Posts Tagged ‘Cramps’

What are different home remedies for leg pain and cramps? – Part 2



- Leg cramps are an involuntary contraction of a single muscle or a group of muscles in the leg.
- These are usually painful and extremely discomforting.
- Leg cramps often occur in elderly patients though age is no criteria.
- Leg cramps generally occur in the calf muscle, the hamstring and the quadriceps.
- The duration of a leg cramp ranges from less than a minute to several minutes at times.

1. Healing Herbs tea
- This is an anti-pain
- It is also a relaxing tea that will help in preventing leg cramps and provide relief:
- 1 part St. Johnswort
- 1 part Passionflower
- 1 part Skullcap
- 1 part Chamomile
- 1 part White Willow Bark

2. Anti-Stress/Pain Potion
- GAIA Herbs
- 1 part Gaia Herbs Serenity Elixir
- 1 part Herb Pharm White Willow Bark
- A red flannel can also be wrapped around the area with pain.
- Use of coconut helps in curing the leg and knee pains.
- 1-2 teaspoonful of fenugreek powder in the morning water is also effective leg pain remedy.
- A gentle massage with Arthcare Oil is recommended to leg pain cure and to strengthen the bone tissues.

3. Massage oil
- Take 10 grams of camphor and 200 grams of mustard oil.
- Mix in a glass bottle and keep the bottle in the sun till the camphor dissolves.
- Massage the affected area daily.
- This is very good home remedy for leg pain.

4. Saffron solution
- Boil 1-teaspoon saffron in 1/2 cup water and divide this solution into three portions and take with equal quantities of water, thrice daily for a week.
- This is one of the effective home remedies for leg pain.

5. Various yogasanas
- Janusandhi,
- Uttanpadasana
- Gomukhasana

Other Home remedies
- Make sure that you use appropriate footwear when walking that provide your feet with adequate support.
- Stretch your muscles gently with light exercise like riding a stationary bicycle for a few minutes before going to bed.
- This can help loosen up and strengthen the muscles.
- This would greatly limit the occurrence or severity of night leg cramps.

Make sure that your diet is not restrictive
- A well balanced diet with plenty of fresh fruits and vegetables should be taken regularly.
- This should provide you with all the essential nutrients you need. – Mineral deficiencies can aggravate the problem of night leg cramps.
- The best way to get it to pass is by consciously relaxing your mind and body.
- Deep breathing is the most effective method of relaxation at such times.
- Lightly massage the cramped muscle with your hands using a soothing balm.
- A hot shower or soak in a warm bath should also offer considerable relief.
- Multi-vitamin and mineral supplements may help.
- Calcium, potassium, and magnesium deficiencies are often the cause for night leg cramps.
- Try and consume fresh fruits and vegetables.
- Whole meal varieties of grains should be taken.
- Fruits like dates and bananas are rich sources of magnesium and potassium.
- It would be best to get the required dosage of calcium from supplements that do not contain phosphorus.

Some good dietary sources of essential minerals like potassium are:
- Bananas, dates, grapes, apricots, and raisins.
- Pulses, cabbage and broccoli.
- Oranges, tomatoes and grapefruit, including their juice.
- Pork, lamb, and fish like tuna.
- Potatoes and corn.

Additional Tips to Cope
- Avoid using tight bed covers or restrictive sheets.
- Stretch the calf muscles with some light exercise for at least five minutes before going to bed each night.
- Take up a non intensive fitness regime like yoga or pilates to strengthen the muscles and also to loosen them up.
- Yoga is particularly useful as the breathing exercises and meditative practices.
- Yoga also helps improve circulation.


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Be the first to comment - What do you think?  Posted by ashish - January 22, 2012 at 9:12 am

Categories: Banana, benefits, Body, Diet, Disorder, Exercise, Food, health, Healthy, Home Remedy, home treatment, Instability, Leg cramps, Legs, Mineral, Minerals, Natural, natural home remedy, pain, Yoga   Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

What are different home remedies for leg pain and cramps? – Part 1

- Leg cramps are an involuntary contraction of a single muscle or a group of muscles in the leg.
- These are usually painful and extremely discomforting.
- Leg cramps often occur in elderly patients though age is no criteria.
- Leg cramps generally occur in the calf muscle, the hamstring and the quadriceps.
- The duration of a leg cramp ranges from less than a minute to several minutes at times.
- Night leg cramps or nocturnal leg cramps are problematic.
- They can be excruciating when they strike.
- Restless leg syndrome is not same as night leg cramps.
- Leg cramps during pregnancy are known to be problematic.
- These are mostly caused simply by the additional stress and strain on the muscles.
- This symptom will accordingly pass on with delivery.

Leg Cramps Symptoms
- Severe leg pain.
- Muscle tenderness.
- Inability to move the leg for the duration the cramp lasts.

Some of the factors leading to the same are as follows
- Muscle fatigue due to overexertion.
- Rigorous exercises.
- Dehydration.
- Excess weight.
- Electrolyte, hormonal or fluid imbalances.
- Side effects of certain medicines such as diuretics.
- An unusual or a different exercise than what is done normally.
- Diminished blood supply.
- Nerve abnormalities.
- Nerve and muscle diseases.

