Have you ever tried spraying your skin with magnesium oil spray only to end up super itchy? Or maybe your skin feels like it burns…well, there’s a perfectly good explanation for that. You see, magnesium and skin rash can go hand in hand, unfortunately.
So while magnesium is a popular supplement suggestion, topical magnesium is another option you’ve likely heard about.
But there can be downsides to using topical magnesium spray that often surprises people because the reaction can potentially cause a significant itchy skin flare-up.
So the question is… is it normal to experience this type of reaction? Can too much magnesium cause itching?
And does it mean that you’re sensitive to something in the spray? Or is it just that magnesium can cause an itchy rash?
In today’s episode, I wanted to explore the relationship between magnesium and skin rash — and why you might want to avoid magnesium oil spray on rashed skin.
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In this episode:
- Quick overview about the importance of magnesium for health
- Magnesium and rash: Why magnesium oil may not be the best option
- What does magnesium oil mean if it burns?
- Say goodbye to magnesium and skin problems: Alternative options to magnesium oil that won’t flare your skin
Quotes:
Magnesium is critical to the proper functioning of your body and is necessary for over 300 biochemical reactions in your body. It can help you relax and fall asleep while certain forms can have the exact opposite action during the day by waking you up.
If magnesium oil triggers what feels like a rash or a flare, you may want to stop it. Nobody really knows why magnesium oil causes itching or burning. Some people say that this reaction means you’re deficient in magnesium, but there is literally no science to support that claim.
Can Magnesium Give You A Rash? (FULL TRANSCRIPT)
Welcome to Episode #83 of the Healthy Skin Show!
In today’s episode, I want to talk about magnesium.
Here’s the thing with magnesium…
Whenever you have a health issue, it’s one of the first suggestions people will make. When it comes to your skin, magnesium is very important.
But here’s the thing – the form of magnesium that you take matters. It should be specific to your symptoms and issues.
Because this is a bit complicated, I’ll break this topic into two parts. In this article, I will focus solely on topical magnesium.
I’m asking questions like “can magnesium cause a rash?” Or “if you’re getting a rash from a magnesium supplement, what may be a better form than another form?”
Magnesium and Skin Rash
First, it’s worth mentioning a few of the benefits of magnesium.
Magnesium is critical to the proper functioning of your body, especially on a biochemical level.
In fact, it’s necessary for over 300 biochemical reactions in your body.
It can help you relax and wind down at night and fall asleep.
Surprisingly, certain forms can have the exact opposite effect during the day, waking you up.
It can reduce muscle cramps and restless leg syndrome.
And it can also help you poop.
Can Magnesium Oil Help Your Skin?
One of the first suggestions people often make is to apply magnesium oil to your skin to soothe it or increase your body’s magnesium stores.
One reason they suggest a topical form is that certain forms of magnesium can cause gastrointestinal side effects when taken orally.
Magnesium oil seems like a much less risky version of magnesium that can be absorbed through your skin.
Sounds great, right?
There are a couple of problems I have with magnesium oil.
The first issue is related to the quantity of magnesium you’re actually absorbing. If you are truly deficient in magnesium, which I often find in clients, you have no idea how much magnesium your body is actually absorbing through your skin.
There’s no clear way to tell which makes it difficult to know if you’re truly putting a dent in a deficiency.
Can Magnesium Cause A Rash?
The second issue is related to this side effect of using magnesium oil. If you haven’t tried it yet, know that it can cause your skin to become either itchy or feel like it’s burning.
I don’t know about you, but the idea of making my skin itchier or causing it to burn is really not ideal. It’s not a great idea to trigger yourself to start scratching, because once you start, it can be difficult to stop.
If magnesium oil seems to trigger a rash or a flare, you may want to stop using it.
Why Can Magnesium Spray Cause A Rash?
Nobody really knows why magnesium oil causes itching or burning. Some people say that your skin may react if you’re deficient in magnesium. However, there is literally no scientific evidence to support that claim.
A second idea, which seems slightly more plausible, has to do with the differences in pH between the type of magnesium used in magnesium oil and your skin.
These magnesium oil products use Magnesium Chloride.
As you may remember, your skin’s pH level should be around 4.5.
