Nutritionist Reviews Andrew Huberman's Sleep Cocktail: Supplements, Dosages & Side Effects
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The other day I came across Andrew Huberman's recommended and supposedly amazing sleep cocktail. In this video I want to review that very cocktail, talk about the things that I like, the things I don't like and how to improve it to get even better results.
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- Timestamps - 00:00 Introduction 01:13 Magnesium & Sleep 02:40 Does It Have To Be Magnesium Threonate? 04:08 How To Take Magnesium For Sleep 04:54 Apigenin & Sleep 05:27 How To Take Apigenin For Sleep 05:46 Theanine & Sleep 06:42 How To Take Theanine For Sleep 07:27 Other Supplements For Better Sleep
#sleepsupport
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Huberman's sleep supplement cocktail (magnesium threonate, apigenin, theanine) is effective and scientifically sound, but can be optimized by removing apigenin and adding other calming minerals like calcium, zinc, and potentially vitamin B6, choline, and inositol.
- Magnesium and theanine are the most potent ingredients with strong peer-reviewed support for sleep improvement
- Apigenin is the least potent ingredient and can be replaced with chamomile tea or omitted entirely
- Additional calming minerals (calcium, zinc) and nutrients (vitamin B6, choline, inositol) can further optimize sleep quality when dosed carefully
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Magnesium threonate is absorbed quickly and crosses the blood-brain barrier effectively, making it a good choice for rapid effects on sleep, though other forms of magnesium eventually reach the brain as well.
“the reason he recommends this type of magnesium is because there are studies that have shown it to be absorbed quickly and fairly good at crossing the blood-brain barrier this is good if you want a very quick effect on your brain”
Calcium and zinc require careful dosing because calcium carries risk of tissue calcification and zinc can create problems if too much bio-unavailable copper is pushed out with high zinc doses.
“in both cases you kind of have to be a little more careful than with magnesium because there can be side effects...With calcium there's always the potential of tissue calcification and with the zinc you can kind of run into problems if you have too much bio unavailable copper which will be pushed out if you take high doses of zinc”
Huberman's sleep cocktail is fairly good and scientifically sound, endorsing the use of magnesium threonate, apigenin, and theanine for sleep improvement.
“now that we looked at the individual ingredients of the cocktail is it any good is human onto something here and I would say yes it is a fairly good sleep cocktail I would definitely endorse it”
Getting nutrient levels tested is important to determine individual magnesium status and optimize supplementation protocols.
“I also recommend you get your nutrient levels tested correctly”
Theanine is a non-protein amino acid not used for tissue building but involved in neurotransmitter control; it is not a sedative but improves sleep quality by balancing brain waves and electrical voltages that send signals in the brain.
“thionine cyanine is a non-protein amino acid that means it's not used to build tissue in the body but it still has other functions and biochemical reactions the most important here would be for neurotransmitter control Now thionine isn't a sedative so it doesn't actively make you tired but it still helps you with Sleep Quality it does this by balancing your brain waves”
Magnesium binds and activates GABA receptors, and since GABA is an inhibitory neurotransmitter, increased GABA receptor activation reduces the nervous system's reactivity to stimuli, helping with anxiety and fear symptoms.
“another way of how magnesium can calm me down is by binding and activating Gaba receptors Gaba is an inhibitory neurotransmitter so unlike adrenaline which gets you going Gaba does the opposite it basically lessens the ability of your body's cells especially your nerve cells to receive signals or impulses so the more Gaba receptors are activated the less your nervous system will react to stimuli”
Magnesium blocks the action of adrenaline, working like a natural beta blocker and reducing stimulating neurotransmitter effects, which contributes to its calming properties.
“basically magnesium is a calming mineral it does this in several ways in your brain it blocks the action of adrenaline so it works like a natural beta blocker which by itself can be calming since adrenaline is a stimulating neurotransmitter”
Vitamin B6 helps with melatonin synthesis and dream recall but carries higher side effect risks than calcium or zinc, particularly in P5P form, requiring careful low-dose introduction.
“you could also add some vitamin B6 because it helps with melatonin synthesis and dream recall but the side effects to vitamin B6 are even more common than two calcium and zinc especially when you take it in the form of p5p so please be careful with that supplement and go slow and start with a low dosage”
Individual magnesium dosage requirements vary significantly, but general guidelines suggest 200-500 milligrams per day from supplements depending on current magnesium status, split into smaller doses for better absorption.
