Treat Night Cramps Naturally
Edited by Maureen D., Eng, Lynn, Donna and 1 other
Leg cramps often occur at night. These abrupt involuntary muscle contractions can happen without warning and the pain awakens us from our sleep. It could occur from a few seconds up to several minutes and usually, it leaves a soreness right after the cramp goes away. Calf muscles are the ones usually involved; they are generally harmless since they don't necessarily indicate any serious illness.
What are the Causes of Cramps?
Its certain causes are still unknown these days, but cramps are suspected to be related in one way or another to local muscle chemistry of the body. And several diseases and activities are associated with nocturnal leg cramps, such as the following:
- Overuse of the muscle
- Standing on hard surfaces for a long period of time
- Sitting constantly for sometime
- The leg positions when we are inactive
- Dehydration
- Weight gain
- Excessive perspiration
- Diarrhea
- Anemia
- Diabetes mellitus
- Parkinson's disease
- Hypoglycemia
- Thyroid imbalance and other hormone issues
- Body's chemical imbalances such as lack of potassium, magnesium, or calcium
- Medications the person is undergoing such as: Blood pressure medicines, statins that aids lower cholesterol, morphine and lithium.
Symptoms of Cramps
- 1Muscle spasms that happen abruptly, especially at night
- 2Stiff muscles that is visible
- 3Hard to touch cramped muscles
- 4Intense spasms that could last for a few seconds to 15 minutes
- 5The cramps keep recurring at the same area
- 6After the spasms, tenderness of the affected area follows
- 7Muscle fatigue and pain can result from regular leg cramps
What are the Risk Factors of Leg Cramps?
How to Alleviate the Pain?
- 1When you experience leg cramps, pull against them with your leg muscles.
- 2You can also grab your foot or feet up to alleviate the pain.
- 3Try standing on the affected leg/legs, it sometimes stops the cramps.
- 4Massage the legs or apply hot and cold compress to soothe the muscles.
How to Reduce the Occurrence of Leg Cramps at Night?
- 1Stretching at least three times a day and before you go to bed.
- 2Exercise your legs and feet regularly.
- 3Rehydrate your body by drinking lots of fluid.
- 4Eating potassium rich food can help as well (bananas, tomatoes, potatoes, broccoli, oranges and grape fruits).
- 5Wear comfortable shoes to prevent legs and feet strained.
- 6Sleeping with toes pointing upwards will help as well.
- 7Keep the blanket loose around the feet area, as tight blankets can cause the feet to be uncomfortable and result in cramps.
- 8It is a known relaxant and will help you greatly.Drinking several cups of chamomile tea during daytime for a couple of weeks.
- 9A glass of warm milk just before retiring to bed will be good as well, and the calcium in the milk will reduce any of the deficiencies that result to cramps.
Home Remedies
- 1Aside from drinking power drinks to increase electrolytes in the body,some home remedies can be given to the person experiencing muscle cramps.
- 2Mixing 1 tablespoon of calcium lactate, a teaspoon of honey and apple cider vinegar in a glass of warm water to be drunk once a day to alleviate the cramps.
- 3Red raspberry tea is another well known remedy for cramps at night, boil water and add a teaspoon of raspberry tea, let it sit for a while before sipping every morning and evening.
- 4Eating a tablespoon of mustard is also another way to prevent leg cramps from occurring.
- 5Apple cider tonic.Apple cider vinegar is rich in potassium so it is good in alleviating leg cramps. Drinking this tonic could help greatly.
- Mix 2 teaspoons of apple cider vinegar in 1 teaspoon honey.
- Mix with warm water and drink.
- 6Green smoothies.This is a delicious mix of green vegetables mixed with some fruits for those who does not like eating them. Making these healthy foods into a drink is such a breather. It could vary, from bananas, to green leafy vegetables, add some berries for a nice kick of flavor.
- Pour in 4 cups of tap water into the blender.
- Wash a handful of greens, remove any stalks or fibrous stems.
- After washing and cleaning them up, add the greens to the blender.
- Put the lid on and start, blending them from low to high.
- Do not stop blending until you do not see any bits of green anymore.
- Add three or four bananas or mangoes, or add more depending on your preference about the thickness of your smoothie.
- Add other fruits that you like, and be sure to take all the pits and seeds away.
- Keep blending until you reach the desired consistency.
- You can add raw cacao powder as it is good for leg cramps as well.
- 7Mustard and Pickle Juice
- In a glass of warm water, add a teaspoon full of mustard
- Add a few ounces of pickle juice
- Pour in 1 teaspoon of honey
- And lastly, 2 teaspoons of apple cider vinegar
Drink this mixture to help avoid experiencing night cramps.
Herbal Massage Oils
- 1In a clean jar, pour extra virgin olive oil or almond oil can be an alternative
- 21/2 ounce of lobelia, 1 ounce of cramp bark, 1 1/4 ounce of wintergreen or willow bark.Add oil in tincture form like:
- 3Shake the solution well and massage this onto your cramped muscles.
Ayurvedic Solution
Saturate your tub of hot water using a homemade teabag of brown and or black mustard seeds. All you have to do is submerge your feet in this solution for at least 20 minutes and you will be surprised how your muscle cramps would be relieved.
Tips & Tricks
- Massage the affected muscle.
- Walk, moving around is the best.
- Stretch it out.
- Rehydrate.
- Eat healthily.
- Wear comfortable shoes.
Questions and Answers
Do you know the name of the natural leaves that are used for night cramps?
Is comfrey leaf used for night cramps and if so how do you apply them to the cramped area?. I have tried: I have tried taking extra magnesium but I still get leg cramps in the middle of the night.. I think it was caused by: Too much sitting at a desk typing all day without being able to take a walk or stretch.
Please consult your doctor before using any folk remedies! There are many contraindications to using these.
- 1One of the folk remedies for night cramps is bay leaf oil. Take 100 g (3.5 oz) of dried bay leaf and 500 g (17.5 oz) of vegetable oil. Grind the dried bay leaf and add vegetable oil. Store it in a dark place for a fortnight. Filter the oil. Apply to the cramp area and, not to stain the sheets in bed, cover the area with something, for example, bandage. You can leave it overnight or apply for several hours before bed.Bay leaf.
- 2This is used as a general healing remedy that alleviates pain, cures ulcers, heals injuries, etc. Preparing an ointment with comfrey leaves can also help with muscle injuries. Grind 60 g (2 oz) of dried comfrey leaves. Take a porcelain bowl and melt either 500 g (17.5 oz) of petroleum jelly or wax in it by placing it over a pan of boiling water. Add ground comfrey leaves and simmer the concoction for one hour. Stir continuously. Add water in the pan if necessary. Pour the comfrey mixture into a muslin bag or any filter bag to squeeze the mixture through the bag into a bowl. Cool the ointment. When it is at the room temperature, you can spread the ointment over your cramp area. Keep the rest of the ointment in a dark cool place.Comfrey leaf.
In addition to magnesium pills, you can, if you can digest lactose, eat curds, hard cheese, and sour cream. Eat honey and fresh vegetables and fruits.
If you have problems with any of the steps in this article, please ask a question for more help, or post in the comments section below.
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Categories : Health & Wellness
Recent edits by: Donna, Lynn, Eng
