Given the conflicting results about the positive effects of
magnesium and
L-carnitine and as there is no report concerning concurrent supplementation of
magnesium and
L-carnitine on
migraine prophylaxis, the effects of
magnesium,
L-carnitine, and concurrent
magnesium-
L-carnitine supplementation on
migraine indicators were assessed. In this clinical trial, 133 migrainous patients were randomly assigned into three intervention groups:
magnesium oxide (500 mg/day),
L-carnitine (500 mg/day), and Mg-
L-carnitine (500 mg/day
magnesium and 500 mg/day L-
carnitine), and a control group. After 12 weeks of supplementation, the checklist of
migraine indicators including
migraine attacks/month,
migraine days/month, and
headache severity was completed, and serum concentrations of
magnesium and
L-carnitine were measured by atomic absorption spectrophotometry and enzymatic UV test, respectively. The results showed a significant reduction in all
migraine indicators in all studied groups (p < 0.05). The ANOVA results showed a significant reduction in
migraine frequency across various supplemented and control groups (p = 0.008). By separating the effects of
magnesium supplementation from other confounding factors such as routine treatments using the repeated measures and nested model, it was clarified that
magnesium supplementation had a significant effect on all
migraine indicators. Oral supplementation with
magnesium oxide and
L-carnitine and concurrent supplementation of Mg-
L-carnitine besides routine treatments could be effective in
migraine prophylaxis; however, larger trials are needed to confirm these preliminary findings.