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Thanks very much for all your suggestions. I just have to give the "soap between sheet and mattress" a try first. It just sounds so outrageous that I will try it tonight! Be sure that I'll post and let you all know how it goes. Now where did I put my extra lovely, fragrant soap??

Vader wrote:

ems wrote:For those who get those awful leg cramps during the night, I wondered if anyone has some ideas how to stop them. Thanks.

I take magnesium citrate, which is the most easily absorbed form of magnesium supplements.
I used to have really bad leg cramps, but this product eliminated them.
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B000WV ... 5II6PNQC4O

It works best if you take it in the evening, shortly before bedtime. Read the reviews, It's REALLY great stuff!

I also take the magnesium citrate. It helps relieve cramping and helps me sleep better.

ozze_dollar wrote:

Vader wrote:

ems wrote:For those who get those awful leg cramps during the night, I wondered if anyone has some ideas how to stop them. Thanks.

I take magnesium citrate, which is the most easily absorbed form of magnesium supplements.
I used to have really bad leg cramps, but this product eliminated them.
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B000WV ... 5II6PNQC4O

It works best if you take it in the evening, shortly before bedtime. Read the reviews, It's REALLY great stuff!

I also take the magnesium citrate. It helps relieve cramping and helps me sleep better.

Thank you... the magnesium citrate is next on the list of things to try.

kempo wrote:This is going to sound stupid. A lest it sounds stupid to me but I have friends who swear by this. Put a bar of soap between your bead sheet and your mattress under the area of your legs. I have never tried it because I never have leg cramps but if I did I would give it a go. I'll try anything once to see if it will help my problem.

Yes, it does sound stupid! but that didn't stop me from trying it!
A friend recommended that to me, and I was so desperate, I felt compelled to see if it would work.
Unfortunately, for me anyway, it DID NOT work. Needless to say, I was very happy with the results from the magnesium citrate. The liquid form that I used was very fast acting.

Just for fun... nite one w/ soap between sheet and mattress - NO leg cramps!

ems wrote:Just for fun... nite one w/ soap between sheet and mattress - NO leg cramps!

That's GREAT! evidently it DOES work for some people. Who'da thunk?

Vader wrote:

ems wrote:Just for fun... nite one w/ soap between sheet and mattress - NO leg cramps!

That's GREAT! evidently it DOES work for some people. Who'da thunk?

Keep in mind only night one. Still think it's ridiculous. On to nite 2.

PS Vader, glad we're buddies!

Vader wrote:

ems wrote:Just for fun... nite one w/ soap between sheet and mattress - NO leg cramps!

That's GREAT! evidently it DOES work for some people. Who'da thunk?

WOW!

http://www.iHerb.com

I take 500mg. Magnesium Gluconate (Chelated/Albion Process) daily in three or four doses of 100-200mg each. I find that the Magnesium Citrate is not tummy friendly. Start off with low dosage of Magnesium Gluconate of say 100-200 mg. and increase as bowel tolerance is reached. Take too much and it is like drinking Milk of Magnesia. It is essential for good health and especially heart health.

I take up to 5 GRAMS of Potassium daily. Low Sodium V8 is a good source for rapid infusion of Potassium. Have you family doctor check it out for you with a blood test. Serum level should be around 4.5 ideally. Essential for heart health and leg cramps.

I take a few other supplements from iHerb including CoEnzyme Q10 (Ubiquinol form), Taurine, Vit C, Vit D, B-Complex.

No leg cramps any more.

The doctor's solution was to prescribe Quinine for daily consumption. Phooooey on that.

Also - 80% of us are dehydrated. Make sure you drink plenty of good quality water (or Low Sodium V8). I drink TWO beer cups of LS V8 daily, sometimes with Potassium Glycinate mixed in (it's powder). It is a struggle to keep serum Potassium in the 4.5 range, but I find that the results of doing so are outstanding, so I make the effort. Bananas are a good source of Potassium but remember that they are also a wonderful source of sugar.

Educate. Advocate. Live Healthy.

I've heard that if you do the soap thing, Dial soap is the most effective.
I had some results from tonic water or bananas; but almost no cramps at all since taking a calcium supplement and using CPAP.
If you get the cramp anyway, it can be relieved by gently stretching the affected calf by flexing the foot
so the toes go up and the heel goes down as far as possible. The stretch is a good one to do any time.

Potatoes and some legumes are great sources of potassium. Avocados are as well but they are expensive and high fat (plus I don't like them).

According to the USDA's food database, a medium banana has 422 mg of potassium while a cup of black beans (my favorite legume) has 801 mg and a medium baked potato has 952 mg.

Vader wrote:

ems wrote:Just for fun... nite one w/ soap between sheet and mattress - NO leg cramps!

That's GREAT! evidently it DOES work for some people. Who'da thunk?

Well, it might work for some people, not for me tho. Next up... ordering the Natural Calm.

And, I even used Dial soap!

ems wrote:

Vader wrote:

ems wrote:Just for fun... nite one w/ soap between sheet and mattress - NO leg cramps!

That's GREAT! evidently it DOES work for some people. Who'da thunk?

Well, it might work for some people, not for me tho. Next up... ordering the Natural Calm.

And, I even used Dial soap!

I hate to be skeptical of such things as soap remedies for leg cramps, but I guess it does appear to be a little bit *unscientific*

As I stated previously, the Natural Calm (magnesium citrate) works very well, but I would caution you that more isn't necessarily better when it pertains to the dosage, because mag citrate can be a bit of a natural laxative. One half to one teaspoon ought to be helpful for helping leg cramps. Probably best to start with a half teaspoon and adjust as needed.

320 mg of potassium in a small glass of V8,
It also counts as a vegetable.
I need to put more in my desk at work. . .
(in the cans--OMG! )

Believe it or not...what works very well? PICKLES!! Eat a couple of pickles before bed. I eat Dill. Also, you can put this lotion on before bed--TOPRICIN . You can go to http://www.topricin.com and check it out. AMAZING stuff.