What Causes Leg Cramps?

Cramp is a sudden tension, contraction and painful condition in the leg muscles. During a cramp, the muscles suddenly contract and become shorter in length. Now, this muscle remains severely contracted against your will, and it takes time to recover. This condition may return to normal within a few seconds to 10 minutes. It occurs most often in the calf parts. There are more muscle groups here. Even if the contractions improve, their effects continue to decrease within a few hours. Most leg cramps bother people at night when they lie down.

Why Do Legs Cramp?

Cramps can occur normally or as a result of a disease. Cramps are seen in the legs even if there is no reason. The important thing here is that if a painful cramp usually lasts more than 10 minutes, there is a problem that needs to be investigated.

Dehydration of the body is an event that triggers muscle cramps. Abnormal nerve activity is blamed for leg cramps of unknown cause.

Hardening and shortening of the tendons at the attachment point of the muscles to the bones, especially in the elderly, is an inevitable physiological condition. This causes leg cramps during sleep that the elderly often experiences.

Apart from these normal cramps, there are also leg cramps that may be due to diseases.

As the pregnancy progresses in pregnant women, the increased weight puts pressure on the legs and causes cramps, but these conditions improve after delivery.

It is not so important that cramps occur in the legs while resting after exercise either.

Some neurological diseases cause muscle cramps that should be taken seriously. In cases of serious liver diseases such as motor neuron diseases and neuropathies, the liver cannot remove toxins, and toxins increase in the blood and cause muscle contractions. On the other hand, if toxic substances such as lead and mercury are increased in the body, they also cause cramps.

It should be kept in mind that serious infectious diseases such as Tetanus may be underlying severe cramps.

Diseases That Cause Leg Cramps

Problems in the arteries in the legs (peripheral vascular diseases) and spinal cord narrowing (spinal stenosis) are the most common problems and treatments should be arranged accordingly.

In addition, diseases or medications such as kidney failure, anemia, cirrhosis, under- or over-functioning of the thyroid, diabetes, diuretics, blood pressure medications, cholesterol-lowering drugs, birth control pills, diarrhea, dehydration of the body, cancer-related nerve abrasions, Parkinson's and joint calcifications. all cause leg cramps.

What Should We Do When Cramp Occurs?

Most leg cramps can be relieved by working the affected muscles. Moving your legs throughout the day as if you were exercising often helps reduce the frequency of cramping attacks.

As soon as the legs cramp, it is necessary to stretch and massage the affected muscle. Stretching the leg by keeping it straight, lifting the feet back from the ankle, pulling the toes towards you, or getting out of bed and walking on the heels for a few minutes can end the cramping attack.

Sometimes it can be comforting to stand forward on your toes and move your heels up and down to stretch your calf muscles.

Drinking plenty of water throughout the day is a good way to prevent leg cramps triggered by dehydration.

Keep your feet comfortably off the duvet while lying down. Make sure the bedroom is not cold.

Medication is usually only needed in persistent cases where the cramps do not respond to exercise. If cramps occur due to a disease, it is useful to apply treatments for the underlying problem.

If leg cramps that cannot normally be attributed to a condition last for a long time, magnesium and muscle relaxants may help you. If the pain persists, a simple pain reliever may work for you.

There is little need to dwell on occasional leg cramps. However, if leg cramps occur frequently and they cause extreme pain even the next day, it is useful to go to a specialist doctor to investigate the cause.