Cramp....

[EcclesCake]

An often asked question but maybe I have a new twist on it.....no pun intended!

I have previously linked my cramp to a lack of salt

I often don't eat through the day but drink a lot of water; my diet is probably relatively low salt as I don't eat processed foods other than some snacks with drink over the weekend.

Does the body store salt or is it a transient element that neds maintaining and I am flushing out by not eating but keeping my fluids going.

However last night my cramps, which were really quite spectacular, seemed to be triggered by my warm feet on a chilly stone floor in the bathroom. When I got back to the warmth of my bed the cramps where out of this worl and took a long time to settle.

Any thoughts on salt, cold, more tonic with my gin????

[murraymints]

You can get quinine tablets for cramp......my dad takes them...they seem to help..

[EcclesCake]

Surely they still put quinine in tonic water......I'll happily upgrade permanently to Feverfew if necessary.......

[murraymints]

I don't think tonic has quinine these days, rather a substitute...

[murraymints]

I stand corrected, appears it does...

[hc4361]

The amount of quinine is tonic water is negligible and won't help with leg cramps.

[murraymints]

Mind you drinking copious amounts of tonic before bed may present other problems !lol

[stewey]

I just checked one of Mrs stewey's cans of tonic water, and it contains quinine hydrochloride. It really works well in eliminating her very bad cramps.

[EcclesCake]

The tonic in my gin was a bit of a joke......

I am intrigued that the two times I went to the loo last night and froze my little tootsies off I suffered bad cramp when I got back to bed. As I say I ate nothing yesterday and drank only water so could it be the dilution of salts in my body or was the cold a trigger or is it a combination?

[hc4361]

Try wearing slippers during your nocturnal ablutions.

[Old_Geezer]

You sweat salt, probably pee it too. Generally we all consume too much of it, or so I am told, but I don't believe it is held onto by the body. You need to be worth your salt :-)

I would be surprised is there was sufficient quinine in tonic water to have more than a placebo affect.

[murraymints]

I suppose going from cosy bed to cold floor may bring about involuntary spasms

[stewey]

When you get cold don't your muscles tend to tense up? This could trigger a cramp...Just a thought.

[Sqad]

Nobody, but nobody knows the causes of our simple nocturnal cramp.

Salt depletion?....naah! very very few medical conditions lead to salt depletion and they are rare. Extreme fluid loss e.g diarrhea and hyperthermia rarely give rise to cramp.

Quinine?....no idea.......try it and see.

Chilly floor and cramps.......could be.....could be.

Medications......yes certain medications have cramps as side effects...e.g diuretics (lasix) and statins along with many other drugs can cause cramps.

That's it in a nutshell......your guess as to the cause of cramps is as good as anybody's.

[EcclesCake]

I was expecting a response along the lines of Sqad's.

It just struck me as a coincidence that on the days I don't eat but take on fluid I get cramp at night. Last night I noticed that warm bed to chilly bathroom floor and back to warm bed I had cramp both times.

Meds aren't an issue here.

Like I said I'm aware that cramp is a much debated yet not resolved complaint, just wondered what others experiences have been.

On the days I don't eat I'd like to relax with a G&T or two and a few salty snacks but there is a reason I'm not eating and only drinking water :-(

[Jeza]

I know someone who says having a strong magnet at the bottom of the bed really works. Inside the bed that is.

[Brinjal]

Magnesium Rather than salt. Bananas and beans for potassium.

[pastafreak]

And maybe some bedsocks too...just in case