General Home Remedies for Leg Cramps and Pain
- Mix one tbsp of calcium lactate, one tsp of apple cider vinegar and one tsp of honey in half a glass of lukewarm water.
- Have this once a day.
- Using hot water bottle on the affected area is also beneficial in treating and curing cramps.
- Massaging the affected area with essential oils, like lavender oil and rosemary oil and eucalyptus oil.
- After massaging, wrap the affected area with a towel dipped in hot water.
- Consume 2-3 bananas per day.
- It increases the potassium intake in the body, thereby relieving a person from cramps.
- Having 2 tsp of honey per day is helpful in preventing leg cramps.
- Increase the intake of foods rich in calcium, potassium and magnesium daily.
- All the three basic food groups is recommended.
- A red flannel can also be wrapped around the area with pain.
- Coconut is also very helpful.
- Eating 3-4 walnuts with an empty stomach in the morning provided relief from leg pain in a short duration.
- Intake of cod liver oil also helps in curing all types of leg pains and general weakness of the body.
- Drink plenty of fluids and oral re-hydration solutions.
- This is for the electrolyte loss and dehydration that are the most common causes of muscle cramps.
- Drinking liquids like caffeinated drinks or alcoholic drinks does not constitute towards your fluid intake.
- These are diuretics that will actually have the opposite effect on your system.

Leg Cramps Treatment - Massage the cramped muscle gently in the natural direction of the muscle.
- This helps to relax the contraction and eases the pain.
- A hot shower or warm bath is a good way to relax the muscle.
- Use cold packs on the affected muscle.
- This relaxes the tensed muscles.
- For a cramped calf muscle, stretch and massage the leg by straightening it and pointing the toes upward, towards the head.
- Use a warm towel or heating pad to alleviate pain or tenderness following a cramp.

Be the first to comment - What do you think?  Posted by ashish - January 21, 2012 at 9:56 am

Categories: Home Remedy, home treatment, Instability, Leg cramps, Legs, Natural, natural home remedy, Relief, Remedies, stress, Symptoms, Toes, Walk   Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Leg Cramps during Pregnancy – causes, tips and treatment.

Leg cramps are a common problem for many women during pregnancy. Most leg cramps are caused by fatigue of carrying the weight that is put into textron during pregnancy. As you gain more weight, leg cramps may increase. Cramps can also be aggravated by pressure from the expanding uterus on blood vessels that return blood from the legs to the heart and from nerves to the legs. Leg cramps can occur at any time, but most likely it occurs at bedtime.
Leg cramps start during the second trimester and may get worse as the pregnancy progresses and the belly gets bigger. While, these cramps can occur during the day, but they are most noticeable at night and they can interfere with the ability to sleep well at night.

Causes:
Several things can lead to painful leg cramps during pregnancy.
For starters, the muscles that withstand the increasing weight of your baby, and probably feel the tension. Growth of the uterus (womb) is also putting pressure on the main vein in your legs. This, combined with the effects of progesterone, a hormone of pregnancy, affects the blood flow and therefore, the muscle tone in the legs.

Leg cramps may also be happening because they lack certain nutrients and salts such as calcium or magnesium. You can have low levels of these circulating in the blood because your baby is getting what it needs from supplies and leaving your body short of these nutrients.However, it is unclear whether taking supplements such as calcium or magnesium salts, helps prevent cramps.

Tips and Treatment:
Person must try these tips to fend off leg cramps:
- Avoid standing or sitting with legs crossed for long periods of time.
- Stretch the calf muscles regularly during the day and several times before going to bed.
- Rotate the ankles and toes when you sit, eat dinner or watch television.
- Take a walk every day, unless the doctor has advised not to exercise.
- Avoid getting too tired. Lie on the left side to improve circulation to and from the legs.
- Stay hydrated during the day by drinking fluids regularly.
- Try a warm bath before bedtime to relax the muscles.

There are lot of home remedies that can also help to cure the problem:
- Soak your feet in warm water every day before going to bed. This helps to relax the calf muscles and prevent cramps and swelling in the evening. Add the mint to the water and soak your feet in reliving the pain instantly. If your feet swell during the day, then you must use a compression of hot water and a towel or a hot water bottle on the feet to soothe muscles. Sitting for the day and complete their tasks in this way or take a short nap to make sure your body some rest.
- Taking a magnesium supplement in addition to a prenatal vitamin may help some women avoid leg cramps. Well, having leg cramps is a sign that you need more calcium, and calcium supplements. Although it is certainly important to get enough calcium, there is no good evidence that taking calcium supplements help prevent leg cramps during pregnancy.

If you have a cramp, immediately stretch the calf muscles: Straighten the leg, heel first and slightly flexible toes toward the shins. It may hurt at first, but will relieve the spasm and pain will gradually disappear. A doctor can also be called for help if the signs continue to persist for long time.

Be the first to comment - What do you think?  Posted by ashish - September 6, 2011 at 5:09 am

Categories: Leg cramps, Pregnancy, Weight, Women   Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

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