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Magnesium Cream Separating
Hi there! I am a diy in my kitchen person. I am currently trying to make a Magnesium Cream.
The formulation I am using is 70% water, 10% coconut oil, 10% shea butter, 8% emulsifier - vegemulse (inci glyceryl stearate, Cetearyl Alcohol, Sodium Stearoyl Lactyate) 1% preservative (nipaguard sce) and 1% essential oils.
I am dissolving 200 grams of magnesium Chloride flakes per litre of cream in the water phase.
My process is to heat both the water phase and the oil phase to 75 deg c, combine and blend for just over a minute (one litre batch), let rest for 2 min, reblend, then blend occasionally as the mix cools. I add the preservative and essential oils at 35 deg.
The problem is that at the second blend the cream separates with the water going to the bottom.
I have tried making the cream without the magnesium and it works fine. However using the same process with the Magnesium doesn’t - I have tried both using 70% mls and 70% weight for the water phase, as obviously with the magnesium dissolved it changes the weight - but both ways I still get massive separation very quickly.
Has anyone had any experience in using Magnesium Chloride flakes in creams? This product is for children so I want it to be as natural as possible.
I am assuming the emulsifer needs to change but I don’t know which one to use. Also should I use mls or weight for the 70% water phase? I am happy to keep experimenting but if anyone knows it will save me a bit of money and time!
Thank so much in advance!! -
29 Replies
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Magnesium cream is not easy to make. You must first make your emulsion and let it cool completely to room temperature. It will be very, very thick. Make a separate batch of Magnesium Chloride in water and slowly add the Magnesium water to the cream, in small aliquots, blending in each aliquot before you add more. It is difficult to get a homogeneous cream, but the emulsion should not break.
Adding MgCl at the front end of the formulation virtually guarantees that the emulsion will not form and/or break.
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Thanks Mark, really appreciate you replying to me. Yes I tried that yesterday and it certainly worked better - however a small amount of separation occurred at 30 deg. I did however add all mag at 35 deg albeit slowly. I will try your suggestion tonight. Do you think adding .5% xantham gum would be beneficial? Just saw it in another thread for stabilising.
I agree adding MgCl at the front end guarantees the emulsion breaking, as does my sink for the litres it has had poured down it recently! -
Sorry, forgot to ask the most important question Mark - still use 70% water, but attibute enough for the MgCl to dissolve and use the main amount in the first phase?
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Yes, you need to split the 70% water into two components … one aliquot to make the cream and one aliquot to make the MgCl water. Try to concentrate the MgCl in as little water as possible so you have more water in the “emulsion phase” … I have made 35% MgCl solutions … you may be able to go even higher … just check the solubility of MgCl in water and try to supersaturate it.
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Switching to 100% nonionic emulsifier will make a big difference.Xanthan gum could also help, but if you add it in the first step the concentrated emulsion will be even thicker.
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Hi Mark - SUCCESS!! Thanks so much for the advice - made the cream last night following your process and it worked! No separation. It does however feel a little oily/watery on skin, I imagine this is what you meant by it being hard to get a homogeneous cream. Will see how it develops today.
Vnnil thanks for the advice on the emulsifier - will look into that but will add Xanthan gum to tonights batch to see if it helps with the oily feel.
Again thanks so much for replying to this post - I was getting very dejected after so many failed batches… -
Congratulations! … you picked a quite unusual and difficult cream to make. The oily feel is primarily from the MgCl water itself which is commonly called Magnesium Oil. If you want to try to reduce the oily feeling, try adding 2% Tapioca Starch at the end of the process.
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Thanks Mark. I have formulated this cream for children with behavioural issues - it also has a specific blend of essential oils aimed at kids with adhd, anxiety, tics etc. The combination of raising MgCl levels and the calming effect of the essential oils should help not only the kids but their parents sanity!!
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I have been using Magnesium Oil for a few years but found it too strong for my kids - hence the cream. I have lowered the elemental Mgcl level accordingly. Once i have mastered this cream the next project will be a Magnesium Spritz, again with lowered MgCl and an essential oil blend for focus.
