Yes, prawns are a good source of magnesium, along with other essential minerals like zinc, iron, and phosphorus, making them a nutrient-dense seafood choice that supports bone, nerve, and muscle health. While not as high as nuts or seeds, prawns contribute significantly to daily magnesium intake and offer a complete protein package, notes BetterYou and BBC Good Food.
You'll also get plenty of vitamin E, selenium, zinc, phosphorus and magnesium from prawns - so eat up! There is one potential downside: prawns are higher in cholesterol than many other types of seafood.
Fatty fish, such as salmon, mackerel, and halibut can be incredibly nutritious and pack a good amount of magnesium in every serving. Half a filet (178 grams) of salmon packs 53 mg of magnesium, which is 13% of the RDI.
Health Risks from Excessive Magnesium
Although the risk of acquiring too much magnesium from food is low among healthy people, high doses of magnesium from dietary supplements or medications can cause diarrhea, nausea, and abdominal cramping.
Rich in powerful antioxidants like selenium and vitamin E, prawns can help protect cells from damage and stave off serious diseases. Selenium is also believed to prevent tumour growth and strengthen the immune system.
For this reason, The British Heart Foundation recommends enjoying shellfish, including prawns, as part of a balanced diet. Prawns also contain relatively high levels of sodium when compared with white fish like cod, so if you follow a low-salt diet, you may wish to limit your intake.
Consuming prawns with certain foods can cause digestive discomfort and adverse reactions. Avoid pairing prawns with citrus fruits, dairy, foods high in vitamin C, sweet foods, alcohol, cold drinks, beans, starchy foods, or tea to ensure optimal digestion and prevent potential health issues.
Common causes of low magnesium include:
Foods high in magnesium are leafy greens, legumes, nuts, seeds and whole grains. A doctor can check your magnesium levels by a blood or urine (pee) test. If you have low magnesium levels, your doctor may recommend taking a supplement.
Mild hypermagnesemia (less than 7 mg/dL) - Asymptomatic or paucisymptomatic: weakness, nausea, dizziness, and confusion. Moderate hypermagnesemia (7 to 12 mg/dL) - Decreased reflexes, worsening of the confusional state and sleepiness, bladder paralysis, flushing, headache, and constipation.
Bananas are the richest fruit in magnesium. If eaten dried, its magnesium content is higher. More generally, dried fruits such as figs, dates and apricots are an important source of magnesium. Recipe idea: Try a banana-spinach smoothie.
For drinks high in magnesium, opt for mineral waters, fruit juices (especially orange, cherry, watermelon), plant-based milks (soy, almond), and homemade concoctions using raw cacao, coconut milk, or magnesium powders mixed with water or smoothies, with hot chocolate (made with raw cacao) and herbal teas (like nettle) also being good choices.
Achieving 100% of the daily recommended magnesium intake can be accomplished by eating foods rich in magnesium, such as:
Prawns are a rich source of selenium, one of the most effective antioxidants at maintaining healthy cells. They also contain high levels of Zinc, which is important to develop a healthy immune system. Eating prawns helps build strong bones because they contain phosphorous, copper and magnesium.
To promote optimal absorption, it's important to be mindful of what you eat and drink alongside magnesium supplements. Foods and drinks high in fiber, phytic acid, phosphoric acid, alcohol, and caffeine can interfere with how well your body uses magnesium.
Magnesium deficiency symptoms start mild with fatigue, weakness, loss of appetite, nausea, vomiting, and headaches, but progress to more severe issues like muscle cramps/spasms, numbness, tingling, anxiety, insomnia, abnormal heart rhythms, and even seizures, affecting nerve, muscle, and brain function crucial for overall health.
Yes, magnesium can help you sleep better by calming the nervous system, relaxing muscles, and supporting melatonin production, with some studies showing it improves sleep quality, duration, and efficiency, particularly for those with low levels or sleep issues like restless legs. While more research is needed, magnesium glycinate is often recommended for sleep due to its gentle absorption, and you can find it in foods like leafy greens, nuts, seeds, and whole grains, or as a supplement.
Food Sources
Magnesium is found in plant foods like legumes, dark green leafy vegetables, nuts, seeds, whole grains, and fortified cereals. It is also in fish, poultry, and beef.
And taking vitamin D in large doses can also deplete magnesium, leading to a magnesium deficiency — or making an existing one worse.
The causes of magnesium deficiency include: Chronic diarrhea. Frequent vomiting. Malabsorption, due to a digestive condition, such as inflammatory bowel disease (IBD), or a procedure that removes part of the small intestine, namely weight loss surgery.
Yes, too much magnesium can make you tired. According to the Office of Dietary Supplements at the National Institutes of Health (NIH), very large doses of magnesium —typically more than 5,000 mg per day — have been associated with magnesium toxicity.
They argued that since shrimp are not fish by scientific definition, they should not be permissible to eat under Hanafi rules. Scholars who adopt this approach consider prawns non-fish and therefore prohibit eating them (or label them makruh tahriman, meaning strongly disliked to the point of being sinful to consume).
Due to their cholesterol content, people with high cholesterol or who are at risk of cardiovascular disease should consume prawns in moderation. Environmental contaminants such as microplastics may accumulate in prawns; removing the intestines before cooking can help mitigate the risk you'll ingest them.
The unhealthiest fish to eat are typically large, predatory species high in mercury like shark, swordfish, king mackerel, and imported tilefish, plus bluefin tuna, which are dangerous for brain/nerve health, especially for pregnant women and children; also, farmed salmon and some imported tilapia/catfish raise concerns for contaminants and antibiotics, while orange roughy and Atlantic cod are often cited for high mercury and overfishing/sustainability issues.