“The optimal magnesium dosage is very individual so I can only give you rough guidelines here but I would take somewhere between 200 to 500 milligrams in the form of supplements depending on your current magnesium status...you want to split this up into several smaller doses such as three doses of 100 milligrams or 150 milligrams”
Large single doses of magnesium are harder for the body to absorb than small distributed doses, and high magnesium doses can interact with other nutrients like calcium, requiring careful consideration of total mineral intake.
“It's a lot easier for the body to absorb small amounts of magnesium than a large chunk at one specific time...keep in mind that high doses of magnesium can interact with other nutrients in your body such as calcium”
Individual reactions to bioflavonoids vary, so apigenin might be more effective for some people than others, and it can be obtained from chamomile tea as an alternative to supplements.
“I personally would take it out but you can try it out yourself because the reaction to bioflavonoids is always individual it might help you more than it did me...you can either take it out just try it once or get it from chamomile tea instead”
The mechanism of apigenin's sleep benefits is not as well understood or established as the mechanisms for magnesium and theanine, with less peer-reviewed research available.
“it's not as well researched as magnesium”
Magnesium deficiency is very common, and magnesium is an important cofactor for GABA receptor activation, so magnesium-deficient individuals remain in sympathetic dominance (fight-or-flight), which is called sympathetic dominance and is very common due to both magnesium deficiency and chronic stress.
“since magnesium is an important cofactor for the activation of Gaba receptors if you're magnesium deficient all this won't work properly so you're constantly stuck in fight or flight this is called sympathetic dominance and it is very common not just because magnesium deficiency is very common nowadays but because we all have very stressful lives”
Professional guidance from a nutrition or health expert is recommended if supplementation complications arise.
“if you run into problems reach out to a professional who can help you with your diet and supplement regimen”
Magnesium and theanine are the most important factors in the cocktail; just fixing a magnesium deficiency (which takes time, not just days) can substantially improve sleep quality for the many people who are magnesium deficient.
“keep in mind that magnesium and thinine are the most important factors here just fixing a magnesium deficiency which by the way can take a while it's not done in a couple of days can do wonders for your Sleep Quality a lot of people are magnesium deficient”
To optimize the cocktail, the speaker recommends removing apigenin or replacing it with strong chamomile tea, and adding calcium and zinc as additional calming minerals to the remaining magnesium and theanine.
“I would leave out the epigenin or just make a strong chamomile tea instead and then on top of the two remaining ingredients I would also add some calcium and some zinc which are two other calming minerals”
Apigenin is a bioflavonoid found in chamomile tea with anti-oxidative properties, benefits for immunity and inflammation markers, and anti-anxiety effects, but is less well-researched than magnesium and appears to be the least potent of the three ingredients in Huberman's cocktail.
“the next nutrient he mentions is epigenin and it's a bioflavonoid that is found in chamomile tea it appears to have anti-oxidative properties be good for your immunity inflammation markers and anxiety unfortunately it's not as well researched as magnesium and I would say at least in my experience it's the least potent of the three ingredients”
Choline and inositol are good combination nutrients for calming that don't necessarily need to be taken right before bed but should be consumed regularly throughout the day, with sunflower lecithin as the recommended supplement or food source.
“another good combination of calming nutrients would be choline and inositol and they don't necessarily have to be taken right before going to bed just make sure you get enough throughout the day and for both sunflower lecithin is my recommended supplement slash food source”
Theanine can be taken with caffeine to reduce jittery or giddy feelings from high caffeine doses while preserving the energy boost, demonstrating its brain wave balancing effects beyond sleep contexts.
“I used to take thionine along with caffeine before my workouts because I don't drink coffee I would always feel a little giddy when taking high doses of caffeine thinine help reduce that feeling but still preserve the energy boost”
Theanine dosage of 100-200 milligrams is recommended for sleep improvement or as a pre-workout supplement with caffeine.
“if you want to try out thionine yourself either for Sleep Improvement or as a pre-workout together with caffeine I recommend you go with a product that has 100 to 200 milligrams”
Apigenin supplements typically come in dosages of 50-200 milligrams, with some higher-dose options around 500 milligrams, and availability and cost vary by region.
“epigen and supplements usually come in a dosage from 50 to 200 milligrams but there are also some higher dose ones at around 500 milligrams depending on where you live it can be expensive”