Microbiome dysbiosis (aka. imbalances) can occur on the skin when there is an imbalance in the microbiome, and this can lead to leaky skin.
One factor triggering all of this is a change in your skin’s pH.
According to some articles I’ve found, the pH of Magnesium Chloride is around 7.5, whereas others put it closer to a pH of 6. Either way, that’s a pretty sizable pH jump from 4.5 and could be disruptive.
However, there is no research on this, so this might not be the reason why magnesium oil causes your skin to itch or burn.
Magnesium And Skin Rash: What About Epsom Salt For Your Skin Instead?
All is not lost if you’d still like to get magnesium through your skin!
Epsom salt, which contains Magnesium Sulfate, is a little bit closer to the natural skin pH — around 5.5 to maybe 6.5.
Maybe that partially explains why Epsom salt baths do not seem to trigger the same type of reaction as magnesium oil.
Don’t Suffer With A Rash From A Magnesium Supplement
My suggestion?
Ditch the magnesium oil, especially if it causes itching and burning.
And definitely don’t spray it directly onto rashes if you find that the area becomes more irritated.
Instead, try a magnesium bath using Epsom salt in warm water, rather than bleach baths (which aren’t actually effective, based on current research).
You can also add some colloidal oats. Click here for the directions on how to make your own colloidal oats.
And you can even add some of your favorite oil to the water. You can use a little drizzle on top of the water’s surface before getting into the bath to help support your skin.
Good options include avocado oil, hemp seed oil, or jojoba oil. For wintertime, heavier oils like sesame seed oil and beef tallow could also work.
The magnesium that dissolves in the bath water will be absorbed through the skin.
So, if you know for sure that your magnesium stores are low, the ideal situation is to use a combo of magnesium baths and supplementation.
If you want to learn more about taking the right type of magnesium supplementation, check out THIS post here!
Can You Get A Rash From Magnesium?
Magnesium can be a wonderful thing, but you have to make sure you’re taking the right form for you. That way, you don’t end up with GI problems like diarrhea, bloating, and gas.
If you’ve had experience applying magnesium oil, I’d love to hear about it. Share with us what you think, and let us know if it has helped you, in the comments below.
As always, one thing I ask is that you share this information with someone you know, whether it’s a person or a community seeking other options to try.
Sharing is a critical piece to us expanding this movement of demanding better for our skin.
I deeply appreciate you tuning in, and I look forward to seeing you in the next episode!
Have You Gotten A Rash From A Magnesium Supplement?
Maybe you’ve gotten a rash from a magnesium supplement. Or maybe something completely different is triggering your rashes — and you’re not sure what’s going on or how to stop it.
If that’s you, I have a completely free resource that can help you figure out why your skin is breaking out in a rash, so you can put the struggle behind you.
Download the Skin Rash Root Cause Finder here, and I’ll walk you through the same exact process I use with my private clients to help them figure out what’s really driving your skin nuts AND how to stop your rashes for good.
It’s the most comprehensive and helpful guide out there for finding the answers you need and healing your skin rash.
REFERENCES
https://www.wellandgood.com/good-looks/why-does-magnesium-spray-make-me-itchy/
https://sciencing.com/physical-chemical-properties-epsom-salt-7217842.html
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/25252874
https://www.chemguide.co.uk/inorganic/period3/chlorides.html
I appreciate that you also provide a transcript of your audio each time you post. Thank you.
Hi I tried magnesium oil and I could not believe how awful my fave looked the next day. I got the worst rash ever on my face. I will never use this again. It felt itchy and burning sensation. Please be careful if you have sensitive skin.
A terrible rash outbreak on my face, ears, and eyes too! ITCHY and burning for a few days! It’s going to take some time to fully heal .
I’m also struggling with severe eye irritation from the biologic Adbry. Everything was 10x worse!
I’ve been on Adbry for 8 weeks. The eye itching seems to be worse than Dupixent. I had to stop Dupixent because it was giving me arthritis in my hands and feet. This side effect happens to Mediterraneans who are prone to hereditary arthritis. Of course I had to learn the hard way after the damage was already done.
