Leg cramps are a phenomenon of stiffness, severe pain that makes you want to scream. You try to move when you have cramps but can’t. So what causes you to have leg cramps and instructions on how to treat leg cramps effectively, safely and quickly.
What is leg cramps?
Leg cramps are sudden, involuntary, and intense muscle contractions that usually occur in the calves, feet, or thighs. If you have a cramp, your leg muscles may contract and tighten uncontrollably, and you may lie or sit still without being able to move.
Leg cramps are common in adults, the elderly, and young people who work. Cramps usually affect the calf muscles that run down the back of each leg from the ankle to the knee. They can also affect the muscles in the front of each thigh and the back of each thigh. Your leg may feel sore or achy for a period of time, no more than 10 minutes, and the muscle will relax on its own.
Leg cramps at night occur when you are not very active or when you are sleeping. They can wake you up, make it difficult to fall back asleep, and cause you to feel sore throughout the night. The frequency of leg cramps varies from person to person, yearly, monthly, weekly, or nightly. Almost all older adults experience nighttime cramps at least once or twice a month.
Pregnant women are also prone to leg cramps due to the many changes and movements in their bodies. Health experts believe that the increased body weight of pregnant women causes muscle tension and cramps.
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What are the symptoms and causes of leg cramps?
Leg cramps often occur suddenly, without warning or prior knowledge. If you are elderly or pregnant, you are at risk of getting cramps. However, the pain caused by cramps is still bearable and gradually disappears when you know how to handle it properly.
Causes of leg cramps include:
- Involuntary nerve discharge. According to electromyographic studies, cramps are associated with an increase in abnormal nerve activity.
- Tendons, which connect muscles and bones, naturally shorten over time. This can lead to muscle cramps.
- Part of your leg muscle is not getting enough blood.
- A sedentary lifestyle means that you don’t give your muscles the time they need to be stretched regularly. Sitting for long periods of time can make your leg muscles more prone to cramps.
- Over-exercising can also make you more susceptible to cramps, causing your muscles to work too hard and strain.
- Standing for long periods of time: Standing for long periods of time while working or remaining motionless for long periods of time can also cause leg cramps at night.
- Kidney failure, nerve damage from diabetes, mineral deficiencies, and blood circulation problems can also make you more susceptible to cramps. If you experience frequent cramps, see your doctor for a kidney or diabetes check-up.
If you have recently noticed frequent leg cramps at night, the cause may be due to a medical condition. You should learn carefully to keep your body healthy, detect it promptly for treatment. Some causes include:
- Pregnant women If you experience cramps at night, or if you have had unprotected sex, take a pregnancy test or see a doctor if necessary.
- Foot structure also has a big impact on cramps such as flat feet and spinal stenosis.
- Neurological disorders, such as motor neuron disease or peripheral neuropathy.
- Neurodegenerative disorders, such as Parkinson’s disease in the elderly and middle-aged.
- Musculoskeletal disorders such as osteoarthritis often occur in people who are lazy to exercise or who exercise too much, or do strong, strenuous sports.
- Can have diseases such as: liver, kidney, thyroid, metabolic disorders, diabetes, cardiovascular disease…
In addition, using drugs also causes side effects that cause cramps such as: Albuterol/Ipratropium
- Conjugated estrogens.
- Clonazepam medicine
- Diuretics.
- Gabapentin
- Naproxen
- Pregabalin medicine
- Statin drugs.
- Zolpidem medicine
- Sertraline
- Fluoxetine
- Celecoxib
How to treat leg and calf cramps
Although leg and calf cramps can be crippling and painful, they are not serious. You should stay calm and call for help or manage them yourself if you live alone.
Common treatments for leg cramps
Apply the following treatments when having cramps:
- Straighten your leg, then bend it, pulling your toes toward your shin to stretch the muscle. Flex your foot so that your toes point toward your body.
- Foot massage: At this time, use your hands to massage the muscles, the muscle area affected by the cramp to gradually relax it. Use one or both hands to gently massage, soften the muscles.
