A few months ago, while doing research for a new scrub me™ product, a certain mineral caught our attention. Magnesium is a mineral that naturally occurs in the human body, foods, supplements, and other natural sources. From our immune system to our bone strength, magnesium plays an important role in the workings of the body. We were researching this mineral because of the topical benefits it has for the skin. Now we’d love to share our findings with you!

scrub me secret: the recommended amount of magnesium per day for adult women is 310-320mg and 400-420mg for adult men. visit ods.od.nih.gov/pdf/factsheets/Magnesium-Consumer.pdf for recommended amounts of magnesium for children, teens, and pregnant women.

Let’s start by giving a little summary of what magnesium is exactly; it is a mineral found in foods, the earth, and the human body. Magnesium is needed to keep our hormones functioning correctly, promote bone/muscle strength, support the immune system, and so many other things. This mineral impacts over 300 body functions. Some of us can be deficient in magnesium, causing issues like fatigue, muscle weakness & cramps, hormonal changes, and more. Research from NIH.gov shows that the diets of most people in the US provide less than the recommended amount of magnesium per day. Supplements are popular options to infuse magnesium into the body. It can also be absorbed into the body via soaks, sprays, and topical balms.

scrub me secret: When magnesium is being absorbed into the system via the skin it is called transdermal application. This is said to be a more efficient way to get the daily dose of magnesium vs. a supplement. The minerals can absorb directly into the cells and do not have to travel through vital organs.

So what does magnesium actually do for our skin? It plays a key role in the structure and overall health of the skin. Without magnesium the skin could be more easily damaged by the sun, oxidation, and inflammation. This leads to problems like aging, sensitivity, hyper-pigmentation, excessive dryness, and more. Because this mineral helps to regulate our hormones, it can aid in clearing hormonal acne and aging.

scrub me secret: overproduction of hormones like cortisol (the stress hormone) can cause our skin to age more rapidly. over production of this hormone can cause low skin elasticity, dullness, and fine lines. making sure levels of magnesium are healthy can help fight cortisol production.

All of these benefits received from magnesium are linked to the inner workings of the body. When this mineral is absorbed internally or in a transdermal manner it can then enter our system and go to work. We love the idea of using a magnesium bath soak, spray, oil, or cream. This sounds like a way to pamper yourself and absorb this important mineral.

With all these awesome properties that promote clear, glowing, healthy skin you’d think we were researching this for an ingredient in a scrub me™ bath item or body oil. That’s not it! As some of you may know, we have been on a mission to create the absolute best plant-based deodorant. Magnesium blended with essential oils and other raw, natural materials can work to reduce sweat and odors. Our deodorant recipe and testing is still a work in progress but we are definitely on the right track. We are enjoying researching and learning about different types of plants, oils, and minerals like the one we talked about today more in-depth.

scrub me secret: We got some inspiration when researching magnesium and decided to create some spa-like bath soak recipes with some major benefits! We are making these recipes so they are easy to make at home with ingredients from your favorite health food store. Look out for these DIY mineral bath soaks on the blog next month.