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Hi everybody, I was very pleased to find this thread as I’m struggling for some time now with my separating magnesium lotion 🙂
I followed the instructions from Mark, but unfortunately, the lotion/cream separated again (although less than before)… But then I was wondering: maybe I’m using the wrong blender? So, just to double-check: should I use an immersion blender or a ‘whisker’? (or maybe both?)
Many thanks in advance for any tips & feedback!
best regards, Isabel
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Hi all I have made a Mag Cream a while ago and didnt have any issues with separation but I’ll make another one soon and see if ok and if so I’ll let you all know my formula. I added the Mag Oil which I make also (with 45% MgCl to 55% Water) and added this to Water phase at 20% (Total Water phase was 70%). The emulsifier I used was OliveM1000 and MCT Oil in the Oil phase. Cheers
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Thanks for the info!
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Formulation details aside…help me understand: what exactly is the intended purpose or outcome of applying magnesium chloride topically to humans?
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Oh…the lore run deeps…from childhood poverty to baldness….
It may be the single best cosmetic ingredient…that big pharma has been hiding from you.
Thank me later. ????
(Sorry… I hang out on all the wrong sites.)
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Hi Matt, for me personally it’s one of the best pain relief products for my arthritis shoulder (doesn’t work for everybody though, I’ve noticed) - and for a friend of me, it helps her sleep through the night when she massages it on the bottom of her feet before going to bed (she used to have problems sleeping w/o waking up several times during the night, and this seems to help her - a lot).. I didn’t try that one, because have no sleeping problems… oh yes, and further: the childhood poverty and baldness of course 😉
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Always grateful to @Graillotion for keeping me updated on these things - thanks again, pal: my lifespan has been duly lengthened. Now, @Isabel thank you for giving me the skinny ’cause I’ve seen these “magnesium oil” products in the market and trade press. Knowing the topical analgesia angle, isn’t magnesium sulfate (Epsom Salt) actively doing the exact same thing, albeit without the trendiness? Asking for a friend.
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Hi Matt, actually I wouldn’t know (as I’m not a chemist) - I know from the use of epsom salt as a ‘detox’ in baths — but didn’t know it has the same effect as the magnesium citrate (for the magnesium lotion I make I use magnesium citrate, not the sulfate), what would be the main difference between them? - Can I use it the same way in making a cream/lotion?
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ps: I also consulted this article:
ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5579607/ and although it’s doutbtful
that transdermal magnesium should have any effect, I must say, that
maybe because I apply it to my shoulder and and armpit it gets ‘easier’
in the lymphatic system and therefor provides relief ??… as the report
says: “However, since dead cells of the upper skin layer do not containfunctional magnesium transporters, which have not yet been identified in
detail, magnesium absorption may be possible only at the small area of
sweat glands and hair follicles.” — these sweat glands (in the armpits)
might be the reason it works for me (and my friend’s feet).. please let
me know your thoughts.
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Matt, Matt, Matt … SMH. The magic is that the MgCl comes from the Zechstein deep sea beds where the bottom of the ocean bed intersects with the deep lava flowing below. Brush up on your mythology, man.
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Didn’t know that one either, Thank You Mark — very interesting!! (will dig deeper to learn more)
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Mark, Is this where the Great Smiley Octopus dwells capturing the carbon emitted from Gwyneth Paltrow’s GOOP cruises? Must be.
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I don’t know about Gwyneth Paltrow, but I hear that the Zechstein sea beds are guarded by The Kraken
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Oh @chemicalmatt and @MarkBroussard I blame you two for me not being able to retain an intellectual thought today…during my normal thinking period (that is the hour I have the weedeater strapped on most days…..Yeah…some disadvantages…of living in Paradise). All I could think of was someone googling “is the Zechstein sea and it’s precious minerals, guarded by Kraken’.
You two…are too funny!
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Just imagine Trump lawyer Sidney Powell in a deep sea diving suit directing The Kraken
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I thought she already released it…
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No, that was Rudy Giuliani farting in court … it was mistaken for The Kraken
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magnesium lotions have separated for less…
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I would not know, I’ve never been in the line of fire of a Rudy Giuliani fart
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Hi I’m new here.
I too am happy to have found this post. I had the exact same experience with the magnesium lotion separating out, but I thought it might have been temperature. This has saved me needless batches.
All the best
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