Why Do I Get Leg Cramps at Night?

Cramps during pregnancy are a morbid phenomenon in the malaise syndrome during pregnancy, which usually occurs at night, and usually the painful contraction of the gastrocnemius muscle (commonly known as calf belly) and foot muscles. Or when you get up in the morning, you may stretch your soles, calves or abdomen, and lumbar muscles will cause cramps.

Cramps during pregnancy

Cause 1: Leg Cramps Caused by Hypocalcemia

The calcium required for fetal bone growth is all provided by the mother. Therefore, expectant mothers must guarantee a calcium intake of about 1200 mg to 1500 mg per day. If the maternal calcium intake is insufficient, it will cause hypocalcemia. Calcium is an important factor that regulates muscle contraction, cell division, and glandular secretion. Low calcium will increase the excitability of neuromuscular muscles, leading to muscle contraction and subsequent cramps. Because the blood calcium level at night is often lower than during the day, cramps often occur at night.

Primal 2: Leg Cramps Caused by Overwork

With increasing weight during pregnancy, expectant mothers 'leg burdens continue to increase, and leg muscles are often in a state of fatigue; walking too much or standing too long during pregnancy, the leg muscles' burden increases, resulting in the accumulation of local acidic metabolites. Causes muscle cramps.

Primal 3: Leg Cramps Caused by Sleep Posture

Poor sleeping posture, lying on the back for a long time, pressing the quilt on the foot, or prone on the bed for a long time, forcing certain muscles of the calf to be absolutely relaxed for a long time, causing the muscle to "passive contracture".

In addition, sleeping too long can cause slow blood circulation, accumulation of carbon dioxide and other metabolic waste, and may induce muscle spasms.

Culprit 4: leg cramps caused by dietary factors

Although calcium deficiency is the most common cause of cramps during pregnancy, cramps are not all caused by calcium deficiency. Prospective mothers will cause cramps after excessive intake of meat substances. This is because meat is rich in protein. Excessive intake will affect the metabolism of carbohydrates, cause accumulation of acidic metabolites, and cause electrolyte disorders. One of the manifestations of electrolyte disorders is cramps.

Culprit 5: leg cramps caused by cold

If the room temperature is low at night and the quilt is too thin or the legs and feet are exposed during sleep, the calf muscles are easily cooled, and the leg muscles are spasm and cramped due to the cold stimulus. Therefore, pay attention to the cold and warmth of the legs and feet at night.

The main reasons may be: increased leg muscle burden and imbalanced calcium to phosphorus ratio in the body. Walking too long and standing too long during pregnancy will increase the calf muscle activity, resulting in inadequate use of calcium in the pregnant woman's body, which will cause leg cramps; in addition, poor blood circulation or cold may also cause cramps.

Cold irritation: Calf muscles are susceptible to cold. Due to cold irritation, leg muscles have cramps and cramps. Therefore, pay attention to the cold and warmth of the legs and feet.

Excessive fatigue: Excessive leg movements, such as long journeys, strenuous exercise, etc., can cause excessive fatigue in the leg muscles. Muscle tension has not been eliminated, and excessive acidic metabolites such as lactic acid stimulate muscles to cause cramps. Therefore, when using your legs excessively, you should use hot water to soak your feet. It is best to take a hot bath and massage your lower limb muscles to reduce

Cramps during pregnancy are mainly caused by calcium deficiency. Generally, cramps in pregnant women are caused by severe calcium deficiency. Pregnant women should pay attention to calcium supplementation so that they can meet the calcium requirements of pregnant women. Calcium supplementation for pregnant women can generally be supplemented with food supplements and calcium tablets. Food supplementation can usually be supplemented with milk, soy products, fish, eggs, kelp, laver, shrimp skin, nuts, sesame, green vegetables, etc. Pregnant women should pay more attention to basking in the sun, it is to bask in the sun outdoors. This can promote calcium absorption. In addition, do not drink carbonated drinks to prevent calcium loss.

Be sure to add enough calcium-dairy products are a good source. Also eat a lot of dark green vegetables, such as spinach and other dark green vegetables that are common to you, to ensure that you have enough iron to avoid anemia. Spinach contains more iron than meat, but iron can be effectively absorbed by the body only when it is eaten with foods containing high-quality vitamin C. These foods include tomatoes, potatoes, and green bell peppers. You can also take vitamin C supplements while eating spinach, which may be easier for you. Your doctor can check your blood test report to see if you have enough iron. If iron isn't enough, they may advise you to take iron supplements. If you have this situation, try to choose iron supplements that do not cause constipation, and eat them with vitamin C for better absorption. In addition, be sure to add a lot of folic acid and vitamin D. Folic acid is found in more whole grains, such as purple or black rice, oats, soybeans, and legumes. You need to drink a lot of fresh milk and yoghurt. You should also take at least 10 minutes of sun every day to ensure that you get enough vitamin D to keep your bones healthy and strong during pregnancy. (If there is no way to bask in the sun, you may need to take vitamin D supplements. You need to consult your doctor about which type of vitamin D to eat and how much.) Many vegetarian women stay vegetarian and have healthy babies during pregnancy. Ms. Zhang Huanlan's children have been vegetarian since birth. Not only are they martial arts athletes, but they have also been practicing yoga since birth. They are healthy and strong, and have strength and endurance.

