Tens of millions of people–from athletes to senior citizens–suffer from leg cramps. There are no FDA-approved medications for this common condition, but there are lots of home remedies. Tomato juice may be the healthiest!
Q. I read in your column about using yellow mustard for leg cramps. In the 1970s my mother suffered terribly from leg cramps. Her family doctor told her to take a small glass of tomato juice, add salt and drink it. This got rid of my mother’s leg cramps.
It works for me as well. Have any of your readers ever mentioned this use for tomato juice?
A. Several readers have reported success with low-sodium V8 juice to boost their potassium levels. One wrote:
“Several years ago, my mother was experiencing severe leg cramps. We tried to add juices for the potassium, and found V8 was one of the highest at that time. It worked and she used it faithfully several times a week.”
We are always amused and amazed at the variety of remedies people have used to overcome leg cramps. Ever since the FDA banned quinine, people who suffer from this problem have had to experiment with a variety of non-drug approaches. Here are just a few stories from visitors to this website:
“I have had charley horses for as long as I can remember–in my feet, thighs and calves. I did not get any relief until I began reading your article in my local newspaper. I tried drinking pickle juice, taking a teaspoon of yellow mustard as well as many other home remedies.
“It wasn’t until I placed a bar of soap under my fitted sheet that I received much needed, desired and welcomed relief from night leg cramps!
“I first placed a bar of Lever 2000 under my sheets, but the smell proved to be too strong, which bothered my allergies. I got no cramps, but I sneezed all night.
“Next, I placed a bar of unscented Dove under my sheet. The same bar has been there for months and I have NOT had a cramp in MONTHS!
“My cleaning lady thought I was nuts when she first discovered the soap under my sheet and since she doesn’t speak English I couldn’t explain to her why it was there. At first she would place it on my dresser, and I would put it back under my sheets. We went through this ritual for a few weeks until she finally understood that I WANTED the soap under my sheet!
“I just wanted to thank you for the suggestion and for helping me get many nights of wonderful sleep. I have a friend who was having the same problem with cramps and was drinking up to 6 bottles of tonic water per day. After she tried the soap remedy she is mostly cramp-free and is down to one bottle of tonic water occasionally. Thanks again for publishing this life-saving piece of information!”
Anyone who would like to try The People’s Pharmacy Bed Soap or Leg Soap may wish to click on this link. Our soap is much flatter and wider than regular bar soap and therefore less likely to disturb your legs at night. The bar of soap is clearly imprinted Bed Soap…just in case anyone wonders what it is doing in your bed. The leg soap is pre-cut into small chips that can easily fit in socks either at bedtime or while driving or flying in an airplane. It makes for convenience. Here is a link to Bed Soap and Leg Soap.
“I just want to thank you for your article awhile back about leg cramps and the use of mustard as a cure. I tend to experience them on my first night off from work (night worker).
“I know it could stem from possible overuse of my legs. Before I go to sleep, I usually eat a banana or two but it’s no guarantee that I will have a good night’s sleep.
“I have used the mustard remedy four times so far and each time the cramps went away within minutes. The last time was so bad, I must have screamed in my sleep. My wife ran upstairs to see if I was ok and saw I was having a very bad cramp in my left calf. She asked me if I wanted the mustard. Two teaspoons later, the cramp was gone within a minute. I finished my sleep with no problems although the next day my calf was a little sore from the cramp.
“I don’t remember what you said in the article about the active ingredient in mustard but whatever it is, I just want to thank you again for the info.”
If you would like to learn more about how to deal with leg cramps and restless leg syndrome (RLS) you may want to check out our Guide To Leg Pain. And don’t forget to consider The People’s Pharmacy Bed Soap! It would make a great stocking stuffer for someone you love!
All products in The People’s Pharmacy Store are on sale from Friday, November 27 through Monday, November 30. Take advantage of our Black Friday 20% discount by using the special code: BLKFRI20 when you check out! You will get a FREE tube of our Pomegranate Natural Lip Care with each shipped purchase. It’s our way of saying thank you for being a loyal People’s Pharmacy customer.
