Magnesium is amazing. When we’re deficient, it shows up in annoying symptoms and even various health problems. The good news is, that supplementing is easy, especially when you know how to make the best organic magnesium lotion recipe.
Quick Answer
To make organic magnesium lotion, combine ¾ cup olive oil, 5 tablespoons shea butter, and 2 tablespoons beeswax. Melt them together, then emulsify with 1 cup of Ancient Minerals magnesium chloride brine in a food processor. It comes together in about 15 minutes, keeps for up to a year without any preservatives, and is one of the simplest, most effective ways to get magnesium into your body transdermally. Full recipe and instructions below!
What is transdermal magnesium lotion?
It almost seems like magic – rub this lotion on, and incredible things happen: deep restful sleep, balanced hormones, and relief from headaches, pain, and anxiety. Isn’t it great that we can make this easy DIY magnesium lotion at home?
I won’t go into a ton of detail now, but in another blog post, which you can check out here, I talk about my experience with the many incredible benefits of magnesium lotion. I also have other blog posts where I talk about how magnesium helps me with sleep and anxiety.
The wonderful thing about magnesium lotion is that when we use magnesium on the skin, we can achieve balance very quickly. This means fast relief from the symptoms of magnesium deficiency (source).
I’m going to show you how easy it is to make the best organic magnesium lotion recipe for transdermal magnesium therapy.
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Why make it as a lotion instead of a spray?
You can spray straight magnesium brine right on the skin, and you can get great transdermal magnesium therapy benefits that way. But, straight magnesium brine on the skin can be drying, tingly, and itchy.
When magnesium brine is combined with skin moisturizing oils and butter, we get the great benefits of magnesium through the skin, without drying and irritation. Yay!
Ingredients for my new and improved organic magnesium lotion recipe
I do have an early blog post on how to make magnesium lotion. This recipe is similar to that one, but it has been updated and made even better. My other magnesium lotion recipe is still quite nice. But, it does tend to have a bit of a softer consistency.
This new, best organic magnesium lotion recipe has organic shea butter, which helps give the lotion a thicker consistency, which makes it easier to apply. I’ve also bumped up the beeswax a little, to help with thickness.
If you’re looking for a light, non-greasy body lotion recipe with pure and simple ingredients, check out my recipe for how to make lotion with shea butter.
Why I make these recipes
I started making my own magnesium lotion (and tallow balm, and soap, and everything else you’ll find on this site) because I genuinely believe real, traditional ingredients work better than anything in the store. But the deeper reason runs through everything I do: food is medicine, and so is what we put on our skin. The same philosophy that healed my gut, my cystic acne, my chronic fatigue, and my migraines is the one behind every recipe here. If you want to read more about how I think about the connection between traditional fats and gut wellness, I wrote about it in depth here.
The gut and magnesium connection
If you’re already making things like this at home, I’d guess gut wellness is on your radar too. And that makes so much sense, because what you put on your skin and what’s happening inside your gut are more connected than most people realize. Magnesium deficiency, poor sleep, headaches, hormonal issues… these are things that respond really well to both what you eat and what you put on your body.
If you want a clear, simple starting point for the gut side of things, I put together a free guide called the Gut Reset Jumpstart. It’s a step-by-step plan to start feeling better this week, without the overwhelm.
Organic magnesium lotion recipe directions
Ingredients:
- 3/4 cup olive oil
- 5 TBSP shea butter
- 2 TBSP beeswax
- 1 cup magnesium chloride brine
- 96 drops of essential oils (optional, click the link to see my favorite essential oils)
Instructions:
- Measure olive oil, shea butter, and beeswax into a heat-safe pitcher.
- Create a double boiler by placing the pitcher inside a pan of water with a cloth under the pitcher.
- Heat water to a gentle simmer.
- Stir the oil mixture periodically as it melts.
- Once the beeswax and shea butter are completely melted and combined into olive oil, remove the pitcher from heat and pour the oil mixture into a food processor, being careful to not get any water in the oil mixture.
- Turn the food processor on.
- Slowly pour a very thin stream of magnesium chloride brine into the food processor while it runs.
- Allow the food processor to run for a minute or so.
- Add essential oils, if using, and allow the food processor to run for another minute.
- Pour magnesium lotion into glass jars.
- Store at room temperature in a cool, dark place.
I put 50+ of my best tallow and natural living recipes together in one place. Soaps, lotions, natural remedies, mom-and-baby products — all made with the same simple, pure ingredients you already love. It’s a beautiful full-color, 92-page book, available in print or as a digital download.
How to use magnesium lotion for best results
I’ve found that when I’m correcting a magnesium deficiency, it’s good to take it both internally, and through the skin. That way, I get all the benefits of magnesium.
Applying magnesium to the skin is also called transdermal magnesium therapy, and it works much faster than an internal supplement (source). Magnesium enters the bloodstream immediately, where the body can use it right away.
Also, the body can use exactly the amount it needs. Overdose and digestive upset are avoided. This organic magnesium lotion works perfectly for this.
For internal magnesium, I like this Magnesium Calm powder supplement. Magnesium glycinate is another good choice I sometimes use. Taking magnesium internally helps to ensure that my magnesium levels stay healthy long term.
How much magnesium is in homemade magnesium lotion?
According to my research, 1 teaspoon of this organic magnesium lotion delivers approximately 280 mg of elemental magnesium. I usually use about 1-2 teaspoons at a time when I use it.
