Leg cramps at night - causes and treatment

It is difficult to find a person who did not once have to face such an unpleasant phenomenon as muscle spasm in the lower extremities. These attacks are unpleasant in themselves, but the situation is aggravated by the fact that they appear at night, when a person is at rest and sees serene dreams. This condition is caused by spastic muscle contractions that cannot be controlled. The attack develops at lightning speed, scaring the victim and limiting his ability to move.

Of course, for many people, night cramps become a serious problem, especially if they are repeated regularly. Therefore, the question of what measures to take in such a situation remains relevant. I must say that modern medicine has well studied the nature of night cramps and has effective ways to correct this condition. In this article, we will talk about the causes of the phenomenon and about what tools will help to cope with this problem.

Types of night cramps

Most often, people of adulthood are complaining of spasms of the muscles of the lower extremities during sleep, most of them suffer from this pathology of the fairer sex. It should be noted that convulsive syndrome is regarded by specialists as a response of the body to an irritating factor. Moreover, the source may be external or located inside the body. Depending on the nature of the spasm and its duration, the seizures are divided into two types:

1. Tonic seizures last relatively long (more than 4 minutes). Such cramps block the control of the leg, and if a person wants to make a movement, severe pain appears.
2. Clonic cramps cause less trouble. They are not so painful, do not last long, only individual muscle groups are involved.

There is another classification, it also has two types of convulsive manifestations, but they are only subdivided according to localization.

An important point! With the protracted nature of night cramps, as well as the intensity of their appearance, one can judge the appearance of serious dysfunctions in the work of important body systems. For example, in older people, such cramps signal age-related changes occurring in it.

Causes

In any case, you should not ignore night cramps. It is necessary on this occasion to visit a doctor, and try together with a specialist to identify the cause of the problem. And a variety of factors can become a source of a pathological condition. The main prerequisites for the appearance of seizures:

• increased sweating;
• dehydration when the necessary elements and electrolytes are washed out with the liquid;
• pre-stroke condition;
• intoxication as a result of poisoning with low-quality alcohol;
• hypokalemia (often observed with diuretics and hormones);
• neuralgia;
• osteochondrosis;
• local oxygen starvation;
• stress
• protein diets (proteins do not allow calcium to be absorbed normally);
• pregnancy (as the fetus develops, significant pressure is applied to important arteries and nerve fibers).

This is only part of the factors that can provoke involuntary muscle spasm. A similar phenomenon can occur as a result of overheating in the sun, it is observed in some deficient conditions, psychoses, injuries (craniocerebral). When the cramps in the hours of night sleep are single, they are usually associated with emotional stress or excessive physical exertion. Such cramps do not require systemic treatment. When he brings his feet to frightening regularity, you need to seriously deal with this problem.

Primary care

Night cramps disturb sleep and cause a person significant discomfort. To alleviate the condition and relieve pain, you need to do the following:

1. Walk barefoot on the cool surface of the floor.
2. First cramped leg slowly stretch, and then pull the toe of the foot towards you.
3. Massage the lower leg.
4. Take aspirin. This will relieve muscle tone, as well as normalize blood circulation in the problem limb.
5. You can slightly prick the spasm zone with a needle. But it is better not to undertake such manipulation on your own, but to trust a specialist.
6. Light gymnastics will help to cope with an unpleasant symptom. It is necessary to bend the affected leg several times, and then bend it. Perform these movements until the seizure stops.

Advice! If the room is cool, after stopping the attack, put on warm socks.

Treatment methods

If the cause of night cramps lies in the functional disorder of the body, you need to determine where the failure occurred. Usually, therapy is prescribed taking into account the nature of the underlying pathology. So, with deficient conditions, the diet is adjusted. Vitamins and mineral components are necessarily included in the medical complex.

The medicinal composition of the therapy in such situations is directed to the localization of the main cause, that is, the treatment of the disease that provoked night cramps. To get rid of pain, it is recommended to use ointments that have warming properties. Capsicam, Finalgon, Apizartron and other external drugs are very effective in this regard. These drugs increase blood flow at the site of the lesion, and also eliminate pain.

