Leg cramps do not give you peace

The reason for this is most often a lack of vitamins and minerals or blood circulation disorders.

Cramps, which are sudden, involuntary and painful muscle contractions, most often in the lower legs and feet, can occur both at night, preventing you from sleeping peacefully, and often also while walking, forcing you to stop every now and then to rest your legs. The reasons for cramps can be many and varied, but usually cramps at rest indicate mineral metabolism disorders, and when moving - insufficient blood circulation in the legs.

Leg cramps are often caused by inappropriate physical activity. After overloading, untrained muscles produce lactic acid, for which the body uses the reserves of minerals in the muscle - potassium, sodium, magnesium and calcium - but due to their loss of balance, cramps occur, explains family doctor Inga Zemīte .

Stress, increased sweating, frequent consumption of coffee or tea, diuretic medications, such as those used to lower blood pressure, also remove minerals from the body.

Sudden leg cramps can be caused by damage to the lumbar spine, such as radiculitis, when the damaged intervertebral discs of the spine irritate the nerve roots. They can be caused by irritation of peripheral or other nerves, for example due to nerve inflammation or neuritis. Convulsions can also indicate a lack of vitamin B in the body, which is important in the transmission of nerve impulses. Diabetic patients often have not only numbness in their legs, but also cramps (triggered by low blood glucose).

To avoid cramps, the family doctor recommends drinking enough fluids, warming up before exercising and supplementing your diet with minerals (they are in the form of raisins, potatoes, legumes, nuts, whole grain rice, oatmeal) and products rich in group B vitamins (they are contained in wholemeal bread , cereals, egg yolk, spinach, brewer's yeast).

If the convulsions do not subside, you can take B group vitamins, magnesium and other mineral complexes in the form of courses. In cases where convulsions are caused by nerve disorders, a family doctor or neurologist may recommend medication to reduce muscle tone.

Cramps in the legs can also occur due to arterial blood circulation disorders, which are caused by atherosclerosis. Sergejs Kovalyov, a vascular surgeon of the medical society "ARS", explains that if the arteries of the legs are narrowed or closed somewhere, the muscles do not get enough blood and lack oxygen. Problems with the arteries of the legs can also be evidenced by the so-called limping, when, after walking a certain distance, there is a desire to stop and rest the legs, because of severe pain in the muscles of the lower legs, less often - in the thighs.

In the early stages of the disease, to reduce cramps, the doctor recommends walking more and definitely quitting smoking, which contributes to the development of atherosclerosis in the arteries of the legs. By restoring normal blood flow in the artery with the help of medication or surgery, leg cramps also disappear.

If the cramps are more frequent at night, and the patient also has varicose veins, edema, heaviness in the legs, the cause may be venous blood circulation disorders. Depending on the severity of the vein problems, you may need to wear compression stockings, take medication, or have surgery.

For those people who have to sit a lot every day, regular exercise to work the calf muscles improves vein health. For the purpose of prevention, it is good to wear compression stockings, which will not only reduce swelling, but also protect against cramps, emphasizes the vascular surgeon.

Advice

Andris Lasmanis , a family doctor, recommends: "If the leg is cramping at night, you should try to move it, gently massage, knead the painful muscle. If the convulsions are tearing the foot, the muscles of the lower leg, the ligaments that move the foot to which the pain radiates, should be massaged. You can also stand on the foot with all your weight or gently stretch it towards you with your fingers."