Oral magnesium supplementation improves glycemic control in older Chinese adults with pre-diabetes and hypomagnesemia: a randomized controlled trial
Yang J, Zhang H, Li Y, Wu W, Pan M, Wang J, Li G, Wu Y, Guo C, Yang L, Ding J, Ding G
Frontiers in nutrition · 2 citations
How it was studied
- Design
- Controlled clinical trial (indexed by PubMed)
- Studied in
- People
- Main outcome
- Health markers and function
Who paid for it
- Funding
- Independent funding
Based on full-text disclosure statement.
Publication
- Published
- 2026-02-11 · Front Nutr · vol. 13 · p. 1765308
- Publisher
- Frontiers Media
- Cited
- 1 citation · more than 90% of similar papers · 4.3× the field average
- References
- 30 works
- Access
- Open access (journal) · CC-BY
- Research areas
- Magnesium in Health and Disease · Parathyroid Disorders and Treatments · Heavy Metal Exposure and Toxicity
- Keywords
- Randomized controlled trial, Glycemic, Diabetes mellitus, Magnesium, Clinical trial
12 authors
From CN
- Jingxin YangChinese Center For Disease Control and Prevention; National Institute for Nutrition and Health
- Huidi ZhangChinese Center For Disease Control and Prevention; National Institute for Nutrition and Health
- Yuting LiChinese Center For Disease Control and Prevention; National Institute for Nutrition and Health
- Wenxuan WuChinese Center For Disease Control and Prevention; National Institute for Nutrition and Health
- Min PanCapital Medical University
- Jingjing WangTianjin Third Central Hospital; Tianjin Medical University
Abstract
Purpose
Pre-diabetes significantly increases the risk of type 2 diabetes and cardiovascular disease. Magnesium deficiency is common and may contribute to dysglycemia. However, evidence for the efficacy of magnesium supplementation in pre-diabetes, especially in older adults with hypomagnesemia, remains limited and inconclusive. This exploratory trial aimed to evaluate the effects of oral magnesium supplementation on glycemic parameters and conducted exploratory metabolomic profiling in this population.
Methods
In this 4-month, randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial, 71 community-dwelling older adults (mean age 68.7 ± 6.0 years) with pre-diabetes (fasting plasma glucose ≥5.6 mmol/L and/or HbA1c 5.7%-6.5%) and hypomagnesemia (plasma magnesium ≤ 0.80 mmol/L) were enrolled. Participants were randomly assigned to receive either magnesium oxide (360 mg elemental Mg/day) or an identical placebo once daily. The primary outcome was the change in fasting plasma glucose (FPG). Secondary outcomes included changes in insulin, HOMA-IR, HbA1c, glycated albumin, and inflammatory markers (hs-CRP, IL-6). Exploratory non-targeted metabolomic profiling was performed. Data were analyzed using ANCOVA adjusted for baseline values, following the intention-to-treat principle.
Results
Sixty-five participants completed the trial. At baseline, the magnesium group had significantly higher insulin and HOMA-IR levels (both p p p = 0.003). The reduction in HOMA-IR favored the magnesium group but was not statistically significant after adjustment (p = 0.296). No significant between-group differences were observed for HbA1c, insulin, C-peptide, glycated albumin, or inflammatory markers. Exploratory metabolomics revealed alterations in putatively identified metabolites, with pathway analysis suggesting involvement of lipid and insulin resistance-related pathways; these findings are considered hypothesis-generating.
Conclusion
In older adults with pre-diabetes and hypomagnesemia, magnesium supplementation effectively corrected magnesium deficiency and reduced FPG, but did not improve other glycemic indices including HbA1c or insulin resistance. The clinical significance of the isolated FPG reduction remains uncertain. The metabolomic findings require validation. Larger, longer-term trials are needed to determine if magnesium supplementation can prevent diabetes in this population.
Clinical trial registration
www.chictr.org.cn, identifier: ChiCTR2100047666.
Abstract via Europe PMC. Copyright remains with the authors or publisher (CC BY).
Community trust
Loading…
How much do you trust this study's findings?
Comments
Sign in to rate, comment on or flag this study.Sign inSomething wrong here?
Flag this study if its information, labels or funding look wrong. An editor reviews every flag.
Sign in to rate, comment on or flag this study.Sign inEducational information about published research. Not medical advice, and not a recommendation to start or stop anything.