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I believe that many people have experienced calf cramps. The taste is really memorable. Many people’s first reaction to calf cramps is “calcium deficiency,” but is that really the case?
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“Cramp”
strong>What is it?
“Cramps”, scientifically known as muscle spasms, refers to the phenomenon of sudden, involuntary tonic contractions of muscles. The muscle suddenly becomes very hard and the pain is unbearable. It can last from a few seconds to tens of seconds, and it usually occurs when swimming, sleeping or exercising vigorously.
“Cramp”must be Calcium deficiency?
Calcium deficiency does easily cause “cramps”, but not all “cramps” are caused by calcium deficiency. So what exactly causes leg cramps?
The common causes of calf cramps are cold stimulation, accumulation of muscle metabolites, muscle fatigue, temporary insufficiency of blood supply to local muscles and calcium deficiency, etc. .
Cold Stimulation:Intense muscle contractions in response to cold stimuli cause spasms and cramps. It is more common in winter sports or swimming in cold water or when the quilt is not covered at night.
Muscle fatigue and accumulation of metabolites: During strenuous exercise, leg muscles frequently contract, local metabolites (lactic acid) increase, and muscle contractions Relaxation is difficult to coordinate, and fatigue to a certain extent can cause calf muscle spasms. When exercising for a long time and a large amount of exercise, sweating a lot, and not replenishing salt in time, a large amount of fluid and electrolytes are lost in the body, and the blood circulation in the muscles is not good, and spasms are prone to occur.
Calcium deficiency: Calcium plays an important role in muscle contraction. When the calcium ion concentration in the blood is too low, the muscles are easily excited and spasm. Adolescents grow rapidly and are prone to calcium deficiency, which often results in leg cramps. In older women, decreased estrogen and osteoporosis can lead to low blood calcium levels, increased muscle stress, and frequent spasms.
Lower extremity arteriosclerosis and occlusion: Patients with cardiovascular and cerebrovascular diseases, hypertension, hyperlipidemia and diabetes, when they have lower extremity pain and leg cramps , difficulty walking and other symptoms, should think about whether there is arteriosclerosis, stenosis or occlusion.
Poor sleeping position: Such as lying on your back for a long time, pressing the quilt on your feet, or lying on your stomach for a long time, The foot surface is pressed against the bed, forcing certain muscles of the calf to be in a state of absolute relaxation for a long time, causing muscle “passive contracture”.
Lumbar disc herniation and spinal degeneration: Studies have shown that in patients with lumbar disc herniation, The incidence of calf cramps can be as high as 70%.These are leg cramps caused by compression of the spinal nerve roots and decreased blood flow within the spinal nerve roots.
Malnutrition:Muscle cramps are more likely to occur, especially when vitamin B1 is deficient.
Pregnant women with leg cramps:Most expectant mothers are prone to calf cramps during the second and later stages of pregnancy. The main reasons may be the increased burden on the muscles of the legs, the imbalance of calcium and phosphorus ratio in the body, poor blood circulation or cold.
After a leg cramp What should I do?
Cramping while exercising or sleeping: Grasp your thumb immediately and keep pushing upwards , Slowly straighten the leg, massage until the pain disappears, or continue to step on the ground with the tip of the toe.
Stretching techniques can also be used: Sit up immediately, straighten the cramping calf, bend the trunk forward, and hold the balls of the front feet with both hands. Slowly and continuously pull toward the side of the torso until the spasm is relieved.
Topical massage is also great for relieving cramps:A quick rubbing of the calf with both hands, or rubbing or tapping the calf muscles with your hands can help relieve Muscle spasms.
You can also relieve cramps with acupoint therapy: Press the Weizhong point (the center of the depression behind the knee) with your fingers, Points (the highest point of the muscles on the back of the calf), Chengshan Point (the bifurcation of the muscles on the back of the calf), etc. You can also press the Shanghegu point on the hand (that is, the tiger’s mouth of the arm, the depression between the first and second metacarpal bones). After 20~30 seconds of pressure, the pain will be relieved. Combined with wet compress with a hot towel and massage with your hands, the effect will be better.
If the above methods do not completely relieve the symptoms, you can use A hot towel and hot water bottle applied to the calf can effectively promote blood circulation to the muscles and relieve spasms.
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Health knowledge “focus”
Cramps while swimming: Using the hand on the opposite side of the cramping calf, hold the toe of the cramping leg and pull up firmly, while pressing the palm of the same side against the knee of the cramping calf to help straighten the calf.
How to prevent Cramps?
Soak your feet in warm water for 15~20 minutes before going to bed, which can improve peripheral blood circulation and relieve cramps Pay attention to maintaining a comfortable and warm sleeping environment and adequate sleep, try not to stay up late, pay attention to reasonable diet, balanced nutrition, scientific exercise, sun exposure, and appropriate supplementation of vitamin B1, vitamin E, etc. p>
Pay attention to keeping warm when sleeping, especially in winter, Do not let local muscles get cold. Walking or exercising should not be too long, and the calf should not be overtired. Appropriate calcium supplementation, especially in developing adolescents. But the real reason behind the low calcium should be identified before targeted treatment, rather than just calcium supplementation. Flat feet and other anatomical issues make some people especially prone to calf cramps, and for this population, choosing the right shoes is one way to compensate.
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Health knowledge “focusing on”
General In general, cramps are less harmful and easy to deal with.But if they occur frequently and last for a long time, should go to the hospital as soon as possible to rule out organic lesions of blood vessels and nerves , Especially the middle-aged and elderly people with other diseases, must not be careless.
Source of content:People’s Health Publishing House Published “From bone to tendon – what an orthopedic doctor tells you”
Editor-in-chief: Guo Shuzhang