Muscle Cramps – Home Treatment for Muscle Cramps
A Muscle cramp is an involuntary, painful contraction of the muscles
which produce a hard, bulging muscle. Muscle twitching, also called fasciculation is the result of spontaneous local muscle contractions that are involuntary. The muscle cramp usually only affects the individual muscle groups connected to a particular motor neuron.
Anyone who has experienced a muscle cramp (charley horse) can attest to the fact that it can be quite painful. Muscle cramps occur when muscles involuntarily contract and cannot relax.
The skeletal muscles (those over which we have voluntary control) are most prone to cramping. The skeletal muscles in the calf, thigh, and arch of the foot are most notorious sites of cramps.
Causes of Muscle Cramps
· Dietary deficiencies of calcium, magnesium, potassium, Vitamin D and Vitamin B6 and deficiency of oxygen in the tissues are the main causes.
· Nervous irritability.
· Mental stress and other psychic factors.
Muscle cramps are very common among endurance athletes (i.e., marathon runners and triathletes) and older people who perform strenuous physical activities.
Athletes are more likely to get cramps in the preseason when the body is not conditioned and therefore more subject to fatigue. Cramps often develop near the end of intense or prolonged exercise, or 4-6 hours later.
Older people are more susceptible to muscle cramps due to normal muscle loss (atrophy) that begins in the mid-40s and accelerates with inactivity. As you age, your muscles cannot work as hard or as quickly as they used to. The body also loses some of its sense of thirst and its ability to sense and respond to changes in temperature.
Exercise is also beneficial for muscle cramps. Lie flat on the back in a bed with the feet elevated for 2 minutes. Sit on the edge of the bed with the legs dangling till they become pink. Move the feet up and down. Flex the ankles in and out. Massage the feet, toes and lower legs. Lie back on the bed and cover with blankets for 2 minutes. The exercise should be repeated 4 times a day.
Gently massaging the muscle will often help it to relax, as will applying warmth from a heating pad or hot soak. If the cramp is associated with fluid loss, as is often the case with vigorous physical activity, fluid and electrolyte (especially sodium and potassium) replacement is essential. Medicines are not generally needed to treat an ordinary cramp that is active since most cramps subside spontaneously before enough medicine would be absorbed to even have an effect.
For relief from cramps at night, turn over in bed on your back. Point toes toward the ceiling or get up and walk around or get into a tub of hot water until the cramp subsides.
Herbal Medicines
Massage is the best treatment for relaxation of the contracted muscles. This can be done at home itself. It should be done by rubbing medicated oils on the affected muscles.
Garlic Oil: 10 to 15 Garlic cloves should be crushed and added to 50 ml of any cooking oil and boiled on slow fire till half of the oil remains, and filtered. This is-one- of the effective home remedies
for massage and gives immediate relief.
by corwin brown
