented minerals in the UK, and one of the most confusingly labelled. Walk down any supplement aisle and you'll find oxide, citrate, glycinate, malate, taurate and a few others, at doses ranging from a few hundred milligrams to well over a thousand. The numbers on the front of the tubs don't compare like for like, and the forms aren't interchangeable.
Here's what the different forms are, why "chelated" appears on better labels, and the one number that actually tells you how much magnesium you're getting.
The number that matters: elemental magnesium
This is the single most useful thing to understand about magnesium supplements.
Magnesium never exists on its own in a capsule. It's always bonded to something else — an amino acid, an organic acid, or in cheaper products, oxygen. So when a label says 1,500mg or 1,600mg, that's the weight of the whole compound, not the weight of the magnesium in it. The magnesium itself is a fraction of that, and it's called the elemental magnesium.
Our Chelated Magnesium 3-in-1 Complex provides 1,600mg of chelated magnesium per two-capsule serving, which delivers 191mg of elemental magnesium — 50% of the NRV. Both figures are on the label, because you need both to compare anything sensibly.
If a product only shows you the large compound number and never mentions elemental content or NRV, that's worth noticing.
What "chelated" actually means
A chelated mineral is one bonded to an amino acid or organic acid rather than to an inorganic salt. The practical difference is in how the body handles it: chelated forms are generally better absorbed than magnesium oxide, which is the cheapest form on the market and the one most likely to sit in the digestive tract rather than be taken up.
Oxide has a high elemental magnesium content by weight, which looks good on paper. Absorption is where it falls down — and it's the form most associated with the laxative effect people complain about.
The three forms in our complex
Rather than one form at a large dose, our complex uses three chelates, each bonded to a different partner molecule.
Magnesium glycinate (800mg)
Magnesium bonded to glycine, an amino acid. It's the gentlest of the chelated forms on the stomach and the one most commonly chosen by people who've had trouble tolerating other magnesium supplements. It makes up half the blend.
Magnesium malate (400mg)
Magnesium bonded to malic acid, a compound that occurs naturally in fruit and plays a part in the body's energy-production cycle. Magnesium contributes to normal energy-yielding metabolism and to the reduction of tiredness and fatigue.
Magnesium taurate (400mg)
Magnesium bonded to taurine, another amino acid. Taurate is less common in high-street products and rounds out the blend with a third well-absorbed chelate.
Why the vitamin B6 is in there, and why the form of that matters too
Our complex includes vitamin B6 as pyridoxal 5-phosphate (P-5-P) rather than the more common pyridoxine hydrochloride.
P-5-P is the active coenzyme form — the form the body converts pyridoxine into before it can be used. Including it directly means one less conversion step. Vitamin B6 contributes to normal energy-yielding metabolism, normal functioning of the nervous system, normal protein and glycogen metabolism, and the reduction of tiredness and fatigue.
It's the same principle as the rest of the formula: pick the form the body can use, not the form that's cheapest to buy in bulk.
What magnesium does in the body
Magnesium is involved in hundreds of enzyme reactions, but the established, evidenced functions are worth stating plainly. Magnesium contributes to:
- normal muscle function
- normal functioning of the nervous system
- normal psychological function
- the reduction of tiredness and fatigue
- normal protein synthesis
- electrolyte balance
- the maintenance of normal bones and teeth
- normal energy-yielding metabolism
Intakes below the recommended level are common, particularly among people training regularly, since magnesium is lost through sweat.
How to take it
The serving is one or two capsules daily, preferably with a meal. Two capsules gives you 50% of the NRV, which is designed to top up a reasonable diet rather than replace it — magnesium is found in leafy greens, nuts, seeds, wholegrains and dark chocolate, and a supplement should be filling a gap, not doing all the work.
Don't exceed the stated dose. If you're pregnant, breastfeeding, taking prescribed medication or under medical supervision, check with your doctor or pharmacist first. Not intended for under-18s.
The bottom line
When you're comparing magnesium supplements, ignore the biggest number on the front of the tub and look for three things: the elemental magnesium content and NRV, whether the forms are chelated or oxide, and how long the ingredients list runs.
Our Chelated Magnesium 3-in-1 Complex is three chelated forms plus P-5-P, in plant-based HPMC capsules, with no fillers, binders or flow agents. Made in the UK in a GMP-certified facility. 120 capsules, a 60-day supply, £11.99.
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