Tacrilimus cream in thin amounts seems to help a bit. Problem is that some tacrilimus creams have butlyhydroxytolene preservative in them. I’m allergic to benzene preservatives.
Great information, thank you. Magnesium spray does burn my skin. Looking forward to magnesium supplement suggestions.
Question, any recommendations for a skin lotion for eczema that contain magnesium in a smaller percentage?
Thank you,
Lisa
Not that I’m aware of. Zinc would probably be a better option to have in a lotion than magnesium in my personal experience having dealt with dyshidrotic eczema. It would help my skin calm down much faster.
I use magnesium oil spray on my legs every night for restless legs. Every time I get in my saltwater pool for several hours, I start intensely itching only on the legs where I spray magnesium. It lasts for several days. Is this a reaction between the pool water and magnesium? What can I do? The magnesium really calms my restless legs but I can’t really use my pool now! Please advise if you can. Thank you.
I really don’t know, Cindy. But why not try getting your magnesium from an oral form and see if that allows you to then use the pool again comfortably. Many people have issues with magnesium oil unfortunately and some really don’t like the “dry feel” that it also creates on the skin.
Omg!! YES it so is drying out my feet very badly to where I am having to slab on tons of moisturizer to help it. I was wondering if it was the spray now I know it is
I have the same issue with a magnesium butter that I apply to my feet and legs at night. It helps me sleep and it absorbs into the skin rally nicely, unlike the oil. However after a few weeks I noticed my palms were going abnormally wrinkly when having washed my hands, my right hand was worse (I am right handed). I use my right hand to apply the magnesium butter so I stared to apply it wearing gloves but after a week my feet are now really wrinkly after a bath and the skin is very itchy with the skin peeling in places. It’s such a shame as I loved it but my skin does not! I’ve switched to oral magnesium instead earlier this week and I’m hoping it will suit me.
I make liquid mineral supplements for over 10 years, one of them was magnesium as a chloride, this is what mag oil is, a very high concentrate of magnesium salts as a brine. I have used it topically when my leg(s) cramp up. Sometimes it burns sometimes it doesn’t. I personally contribute this to whether or not my skin is naturally oily. some times I also use it preventative if I will be driving a long time. this is in addition to taking orally various forms of Magnesium, as well as a diluted mag oil drink.
You are right about spray magnesium causing itching. My FuncMed practitioner prescribed it for use on legs because of recurring muscle camps, particularly at night. She also recommended epsom salt baths but they are a nuisance (lazy, lazy). The first time I used the spray, my right leg, which had eczema rashes from recent scratching, burned like crazy. My left did not itch probably because I had not had any recent rash or breakout. I was worried that I was doing some damage to my right leg. Hearing your discussion has been extremely informative. Wish I could continue using the spray because it is so convenient. Don’t want to go to another supplement as am taking many now. Incidentally, I have had the big E all my life but only in the last several years has it become more pronounced. Also have GERD/LPR, leaky gut, SIBO, suboptimal thyroid, brain fog. What a mess. Hope to get some good advice/observations from your outreach efforts. Keep up the good work.
The magnesium oil burns when it goes on, but then it keeps it from itching for several days. The little bit of burn is worth the lack of itching
Me too it burns going on which is a weird nice kind of burn and it takes out the itch for days..which gives it time to heal from raw to a scab
Thanks for adding the transcript. I think I have given myself a rash using topical magnesium without wiping it off when the crystals form. I’m going to give myself a break on areas where it’s been itchy and try to wipe off after!
Hi,
What do you suggest if there has been a reaction after using a mag spray besides stopping it? For burning pain and rash and dryness. Is there something to soothe and heal the tissues? Thank you.
Unfortunately I can’t say. It may just be too irritating and you’ll need to use oral forms (or in a bath) to get your magnesium intake.
I used magnesium spray on my feet and hands (Dupytrines contracture and a rheumatoid nodule on my ankle) with no problem. However, I sprayed it onto my calves (because of rheumatoid pain) directly after shaving in the shower. What a terrible idea!! It burned for a while, but I’ve had a rash for a week so far.
Hi Tamara, yes that’s why I don’t generally recommend it on skin — especially after shaving can be very irritating. Hopefully it’s since cleared up.