Home Anticonvulsant Therapy
With systematically recurring night cramps, along with the treatment of the main pathology, effective alternative methods can be used. Thermal procedures and massages help well in such situations. We must not forget about the rational regime of the day, and be sure to leave time for a good rest. Simple recommendations, which are given below, will help relieve muscle tension.

1. Contrast foot baths with alternating temperatures. This procedure can be replaced by dousing the legs with alternately first cold, then hot water. The regular implementation of these rather pleasant procedures will improve the condition of the tissues of the lower extremities. To consolidate the beneficial effect, you can use decoctions of herbs instead of ordinary water: mint, valerian, horsetail.
2. It is necessary to revise the nutritional diet, add more cereals, beans, protein foods to it. The menu should contain fermented milk products, fish, more vegetables. Particular attention should be paid to the issue of nutrition if cramps at night bother the child.
3. A simple gymnastics complex in the morning will also benefit the muscles. To improve their condition, you should first resemble a little on the toes, then on the heels, then alternately, then on the inner, then on the outer plane of the feet. Squats, movement of the toes should also be included in the morning warm-up.

Other folk ways
It is possible to reduce the frequency of convulsive manifestations and reduce their intensity with the help of a whole series of procedures proposed by traditional healers.

Honey compresses applied to the calf muscle for half an hour. To enhance the impact, the leg with a compress should be wrapped in a warm blanket. This type of home treatment gives excellent results in muscle cramps in children.

Lemon juice also helps to relieve an attack if they lubricate their feet at night. The course of this type of home therapy can be from 7 to 14 days.

Ointment for seizures is prepared from the following components:

• egg yolk - 1;
• apple cider vinegar - 1 l. dining room;
• turpentine - 1 l. teahouse.

The listed ingredients are mixed, and before going to bed, the ointment obtained is applied to the legs. In the morning, the rest of the composition can be washed off. In a similar way, an ointment is made from mustard powder.

Vaseline ointmentSelf-made is also very effective. To obtain the drug, you need to take 2 parts of the base and one - celandine juice. But this remedy is used only when seizures occur.

Goose cinquefoil decoction able to significantly improve the situation. The healing drink is prepared in the following order: a plant component (4 l. Art.), Poured in a saucepan with a liter of boiling water, reaches five minutes on low heat. After the solution has cooled, it should be filtered. The resulting amount must be drunk during the day. The same grass can be brewed in milk. Only in this case a different proportion is applicable (1.l.h. per glass). Drink is recommended to drink hot.

Special exercises for the legs
In the collection of effective methods of dealing with attacks of night cramps, there is another set of exercises. Experts recommend doing before the onset of the attack, as well as during its active phase.

1. Lying on your back, you must simultaneously stretch both legs. In this case, the feet should be pulled back.
2. In the same starting position, do foot movements that simulate cycling.
3. With arms extended along the torso, it is necessary to alternately raise the extended legs to the top. For greater effectiveness, you can hold the foot a little with your hands.
4. Standing should alternately shift from toe to heel. This exercise helps pregnant women with spasms of the leg muscles.

These are simple exercises if you do them every morning. They will help not only to forget about night cramps, but also strengthen joints and all muscle groups of the lower extremities.

Useful advice: If you have a sensation of an approaching onset of muscle spasm, it is enough to pull the socks of the feet with all the force. With an attack, you should immediately remove the problem limb as far as possible, transferring the mass of your own body to the foot. This situation will contribute to the rapid relief of convulsive syndrome.

Preventive actions
In order not to know the nightly torment of what drives the leg down, experts recommend that you follow a few basic rules:

• protect your feet from increased loads (this is especially true for those over 40);
• limit coffee consumption;
• smoking will also have to quit;
• supplement the diet with foods rich in magnesium and calcium salts;
• perform regularly the gymnastic complex described above;
• try to maintain emotional balance.

A lesson in the gym under the guidance of an instructor will also have a beneficial effect on leg health.

Cramps are unpleasant in themselves. But they become a double problem when the normal sleep of a person is disturbed through their fault. Consulting a specialist and the list of simple actions that are given here will help to correct the condition in a positive direction. By following all the recommendations consistently, you can quickly get rid of night muscle cramps.

Video: easy ways to treat leg cramps