Which magnesium chloride is best for lotion?
When I make this magnesium lotion recipe, I like to use a very high-quality, ultra-pure magnesium brine. My favorite is this one from Ancient Minerals. It comes from the Ancient Zechstein Sea in The Netherlands and is extremely pure and high quality.
You can make your own magnesium brine from magnesium flakes. But, the brine made that way isn’t as pure. It can also be more irritating to the skin.
Does magnesium lotion need a preservative?
While most homemade lotion recipes do need a preservative, I’ve found that this magnesium lotion is just fine without one. The magnesium chloride brine acts similar to the way that salt does as a natural preservative. So, as long as you’re applying it with clean hands, and it’s used up within about a year, it should stay nice and fresh.
Just like when you make any body care product at home, you want to be very careful to use super clean equipment. I recommend washing everything you’ll be using in a weak bleach solution, and then letting it air dry. That will help avoid any unwanted bacteria ending up in the finished lotion.
Essential oils for organic magnesium lotion
You can keep magnesium lotion unscented, or you can enhance the already wonderful relaxing and sleep-enhancing properties of magnesium lotion by adding certain essential oils. These ones are great choices:
I like to add essential oils in a 1% dilution. For this magnesium lotion recipe, which makes about 16 oz. of lotion, you’ll add 96 drops of essential oils.
Tips for making magnesium lotion
I’ve gotten various questions about how I make magnesium lotion, so I wanted to cover those here.
There is definitely a wide variety of ingredients you can use when you make homemade lotions. There are emulsifying waxes and stabilizers. I personally like to keep my skincare products as simple pure and natural as possible, with wholesome, easy-to-recognize ingredients.
I use organic beeswax for the emulsifier, and it works great. The emulsifying waxes that are commercially available are made from synthetic ingredients, and beeswax is much more pure and natural.
Stabilizers for lotion making aren’t so pure and natural, either. They’re made with processed ingredients and I prefer to skip them altogether. I am really happy with the consistency when I keep it super pure and natural like this. I really do think this is the best organic magnesium lotion recipe.
Frequently Asked Questions
When magnesium is applied to your skin, it enters the bloodstream directly, which means your body can use it quickly and efficiently. Many people find that applying magnesium transdermally can help with headaches, trouble sleeping, restless leg syndrome, anxiety, and hormonal issues. I like to use a two-step approach, taking magnesium internally and applying it to my skin, because when you’re dealing with a deficiency, the transdermal method tends to work faster.
In my experience, no. The magnesium chloride brine acts as a natural preservative, similar to how salt preserves food. As long as you use clean equipment (I recommend washing everything in a weak bleach solution and letting it air dry before you start), your lotion should stay fresh for up to 6 months to a year without any added preservatives.
Many families, including mine, use magnesium lotion on their children. It can be a really gentle way to support sleep and calm. I’d start with a small amount on the feet, since the skin there is a bit thicker, and just watch for any sensitivity. As with anything you’re adding to a child’s routine, use your mama instincts and check with your healthcare provider if you have specific concerns.
Start with about a teaspoon and apply it to areas where the skin is a bit thinner, like your stomach, thighs, inner wrists, the inside of your elbows, or behind your knees. These spots absorb well. You can increase the amount gradually as your body adjusts. I apply it at night before bed, and if I’m using essential oils like lavender, it doubles as a really lovely little bedtime ritual.
Yes! In order to keep this a nice, soft lotion consistency, it works best to leave the olive oil as the main lotion ingredient and then substitute the shea butter for tallow.
Using tallow in magnesium lotion is a great way to upgrade the lotion’s skin benefits. If you’re new to using tallow in your DIY skincare, you might be surprised by just how many ways this incredible traditional fat can serve your family. I put together a complete guide to all the beef tallow uses here, from cooking to skincare to candle making and more.
More natural living recipes
How the GAPS diet changed our lives
Do you supplement with magnesium?
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Ancient Minerals magnesium chloride brine
Unrefined shea butter, organic
Tranquil Synergy essential oil blend
Relax Synergy essential oil blend
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The information in this blog post is my personal experience and opinion. It is for general information purposes only, that may not apply to you as an individual, and is not a substitute for your own physician’s medical care or advice. Always seek advice from your physician or another qualified health provider with any questions you may have regarding nutrition, medical conditions, and advice. Never disregard medical advice or delay seeking medical care because of something you have read on this blog.
The Best Organic Magnesium Lotion Recipe
Magnesium is amazing. When we're deficient, it shows up in annoying symptoms and even various health problems. The good news is, supplementing is easy, especially when you know how to make the best organic magnesium lotion recipe.
Ingredients
Instructions
- Measure olive oil, shea butter, and beeswax into a heat safe pitcher.
- Create a double boiler by placing pitcher inside a pan of water with a cloth under the pitcher.
- Heat water to a gentle simmer.
- Stir oil mixture periodically as it melts.
- Once beeswax and shea butter are completely melted and combined into olive oil, remove pitcher from heat
and pour oil mixture into food processor, being careful to not get any water in oil mixture. - Turn food processor on.
- Slowly pour a very thin stream of magnesium chloride brine into food processor while it runs.
- Allow food processor to run for a minute or so.
- Add essential oils, if using, and allow food processor to run for another minute.
- Pour magnesium lotion into glass jars.
- Store at room temperature in a cool, dark place.
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