- Standing: Then, when you feel a little better, you can stand up, pressing your feet into the floor.
- Walking: Shaking your legs while walking is also a way to help you deal with cramps.
- Heat: Heat helps soothe tense muscles. So, you can take a hot pack or a towel soaked in hot water and apply it to the cramped area. You should also take a hot bath every day to keep the nerves and muscles circulating and functioning well.
- Drinking pickle juice: It may sound strange, but research shows that drinking a small amount of pickle juice can help you deal with leg cramps.
- Use pain relievers: You can prepare muscle-related pain relievers on hand for the next time you get a cramp.
- Elevate your legs: To sleep soundly and avoid frequent cramps, elevate your legs when lying down or sleeping, this method is quite effective.
What medicine treats leg cramps?
If you often have leg cramps at any time of the day, especially at night, pay attention to your health, see a doctor for a prescription. They will help you prevent cramps effectively or discover diseases that help you treat early.
Some medications (not 100% effective) have been shown to prevent cramps, which you may consider (but consult your doctor or health professional):
- Carisoprodol: Muscle relaxant.
- Diltiazem: Calcium channel blocker.
- Orphenadrine: Treats muscle spasms and relieves muscle pain and stiffness.
- Verapamil: Calcium channel blocker.
- Magnesium
- Gabapentin: Anticonvulsant and neuropathic pain reliever.
- B vitamins
How to Prevent Leg Cramps at Night
To keep your health in the best condition, you should prevent rather than treat the disease. There are some methods to help you improve your health, prevent leg cramps from happening such as drinking enough water, stretching your legs when sleeping, exercising, taking vitamins, wearing the right shoes, not overworking…
Drink enough water: You should take in a moderate amount of water every day, about 1 to 2 liters depending on your weight and height. Avoid drinking alcohol, strong tea, overly sweet milk tea and caffeine.
Exercise: You can exercise with basic, gentle and suitable sports exercises. For example, badminton, daily walking, cycling, squats, etc. Avoid strenuous activities such as lifting too much weight, boxing too much, doing too many push-ups, carrying heavy objects, etc. Refer to yoga exercises before going to bed.
Comfortable bed and space: Sleeping space is also quite important to health. The soft blanket you use should be light and moderately soft, avoid using blankets that are too heavy and rough. In addition, you should warm the air in winter, or warm the bed before going to bed.
Sleeping position: Stretch your calves and hamstrings before bed, this will help reduce the frequency and severity of night cramps. Avoid sleeping in the wrong position, such as curling up or with your feet facing down. Try to sleep on your back, with a pillow under your head and your legs elevated.
Choose good shoes: Choosing comfortable and convenient shoes also affects whether you get foot cramps or not. Poor quality, tight shoes make your feet narrow, difficult to circulate, and damaged muscles are more susceptible to cramps.
Some stretching exercises you can try before going to bed include: Stand about 1 meter (3 feet) away from a wall, lean forward, and touch the wall with your arms straight. Count to five before stopping and repeat for 5 minutes.
Other notes when having leg cramps
If your cramps become severe, you should see a doctor immediately. If you have the following symptoms:
- Cramps in other parts of the body.
- Severe pain that does not subside every time I have a leg cramp.
- Changes in the skin of the legs
- Frequent cramps before bed or when waking up.
- Electrolyte imbalance, waste has abnormal signs such as color change, odor…
Usually, cramps only last no more than 10 minutes, if you have pain for more than 10 minutes and cannot bear it, call an ambulance or have a relative help you to the nearest hospital. The cause may be because you have touched some toxic substance, or you may have tetanus, exposure to mercury, lead or other toxic substances.
Conclusion
Leg cramps are muscle spasms that cause numbness, discomfort and pain for a short time. Although not too serious, if you often have leg cramps , you should pay attention to your health and refer to the ways to deal with cramps shared in this article. Note, if the condition is too painful, go for a medical examination to find out what the underlying cause is, it could be liver disease, kidney disease, diabetes, heart failure, etc.
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