The wellness industry's new answer to all your problems

According to celebs and influencers magnesium glycinate is the key to early nights and glowing skin. Ellie Muir finds out what it is and if there’s any truth to its champions’ claims

- Ellie Muir

A poreless woman scoops a mystery powder into an empty wine glass. She adds tonic water and lemon juice, before carefully taking a sip. “This is my magnesium mocktail,” she proudly declares to the camera. “I have it every night before bed.” She then reels off the benefits of her main ingredient, magnesium glycinate, the mineral that’s being touted as the miracle supplement of the moment.

This influencer – an effortlessly radiant twentysomething in expensive silk pyjamas – is representative of a growing movement in wellness. Across the internet, self-anointed gurus claim that ingesting supplemental magnesium can lead to better sleep, reduced stress, lessened anxiety and can even improve your digestion. Sounds like the perfect remedy for life’s aches and pains, right? The only issue is that we’re jumping on board with the supplements craze without doing any of our own research first.

Supplements have exploded into the spotlight recently, with dozens of influencer-backed companies popping up to offer potions promising everything from “glowy skin” to “increased productivity” to “a better night’s sleep”. While it’s long been standard procedure to take a Boots everyday multivitamin – or flirt with the idea of taking those Tess Daly tablets advertised on the Tube – the supplements industry has gotten a commercial facelift lately. It’s almost doubled in size since the pandemic, in response to vitamin sales increasing by 60 per cent post-Covid.