mineral
Manganese
Trace mineral for bone health, metabolism, and antioxidant function.
What it’s good for
Manganese for Joint Pain
Not verified2 studies · 1 supporting · 0 against
5 safety notes
Why it gets suggested: Needed to build the cushioning matrix in cartilage, and to mop up damage inside it.
Dose: 2–5 mg
Why we could not verify it: The only clinical trial in which manganese appears in connection with joint pain is a 16-week randomized placebo-controlled crossover pilot (PMID 10050562) that gave glucosamine HCl 1500 mg + chondroitin sulfate 1200 mg + manganese ascorbate 228 mg per day as a single inseparable combination. The positive finding for knee pain cannot be attributed to manganese alone; the trial was explicitly designed to evaluate the combination. No trial of manganese as a standalone intervention for joint pain or osteoarthritis was found in PubMed, Cochrane Library, or general web searches. Systematic reviews of nutraceuticals in osteoarthritis (e.g. PMID 29018060, PMID in Scientific Reports 2020) do not lis
Manganese for Brittle Nails
Not verified1 study · 0 supporting · 0 against
4 safety notes
Why it gets suggested: Needed to build collagen and the ground substance the nail grows from.
Dose: 2–5 mg
Why we could not verify it: No human clinical research found on manganese supplementation for brittle nails or nail fragility after thorough PubMed search. Searches for 'manganese brittle nails collagen,' 'manganese nail fragility OR nail brittleness OR nail strength,' and 'manganese prolidase nail collagen' returned zero indexed results. We cannot stand behind this claim on the evidence we have, so it carries no rating.
Manganese for Bone Strength
Not verified1 study · 0 supporting · 0 against
4 safety notes
Dose: 5 mg
Why we could not verify it: We found the study behind this. We have not finished reading it yet, so we are not ready to say either way.
Manganese for Low Mood
Not verified1 study · 1 supporting · 0 against
4 safety notes
Dose: 1–5.6 mg
Tested as: Manganese supplied in a controlled formulated diet at either 1.0 or 5.6 mg/day; the paper does not name a salt or chemical form. Crossed factorially with calcium at 587 or 1336 mg/day.
Why we could not verify it: We found 1 study on this. We have not finished reading them yet, so we are not ready to say either way.