MUSCLE CRAMPS

“That random pain you experience once in a while”



Muscle cramp is a very common term that every one of us often hear and encounter in our day to day lives. At times you randomly move a part of your body and experience a sudden contracting pain in muscles. Most commonly the calf muscles. The pain sometimes is experienced while sleeping or during sitting or standing for long periods of time. commonly this type of pain in muscle is experienced after a few hours of physical activity, might be a vigorous one also. A lot of people including family and friends often ask me about what muscle cramps actually are. Why do muscle cramps occur? And what are the ways to get rid of these cramps? So, this time I picked up a very simple but an important topic to share with all my readers.

What are muscle cramps?


Muscle cramps are the involuntary sudden contraction of muscles causing pain and stiffness in a muscle. The type of pain can be described as dull aching pain in a combination with stiffness or feeling of tightness in the affected muscle. The most commonly affected areas are the areas of muscle bulk. There is a mechanical damage occurring to the affected part of the body on a very small scale. The soreness occurring in the muscle is a kind of a warning sign sometimes to stop further damage to the muscle. Micro traumas occurring in the muscles results in a debilitating effect to it. There is some amount of inflammatory response occurring in the muscles. The most commonly affected muscles are the thigh, calf, foot, hand, neck and abdominal muscles.



Types and causes of muscle cramp.


·       DEHYDRATION
Lack of fluid content in the body is a major cause of muscle cramp. When the body works normally, there is production of energy by breakdown of glucose into pyruvate for its use by muscles. The body generates energy most of the times in presence of oxygen using aerobic method. When there is inadequate amount of oxygen to be used by muscles during activity the pyruvate is further broken down to be utilized following the anaerobic method. Which converts pyruvate into lactate. This substance increases the acid level in the muscles causing accumulation of lactic acid. Adequate amount of water consumption leads to flushing out of the lactic acid that has been accumulated in the muscles. Lack of water and altered electrolyte leading to acidity in the muscles causes pain and cramps.

·       OVERUSE
The excessive use of a particular muscle or using a muscle which was earlier not in use causes cramps. The contracting pain occurs after a few hours of activity. The overuse of muscles leads to altered electrolyte balance in the body, inducing cramps.

·       NON-USE
Holding a limb in a particular position for prolonged duration can also cause muscle fatigue. Immobility leads to fluid and electrolyte imbalance as the body is not functioning adequately while we hold on to a position.


·       INJURY
Cramp is a protective mechanism of the body after an injury. Cramps results in pain in the affected area causing limitation of movement, which reduces the chances of further injury to the injured muscle.

·       NOCTURNAL CRAMPS
We often experience sudden tightness and contracting pain in the muscle. This usually happens when we stretch our leg while sleeping. This type of pain occurs most commonly in thigh, calf or feet. This may occur due to prolonged sitting or standing during day time, or over exertion of the leg muscles.

·       MEDICINE INDUCED
Medications cause alteration in the metabolism of the body.  There might be some amount of water loss, like in case of hypertensive medications or depletion of some vital nutrients and minerals from the body. Therefore, muscle cramps can also be a result or we can say a side effect of certain medications. Like, medication for alzheimer’s, parkinsons, osteoporosis, asthama, cholesterol, hypertension.

·       MINERALS AND ION DEPLETION
Lack of minerals and sodium, potassium or magnesium ions from the body leads to cramps and weakness too, due to electrolyte imbalance.


Preventing muscle cramps


There a many ways to get rid of muscle cramps.
o  Drink plenty of water. This helps the body to flush out the toxins and help reduce the acid level in the body causing pain. It helps in balancing the electrolyte and fluid levels in the body. Adequate Water intake helps in maintaining a normal body metabolism. Drinking 6-8 glasses of water a day is good for body.

o  Stretching before exercise and also before going to sleep is beneficial for avoiding muscle cramps. Do a 10-15 minutes of self-stretching exercises of the muscles.

o  Eat food items rich in minerals like potassium, sodium, calcium. Provide your body proper nutrition to get rid of muscle cramps occurring due to depletion of minerals.

o  Give your body proper rest after overuse or injury. This helps promote healing and prevent further chances of injury or muscle cramp.




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