Malic acid and magnesium for fibromyalgia pain and depression
What it found
Taking malic acid with magnesium made little or no difference to pain or low mood in people with fibromyalgia.
The evidence came from 11 studies, but only one was a randomised trial.
What they found
Studies in people
Pain in fibromyalgia patients
Taking magnesium together with malic acid made little or no difference to pain levels in people with fibromyalgia.
Depression in fibromyalgia patients
The supplement combination also had little or no effect on depressive symptoms in these patients.
What the authors conclude
- They conclude that taking magnesium and malic acid makes little or no difference to pain or depression in people with fibromyalgia.
How it was done
Fibromyalgia causes muscle pain, tiredness, poor sleep and low mood, and its cause is not clear. Some scientists have suggested that lacking minerals like magnesium might play a part in the condition and its symptoms.
The authors searched a large database of health reviews and found seven reviews covering 11 primary studies. Only one of those studies was a randomised trial. They reanalysed the data and combined the results.
What it can’t tell you
- We summarised it from the abstract only.
- Only one of the 11 studies was a randomised trial, so it is hard to be sure about cause and effect.
- These studies looked at malic acid taken together with magnesium, not malic acid on its own.
The paper
- Title
- Magnesium and malic acid supplement for fibromyalgia
- Type
- Meta-analysis
- Evidence
- Studies in people
- Summarised from
- Abstract only
- Cite
- Ferreira I, Ortigoza Á, Moore P (2019). Magnesium and malic acid supplement for fibromyalgia. Medwave. doi:10.5867/medwave.2019.04.7632PubMed 31150373DOI
Summary written 30 Sep 2026. Check it against the paper before it changes what you eat. How we summarise papers · Report an error