Q. A man told my daughter that a bar of soap at the foot of the bed between the sheets would help arthritis. I have arthritis, so I tried it. After about four weeks my arthritis seems to be much better. I would like to know if there is something in the soap that helps, or if is it my imagination?
A. We have been writing about a home remedy for leg cramps that calls for a bar of soap beneath the bottom sheet, near the legs. At first we thought the man or your daughter was confused. Then we received this note:
“Since my husband sometimes gets leg cramps, I gave him your article about carrying soap in his pocket. He decided to try it and for four days now he has had no pain from his sciatica. He has not had to take the pain medication that he usually takes daily.
Have you heard of this effect from anyone else? Do you have any conjectures on why it works?”
We have no idea why it might work. If others experience pain relief from soap, we’d love to hear about it.
