Best magnesium supplements for heart health?

My sweetheart has been dealing with these heart palpitations for a while now. I’ve tried to google everything, but nothing really comes up that fits. He usually describes it like his heart just "skips a beat," and then he starts feeling all dizzy and lightheaded. In the end, both he and I—each looking at it from our own perspective, I guess—concluded that it might all be in his head, since his job is so physically demanding and stressful. It always seems to happen right when he finally manages to relax.
He’s started taking magnesium and Vitamin B6 now. I know he can take as much B6 as he needs, but what about the magnesium? I mean, what's actually happening there... is it like calcium, where you shouldn't take it for too long? He just takes the pills whenever he feels exhausted or knows he's got a super intense day ahead of him. This silly box from some overseas brand says not to exceed the daily recommended dose (which is 2 tablets with plenty of water), but it doesn't actually list the specific ingredients for those tablets.

Grace Jackson11 said:My partner has been dealing with heart palpitations for a little while now. We’ve tried googling everything, but nothing really comes up with a clear answer. He usually describes it as his heart just "skipping a beat," which sounds a bit frantic. Ultimately, both he and I—each looking at it from our own perspective—have come to the conclusion that it might be psychosomatic, given how physically demanding and high-stress his job is. Interestingly, the symptoms always seem to flare up right when he finally manages to relax.
He’s currently taking magnesium and Vitamin B6. I know he can take as much B6 as he needs, but what about magnesium? I was wondering if there are similar concerns with magnesium as there are with calcium, where you shouldn't take it for too long? He tends to take the tablets whenever he feels fatigued or knows he has an especially grueling day ahead. The packaging on this imported bottle is a bit poorly designed; it simply states not to exceed the recommended daily dose (two tablets with plenty of water), but it doesn't actually list the specific composition of the supplement.

I'm in a similar boat. In my case, they initially diagnosed me with mitral valve prolapse, though a recent Doppler ultrasound didn't quite confirm it definitively.
Anyway, regarding magnesium levels in the body: stress can significantly deplete them, and interestingly, a high intake of calcium can also impact that balance since they work in tandem. In other words, my personal philosophy is to focus on increasing magnesium through natural sources—like diet or even supplements like Donat—during normal periods. I would only resort to higher doses via tablets during those specific times when a major increase is truly necessary, such as during periods of intense stress.
That is, quite frankly, my approach...

During my pregnancy, my heart would just start racing for absolutely no reason at all, and my doctor ended up putting me on those effervescent magnesium 300 tablets which basically made every single one of my symptoms vanish into thin air. He probably really is just running low on magnesium, and honestly, I don't see any harm in him trying a single dose.

Anyway, just tell your husband those heart palpitations are basically just extra beats caused by stress and anxiety—they feel terrible, but they’re super common. If he hasn't dealt with one yet, he might trigger a panic attack if he starts obsessing over the physical sensations. It’s a good thing he already saw a doctor; now you just need to convince him he's fine and tell him to stop overthinking the palpitations so he can get back to his life. Let me know if you want more info, otherwise I won't bore you with it.

Thanks, that’s pretty much what I was thinking and how I’ve been trying to look at it. Does anyone know if you can actually overdose on magnesium? I did a little bit of googling and found out you shouldn't overdo it, but I couldn't find any specific numbers or anything. I guess it probably wouldn't do much harm if I just take it whenever I'm feeling a bit down.

Honestly, he’s better off ditching the pills entirely and just laying low—it’s clearly all in his head ☕

You can definitely overdose on magnesium. The RDA is around 350 mg, so there’s really no reason to push past that limit. Honestly, I’m pretty skeptical about taking supplements unless someone has run specific blood tests to prove they actually need them. If he's trying to deal with those extra heartbeats, maybe look into some homeopathic options instead. He should also watch his diet—stick to smaller meals and eat slowly so he isn't swallowing air. Most importantly, tell him to stop stressing about "skipping" beats. Everyone feels that every now and then; we just don't make a big deal out of it. It's not going to kill him.

stormylynx4 said:I’m pretty skeptical about taking magnesium supplements, especially since there haven't been any specific blood tests performed to justify actually needing it.

...I hear you, but if your heart is racing daily, skipping beats (especially those nighttime tremors after 10 PM when you're just trying to rest), or spiking your pulse up to 230 bpm—and considering studies show that roughly 97% of people dealing with mitral valve prolapse suffer from low magnesium levels—what would you choose between beta-blockers and magnesium? Don't get me wrong, I am a huge advocate for getting nutrients through natural sources, but sometimes...

Let's circle back to Grace Jackson11's husband. Even if his levels were determined by an estimate rather than a clinical lab test, I still maintain that boosting magnesium intake through diet, supplemented by tablets during particularly high-stress periods, isn't going to hurt. You just can't treat it as a permanent, long-term fix without caution...

My advice was strictly for someone without an official diagnosis. If his heart is actually healthy, then skipping beats is coming from somewhere else—mitral valve issues are a completely different animal. As for choosing between beta-blockers and magnesium supplements, I wouldn't be the one making that call; that’s a job for a cardiologist who can actually look at his vitals. To be clear, my skepticism comes from the fact that this is all just guesswork right now; there haven't been any actual tests to prove he's even deficient in magnesium. I'm not trying to scare anyone, but if you do a quick Google search, you'll see that overdoing it on magnesium can cause its own set of problems. Long story short, I'm generally against loading up on random vitamins and minerals without getting bloodwork done first. Just because you can grab something off the shelf at a CVS doesn't mean it's safe or right for everyone.

Oh man, let's please not start fighting now 🙂
stormylynx4, listen, I totally get the whole thing about daily doses and overdosing, but I guess... could she actually cause any damage if she stays on this dose—or maybe even less—but does it over a long period? Like, for weeks at a time?
In the meantime, he’s going to keep up with all the testing. He just got some little gadget, like a tiny EKG monitor the size of a pocket planner, that he has to wear and then just snap a photo of with his phone to send to a cardiologist who's basically on call 24/7.
Thanks everyone for all the help. And about that stuff regarding staying active and living a healthy lifestyle... I suppose we'll get to that once we finally pull off "Plan B." For now, we're just dealing with this...

The main thing is just staying under the RDA. He won't need this for weeks, especially if they gave him a Holter monitor to check his heart rhythm over a full day and the results come back clean. I know firsthand how unsettling those extra beats can feel, but if the Holter shows everything is fine, there isn't much left for doctors to "fix" biologically—his heart is structurally healthy. At that point, he’ll need to look into different ways to manage the stress of it all.

I almost forgot one thing—magnesium supplements can be a bit of a laxative, so if your husband starts dealing with an upset stomach or diarrhea, you'll know it's just the magnesium at work.

Thanks, if this helps him out, that’s great, and even if it doesn't, I guess that's fine too. I could probably start rambling on about all those other middle-age symptoms now, but I suppose that just falls under ZED. :-)

Grace Jackson11 said:Thanks! If this helps him out, that's a win; if it doesn't hurt, that's also a win. I could probably go on listing all the other middle-age symptoms he's dealing with right now, but I suppose that falls under the category of ZED. :-)

So, did he end up buying that Harley? 🙂

Grace Jackson11 said:So, did he finally pull the trigger on that Harley? 🙂

No way! And man, I really hope he doesn't go spending all our money on some fancy bachelor pad either... at least not before he buys us that bike! 😉