Page 96 - (DK) Home Doctor: Providing practical advice on home treatments

94 COMMON CONDITIONS: HEAD, BACK, AND LIMB PROBLEMS

Leg cramps

A cramp is a painful spasm, usually in one or more calf or foot
WARNING
muscles. The muscle becomes hard and knotted, and hurts if you
try to move it. The pain usually lasts for only a few minutes. You Seek urgent medical help if:
may get a cramp on waking up or after sitting or lying awkwardly. ● You have continuous pain deep
in your calf or in a leg vein
If you get it during exercise or strenuous work, it is usually due ● Your leg is hot, red, or swollen;
to overusing muscles, heat, dehydration, or salt and mineral loss. turns blue or white; or feels cold
Swimmers can get cramps if they become cold and exhausted.

What you can do yourself
PRACTICAL TECHNIQUE
Although a cramp will subside on its own, the
steps below will help minimize discomfort. Calf-stretching exercise Try this
exercise to relieve cramps and as a daily routine to
● If you get cramps during exercise, stop. Gently
prevent further episodes. Do it before and after using
massage the muscle. If the spasm is in your calf, your leg muscles for long periods and before going to
stretch it. Pull your toes toward your knee, letting bed if you are prone to leg cramps at night.
your ankle bend. Hold until the muscle relaxes.
Stand about an arm’s length from a wall with
● If the cramp occurs while you are in bed, get up one leg in front of the other and your hands
and wiggle your foot or walk around. If it persists, 1 flat against the wall at shoulder height.
try stretching the muscle as above. Keeping your feet flat on the floor, lean
forward, bending the front knee and pressing
● Try heat, particularly for cramps due to swimming.
2 the rear heel into the ground. You will feel
Take a warm bath or shower, then wrap a warm
the calf muscle
towel around the muscle. Put on warm clothing or
of the rear leg
cover your leg with a blanket afterward. However, stretch. Repeat
for cramps caused by overuse, try an ice pack. the exercise with
Wrap a bag of frozen peas or crushed ice in a wet the other leg.
towel, and hold it on the muscle for 10 minutes.

PREVENTION Press the Bend the
back heel front knee
into the forward
Avoiding cramps If you are prone to ground
cramps, the following tips may help prevent attacks.
● Drink 8 glasses of water a day. Have 1–2 glasses
2 hours before any exercise; /2–1 glass every 15–20
1
minutes during exercise; and plenty of fluids afterward.
● Warm up thoroughly before you exercise, and ease
off gradually afterward. Stop when you need to rest.
● Do calf-stretching exercises to relieve and
prevent cramps (see PRACTICAL TECHNIQUE, right).
● Eat foods rich in potassium, magnesium, and Seek medical advice
calcium, such as avocados, bananas, oranges, milk, Arrange to see your doctor if:
dark-leaved vegetables, whole-grain foods, and nuts.
● Stop smoking; it contributes to the risk of cramps. ● Cramps are not relieved by these measures,
or they become more severe or frequent