Beauty bible

At last, a fad that lives up to its hype

Celia Walden on magical magnesium

I LOVE THE IDEA of things that have always existed – from fruit, spices and human body parts to Italian apéritifs – suddenly becoming fashionable. I mean, I sometimes sit there laughing softly to myself at the notion of avocados being passé, but shoulders, shoulders, having been decreed the body part of the summer. Aperol being eyerollingly ‘over’, but gin, soda and lime – invented by a gentleman gambler named Colonel Joe Rickey, circa 1883 – being The Hot New Drink.

Who decides this stuff? Is there a Hip committee that delights in choosing this season’s winners from a selection of the most ancient and mundane objects out there? ‘Having fought off stiff competition from the five major members of the gourd family, we decided to make bunched radish the ubiquitous veg du jour. From now on no brunch, lunch, cocktail or dessert should be made without it.’

But nowhere do the fads come and go faster than in the world of health and beauty, to the point that we’ve already got ginger, zinc, collagen or antioxidant fatigue from the moment we see those fads revving up. Because can anything ever live up to that kind of whimsical over-promotion? Yes, magnesium can. I don’t care if it’s been around since 1755: I’ve just discovered it, and I can’t get enough. It’s helping me sleep, eat healthier and exercise more – and it has even, thanks to its calming properties, made me nicer to my husband.

‘Magnesium fully deserves its hype,’ nutritionist Gabriela Peacock assures me. ‘It’s a fundamental mineral for the proper functioning of the body, and known as the “relaxation mineral” for its calming effects on the brain, nerves and muscles. Deficiency is surprisingly common, and might be the root cause of symptoms such as fatigue, headaches, digestive discomfort and poor skin. Which is why people often feel and see a real difference when they start supplementing.’ And the best news? It’s everywhere.