Manganese: Effects, Requirements & Sources

In short: manganese is an essential trace element that the body needs only in milligram amounts but cannot produce on its own. According to the EU, it contributes to a normal energy-yielding metabolism, the maintenance of normal bones, normal connective tissue formation and the protection of cells from oxidative stress. The reference value is around 2 to 5 mg per day – and anyone who eats whole grains, nuts and oats is usually well supplied.

Manganese rarely takes the spotlight. Everyone knows magnesium, and iron of course – but manganese? Yet this quiet trace element is involved in processes without which neither your bones nor your energy metabolism would work properly. The good news: precisely because manganese is found in so many staple foods, a deficiency is rare. The interesting part: it is still worth understanding where it does its work.

What is manganese – and what does it do in the body?

Manganese is a transition metal and occurs in the body as a trace element. An adult carries a total of only around 10 to 20 milligrams – stored mainly in the bones, liver, kidneys and pancreas. Manganese plays its real role as a cofactor: it sits at the heart of several enzymes and is what enables them to function in the first place. Without this helper, certain metabolic reactions simply could not take place.

One persistent misconception up front: manganese is not magnesium. The names are similar, but the elements have nothing to do with one another and perform entirely different tasks. How magnesium differs from other minerals is shown in the guide Magnesium vs. Potassium.

The authorised functions of manganese

For manganese, the European Food Safety Authority has assessed and authorised several health claims. These we may state clearly. Manganese contributes to:

• a normal energy-yielding metabolism,
• the maintenance of normal bones,
• a normal connective tissue formation,
• the protection of cells from oxidative stress.

The cell protection is particularly elegant: manganese is a component of one of the body's own antioxidant enzymes (the manganese-dependent superoxide dismutase in the mitochondria). This places manganese in the same network as zinc, selenium and vitamins C and E, which all contribute to cell protection. How this interplay works is explained in Combining supplements correctly.

How high is the daily requirement of manganese?

Because the exact requirement is difficult to measure, the expert societies give a reference value for an adequate intake. For adults this lies at around 2 to 5 milligrams per day.

These values serve as a guide. Because manganese is found in many plant-based staple foods, the supply is considered secure on a typical mixed diet – an isolated manganese deficiency is very rare in humans.

Which foods contain plenty of manganese?

Manganese is predominantly a „plant trace element“. Whole grains, nuts and oats are especially rich sources:

A breakfast of oats with nuts already covers a good part of the daily requirement. This makes manganese readily accessible especially for plant-focused diets – see also Nutrients for vegans and Nutrients for the bones.

Manganese in interplay with other trace elements

Trace elements rarely work alone. Manganese stands in a close interplay with iron, zinc and copper – they partly use the same transport routes in the gut, which is why a strong excess of one can, in mathematical terms, dampen the absorption of another. For everyday life this is rarely a problem, because a mixed diet delivers these elements in a balanced way. It becomes more relevant when individual trace elements are supplied in isolation at high doses over a longer period. Anyone using several preparations will find in Zinc and copper in balance a good example of how finely such balances should be calibrated.

In practical terms this means: manganese is not a nutrient that healthy adults on a mixed diet need to deliberately „top up“. It makes more sense to view it as part of a balanced trace-element mix – the way it is handled in good complex preparations.

For whom manganese is particularly relevant

Because manganese occurs so widely in plants, a deficiency on a typical diet is very rare. Nevertheless, there are constellations in which a conscious look is worthwhile:

• Very one-sided diet: anyone who eats hardly any whole grains, nuts or legumes correspondingly takes in less manganese.
• Plant-focused diet: here the manganese supply is usually even above average – a plus point of vegetarian and vegan diets, see Nutrients for vegetarians & vegans.
• Interest in bones and connective tissue: because manganese contributes to their maintenance, it appears in combinations for joints and tendons and ligaments.

In all of these cases the same applies: the requirement is usually covered through diet, and supplementary preparations are deliberately dosed moderately.

Manganese in supplements – forms and dosage

In preparations you will encounter manganese in various compounds, for example as manganese bisglycinate, manganese gluconate or manganese sulphate. These forms differ in their calculated absorption and tolerability; organically bound forms such as the bisglycinate are considered well tolerated. Because manganese is needed only in milligram traces, the amounts contained are small – a reputable product orients itself to the reference value and does not overdo it. Unlike with some other nutrients, with manganese „more helps more“ is expressly not the goal. How to interpret dosages and labels in general is shown in Reading the label correctly.

Often manganese is not on its own as a single preparation at all, but part of a multivitamin or multimineral. This makes sense, because the trace element is rarely needed in isolation and is well placed together with other micronutrients. Anyone already taking a complex should check whether manganese is already included in it before adding it separately – a point covered in detail by Single preparation or complex?

Manganese and absorption in the body

How much manganese the body actually utilises depends on accompanying substances. Phytic acid from grains or a very high iron or calcium content of a meal can, in mathematical terms, dampen absorption. The underlying principle is explained in Bioavailability simply explained. Because manganese should not be supplied without limit in higher amounts, reputable supplements are deliberately dosed moderately – more on this in Can you take too many vitamins?

What research is investigating

Textbook knowledge is the role of manganese as a cofactor of numerous enzymes – for example in carbohydrate and fat metabolism and in mitochondrial cell protection. Beyond this, research is examining how closely the manganese supply is intertwined with other trace elements and how very high as well as very low intake amounts take effect. Honestly put: for the everyday life of most people, the decisive insight is rather unspectacular – through a balanced mixed diet with whole grains and nuts, the requirement is usually well covered.

Honestly assessed

• Established & authorised: manganese contributes to energy metabolism, bones, connective tissue and cell protection.
• Well documented: abundant in whole grains, nuts, oats; deficiency in humans very rare.
• Worth noting: no unnecessarily high doses; if unsure about your own supply, clarify with a doctor.

Matching products & guides from Scheunengut

You will find manganese as a single preparation in the category Manganese. Often it is part of balanced combinations – matching product types are bundled in the categories Trace elements, Minerals and Multimineral. You can read on in our guides Minerals & trace elements at a glance, Trace elements & their function, Nutrients for connective tissue, Copper – effects, requirements & sources and Zinc – effects & daily requirement.

Frequently asked questions (FAQ)

What does the body need manganese for?

Manganese is a cofactor of several enzymes. In the EU it is authorised that it contributes to a normal energy-yielding metabolism, the maintenance of normal bones, a normal connective tissue formation and the protection of cells from oxidative stress. The cell protection rests on manganese being part of one of the body's own antioxidant enzymes in the mitochondria.

How much manganese per day makes sense?

The reference value for an adequate intake in adults lies at around 2 to 5 milligrams per day. Through a normal mixed diet with whole grains, nuts and oats this range is usually reached without difficulty. Very high amounts should be avoided.

Which foods contain plenty of manganese?

Especially rich are wheat germ and wheat bran, oats, hazelnuts and walnuts, wholegrain rice and wholegrain bread as well as legumes. Black tea also contains plenty of manganese. A breakfast of oats with nuts already covers a good part of the requirement.

Is manganese the same as magnesium?

No. Despite the similar names, manganese and magnesium are completely different elements with different tasks. Magnesium is needed in far larger amounts, manganese only in milligram traces. They should not be confused.