DIY Magnesium Balm is a simple and effective way to add magnesium to your daily health regimen. Transdermal magnesium bypasses the digestive tract, making the nutrient more bioavailable without the danger of overdoing it. (See The Health Benefits of Transdermal Magnesium.)
DIY Magnesium Balm requires magnesium oil, which is simply a combination of magnesium flakes and filtered water.
Make your magnesium oil ahead of time by pouring 3.5 ounces hot water over 4 ounces magnesium chloride flakes. (Find magnesium flakes here.)
You will have extra magnesium oil to dilute and put into a spray bottle or add to bath water.
DIY Magnesium Balm
You can adapt this recipe to suit your preferences. I love avocado oil, but coconut oil, moringa oil, and/or jojoba oil would work well. Castor oil would be great, too. Mango butter or cacao butter can be used in place of shea butter.
Ingredients
- 1/4 cup magnesium oil
- 1/4 cup avocado oil
- 1/4 cup shea butter
- 1 tablespoon beeswax
- 3-5 drops leucidal liquid radish root (A natural preservative found here.)
- 5-10 drops essential oil of choice (lavender and/or Roman chamomile work well)
Instructions
- Set aside magnesium oil.
- Melt avocado oil, shea butter, and beeswax in double boiler.
- Transfer to food processor.
- Blend oils and slowly stream in the magnesium oil.
- Add essential oils and leucidal liquid radish root and blend again.
- Pour into glass containers. Makes enough for approximately three 2-ounce jars.
Not ready to make your own? Just So Natural Products sells Magnesium Balm in unique VioLiv glass jars. Find it here.
Save Recipe
Ingredients
- 1/4 cup magnesium oil
- 1/4 cup avocado oil
- 1/4 cup shea butter
- 1 tablespoon beeswax
- 3-5 drops leucidal liquid radish root
- 5-10 drops essential oil of choice (lavender and/or Roman chamomile work well)
Instructions
- Set aside magnesium oil.
- Melt avocado oil, shea butter, and beeswax in double boiler.
- Transfer to food processor.
- Blend oils and slowly stream in the magnesium oil.
- Add essential oils and leucidal liquid radish root.
- Blend again.
- Pour into glass containers. Makes enough for approximately three 2-ounce jars.
Do you have to use a food processor? I have made other balms a used a hand mixer.
Hi Monica. It’s possible, but the speed of the food processor helps distribute the magnesium oil evenly. I’m not sure what a hand mixer would do.
I did it with a whisk, by hand. Worked. Took a few minutes.
Do be careful with recipes like this. Anytime you mix oil and water without a preservative you have the perfect environment for dangerous mold and bacteria to flourish. To keep this recipe preservative-free, you need to keep it refrigerated. You could reduce the wax to keep it from getting too hard. 🙂
Leucidal liquid is a preservative.
I just put Magnesium flakes in my bath when I soak. I tend to have a routine, while strange to Westerners (maybe), it’s very common to Japanese. I take my normal shower, to get clean and free of dead skin cells and “the daily dirt of the daily grind” (lol), then my tub is cleaned and then filled with water for a relaxing soak, and that’s when the magnesium flakes come in. No need to go through all this to get magnesium outside of eating it in food if you’re a person that lacks a food processor or blender. It’s also Vegan, for those that are Vegan and can’t use beeswax. 🙂
You can also add a bit of “shelf-life” to this by adding Vitamin E Oil, Rosemary Oil Extract, or Grapefruit seed Extract. They act similar to a preservative, not as strong as a chemical one of course, but definitely better than nothing, and definitely better than chemicals when it comes to our well-being. 🙂
Thanks for sharing this recipe, I’ll have to make a small batch for some of my friends (aka, over-stressed, under-appreciated moms…lol We know how it is sometimes.. 😀 ) as part of their “Girl, It’s YOUR Day!” baskets that I’m making for Christmas.
Thanks for sharing your Japanese tradition! 🙂
Thank you for sharing the tips! I have an aloe preservative and vitamin e, Im wondering if the and rosemary essential oil would be ok? I only use nontoxic things in my items also. I love this recipe she added and thanks for your tips also.
Yes, that sounds like a good combination for a preservative in my opinion, Lisa.
Thank you so much for this!
HI there just wondering if you can use unrefined 100% Pure shea butter (looks like more solid chunks in the picture where im looking to buy) rather then the creamy type?
Yes, you can! Just melt it the same way and it should be fine.
Sorry another question I wanted mine to end up looking like a harder balm not a creamy lotion, when you emulsify the ingredients does it set like the picture (a solid balm) or more of a cream? Alot of video tutorials I’m watching use the same ingredients (maybe something’s slightly different) and theirs turn out to be body butters.
Mine turns out solid. Not sure of the various terms, but this one does not turn out creamy.
What’s the shelf life of this recipe?
With the preservative, it should last indefinitely, Adriana.
What is the preservative?
The preservative is leucidal liquid radish root.
Mine has separated and is in layers which look different in color and firmness. Can I fix this somehow?
Did you use a food processor to blend it? I might melt this and process again.
Hi! I made this recipe. And the magnesium oil seperate into salt crystals spread throughout the balm. The balm consistency was ok but the hard crystals are not..
How do I avoid this? When I made the mag oil it was well mixed. Thank you
Did you use a food processor? I’m surprised and not sure what happened.
Hi Andrea,
Can magnesium flakes be added directly to the other oils used, like avocado, instead of adding magnesium oil, which is just the magnesium flakes diluted in water? Is there some reason for the extra step of putting them in water? This seems like it would eliminate the need to emulsify in a blender, unless you wanted a creamer consistency. Thank you 🙂
They would be too abrasive. Definitely needs to be diluted from my experience, Jessica.
Wouldn’t they melt and dilute into the oil if added during the heating phase, just like they would in the water? I will try it with a small batch, and see what happens. Thanks for this lovely info shared here Andrea!
I’d love to hear what you find!
Can I use Epson salts instead of the magnesium flakes?
Epsom salts have a different molecular structure. Magnesium chloride is more easily absorbed as I understand it.
May I know the results Jessica? As I’m thinking the same too.
Hi thanks for sharing this recipe. Can’t wait to try it. Wondering what your opinion is on using Herbalox instead of Leucidal? Herbalox is an antioxidant so not sure if it preserves. Your thoughts are appreciated, cheers
I’ve not heard of it! You might ask the company directly. I’ll be looking it up.
Read please: In response to those wondering if you can simply add the flakes to the oil, instead of making magnesium oil first – it won’t work. Or at least ot didn’t for me. I had the same thought, especially when considering shelf life and emulsifying issues. I put a few flakes in a small jar, covered them with oil., slapped a lid on…and waited. Nothing changed over night….over weeks….heck, I think they are still sitting in there and I’m not even sure how long it’s been now. (:
Did you try heating the oils and seeing if they dissolve that way? i was curious about this as well so I could avoid having to introduce water into the balm. Also wondering if the beeswax served as a good enough emulsifier for long term shelf life without it eventually separating? Love this recipe sounds like a winner will have to try
I have had no issues with the longevity of this recipe. It would be worth a try with the oils alone.
Can this be used on kids as well? Or would I have to adjust the recipe to make it safer for kids?
I don’t think you would need to adjust it…but honestly can’t say for sure.