(1) The effect of heating compresses is significant

Keep your lower limbs warm during sleep. Especially before falling asleep, do nt let your calf blow or air directly, and adopt a side-lying position to reduce symptoms; do nt be overly tired, avoid walking too much or standing too long; lie down and rest your feet Raising slightly and stretching your toes upwards can relax the muscles in the back of the calf, which can reduce swelling and discomfort. Frequent massage of cramped foot muscles can increase circulation to eliminate metabolites, and can be used with hot compresses. When bathing at night, legs Soak in hot water for 10 minutes, the effect will be more significant.

(2) eating habits

Usually eat more calcium-rich foods, such as milk, dairy products (cheese, cheese), pork ribs, dried small fish, increase vitamin intake (especially vitamin D); eat too salty, pickled foods such as: sausage, Canned food to avoid edema. Drink several glasses of fresh orange, guava, or tomato juice daily to supplement your minerals, which are all ways to prevent cramps

(3) Immediately land on foot when cramping

When cramps occur, you can get out of bed with your heel on the ground, or rest your heel against the wall when you lie flat; you can also bend your feet upwards to stretch your lower legs; in addition, straighten your knees and tilt your feet toward the knees, flex upwards, carefully Slipping around the ankle can also reduce symptoms. However, if the cramps are severe, you must consult a doctor.

(4) Stretching during pregnancy

Lie on your back, lie on your back, bend your knees at a 45-degree angle, stand your back and soles on the floor, keep this position, and then protrude the abdomen as much as possible to bend the spine, back to hip muscles, and then return to the original position. Since the fourth month of pregnancy, two times a day, three times each time. By repeating this movement, the muscles of the pelvis and waist can be relaxed and contracted, and it has the effect of softening the muscles of the birth canal exit. You can do the same movements while sitting at home or during a ride, because the main movements are on the back and waist, and you don't have to lie down to do it.

(5) Dress

Choose comfortable maternity clothing, with knee-high elastic socks. Elastic socks can choose thicker and more elastic materials. Cotton, wool and elastic fiber blended materials are more comfortable and sweat-absorbing than stocking-type elastic socks; The height difference between the toes and heels of shoes worn by pregnant women should not be too large. You can choose flat-bottomed shoes or high-soled shoes or air-cushioned shoes, and they must have soft shoes that fit and fit your feet.

Cramps during pregnancy

Pregnant women have different cramps, but the coping methods are similar. If left unattended, cramps can last for 1 to 15 minutes and may recur in a short period of time. Treatment of cramps should not be forced to pull hard, to avoid straining muscle fibers.

The correct processing steps are as follows:

1. Massage the cramps.

2. Carefully stretch and lengthen the muscles in the cramps to keep it stretched.

3. Apply hot towel over the cramps.

Cramps during pregnancy 2

Those who have had cramps will definitely want to know what to do to ensure that they will not have the same experience in the future. In fact, the effective way to prevent cramps is to avoid and eliminate those causative factors that are closely related to cramps.

1. Exercise regularly to prevent muscle fatigue. Do adequate preparations before exercise to stretch the muscles of the legs, waist, back, neck and arms. Increasing the amount of exercise should not be rushed. The principle of 10% increase every week should be followed.

2. Drink water often, don't wait until thirsty. When sweating a lot, you should add a nutritionally fortified sports drink.

3. Pay attention to balanced diet, especially to supplement all necessary nutrients from the diet. For example: drinking milk and soy milk can supplement calcium; eating vegetables and fruits can supplement various trace elements, and you can also choose some calcium containing vitamin D

4. Pregnant women should change their body position frequently, and exercise once every hour or so. Before going to bed, wash your feet and calves with warm water. You can also add nutrients including calcium according to your special needs.

5. People who have cramps at night should pay special attention to keeping warm. Try to stretch your muscles before going to bed, especially the muscle parts that are easy to have cramps.

Although cramps are not a disease in most cases, if they occur frequently, last for a long time, and there is no obvious cause, you should consult your doctor to find out if there is a potential chronic disease as soon as possible.

6. When the calf is cramped, gently massage the back of the calf (leg belly) from bottom to top, and then massage the toes and the entire leg. Cramps are usually relieved by pulling on the foot ^[1] .

7. Calcium and microbiotin B1 intake should be increased. Calcium intake is not less than 500 mg per day. Milk, soy products, hard fruit, sesame, shrimp skin, crab, eggs, seafood, etc. are rich in calcium and should be eaten more. In addition, pregnant women need to get more sun. Pregnant women with severe calcium deficiency need to consult a doctor.

8. Pregnant women do not usually stand or sit for long periods of time. They should move around every hour and walk outdoors for half an hour every day. At the same time, prevent excessive fatigue.

9. Wash your feet with warm water every night before going to bed. Massage the back of your calves for 3-5 minutes while washing your feet.

10. Usually pay attention to develop the correct walking habits, let the heel touch the ground first; when straightening the calf, the toes do not bend forward.