One of the easiest ways to deal with muscle spasm is to have a hot bath or shower. You can also do some simple stretch exercises. This will improve blood circulation and help the connective tissue around the muscles.
Before you pump up those muscles, hit the showers, it would prevent any occurrence of muscle spasm.
Muscle spasm mainly happens due to calcium deficiency, so include calcium in your diet. You can find good source of calcium in low-fat dairy products such as yoghurt, skim milk and ricotta cheese.
Before eating and drinking calcium rich diet, consult your doctor.
If you are prone to muscle spasms it may be because of the acids that interfere with the body's ability to absorb calcium. Lessen the intake of acidic foods like tomatoes and vinegar. Inadequate supply of potassium to your body is another reason for muscle spasms. Increase your intake of potassium, eat good amount of bananas, potatoes, soya flour, bran wheat, ready-to-eat apricots, tomato puree and such.
Do not exert yourself by overusing your muscles. Take it easy for while and relax. Too much of physical exertion takes its toll on the body. Frequent muscle spasms could be the manifestation of this over exertion. If while doing some activity you get a muscle spasm, take a 15 minute break. This prevents muscle spasm in the long run.
Celery seeds have anti-inflammatory properties. It can reduce arthritic pain and relieve muscle spasms. Cramp bark (Viburnum opulus) can be used to treat muscle spasms. Hot and moist herbal packs are very useful in increasing blood circulation. It can treat painful areas by consuming tea or juices to soothe muscles and nerves.
If you get a muscle spasm while you are lying in bed, stretch your leg straight out, bend the toes back towards the head. Hold this position for 30 seconds, relax and continue till the cramp is gone. This stretches your calf muscle. This can also be done while you are standing.
Spasms usually occur when your body is exerted, mainly in the gym. Keep yourself hydrated as you tend to lose valuable electrolytes, which is required to prevent cramps. Before exercising you can take calcium, magnesium and potassium supplements daily.
Chamomile tea helps in relieving muscle spasms. Glycine, an amino acid present in the tea, help relax the muscles. Magnesium deficiency is usually caused due to alcohol, renal disease and diabetes mellitus.
To stop muscle spasms use this ayurvedic solution. Soak your feet in a large tub of hot water, steeped with homemade tea bag of black or brown mustard seeds, for 15- 20 minutes.
You can use an herbal oil massage by using 1 cup extra-virgin oil or almond oil, add herbs in tincture form like 1 ounce Cramp bark, 1/2 ounce Lobelia, 11/4 ounce of Willow bark or Wintergreen ( Wintergreen tincture is not available you can use 30 drops of Wintergreen oil). You can store all these in a jar or bottle and use it as massage oil.
Muscles are required for the movement of an individual, or internal organs. There are involuntary retrenchments of the muscle that occur unexpectedly and can cause a sudden and sharp pain. This pain may last for a few seconds or minutes and is usually harmless. Muscles can belong to any of three categories namely, cardiac muscles (muscles of the heart), skeletal muscles (muscles that help in body movement) and smooth muscles (muscles that are located at the walls of the internal organs of the body like intestine, urinary bladder etc). Normally our brain sends signals to the different organs of the body which use voluntary contractions to perform work. However, in case of a muscle spasm the brain sends involuntary signals to the muscles which are against the wish of the person. A muscle cramp, on the other hand, occurs when a muscle contracts involuntarily and does not relax. Muscle spasms and cramps, especially on the back can be excruciatingly painful. While the cures and home remedies for muscle spasms in the back can be as simple as rest and ice pack application, it is always better to visit a doctor.
One type of muscle spasm is hypertonic muscle spasm. This type of muscle spasm is due to the residual tension on the muscles that is the contraction in the muscle even when the muscle is at rest. Sometimes muscle spasm can also be caused by a strain on the muscle. In this type of muscle spasm the individual’s muscles do not relax. True hypertonic muscle spasm is caused by the faulty functioning of the feedback nerves. This case is more serious and requires medical attention. Sometimes there are certain types of muscle spasm called as colic spasms which cause pain at regular intervals due to spasm of certain smooth muscles example the bile duct. This muscle spasm is accompanied with nausea and vomiting. Dehydration and insufficient amount of minerals like magnesium can be some of the causes of muscle spasm. Adequate amount of water should be consumed to avoid this situation from arising. Magnesium deficiency is mainly caused by the consumption of alcohol, diabetes mellitus and renal diseases. In this way, alcohol causes muscle spasms. Also, a reduction in the level of calcium and magnesium in the body can cause cramps in muscles. A solution to this problem will be supplementing the diet with calcium and magnesium rich foodstuffs or foodstuffs with rich mineral content. Excessive exercise can also be a cause of muscle spasm. It is best never to strain yourself too much. In case of muscle spasm during exercise one must take rest for 15 to 20 minutes. Avoid subjecting the area, where the muscle spasm was experienced, to further strain. This prevents it’s reoccurrence in the future. The cause for this muscle spasm is that the body gets depleted of the necessary electrolyte. Hence, keeping a sport drink handy and taking small, regular sips will help prevent muscle spasms from occurring. This is one of the effective remedies for muscle spasms. Colic is a type of spasm often seen in toddlers, and it is very painful. This occurs due to the brain’s immature response to digestion and it improves with the growth of the child. Muscle spasm can occur due to irritable bowel syndrome or stomach flu illness. Irritable bowel syndrome can cause painful cramps but it can be avoided by gradual control over it.
Another type of muscle spasm is angina which is a result of insufficient supply of blood to the arteries. This situation occurs due to the hardening of arteries or arthrosclerosis. It may cause painful cramps in the chest, shoulders, neck and jaw. The treatment for this includes medication and treatment of core causes of heart diseases.
In most cases muscle spasm are due to calcium deficiency and so including calcium rich dairy products like milk, yogurt and cheese in your daily diet is one of the effective cures for muscle spasms. Muscle spasm cause can be caused due to the low content of potassium in one’s diet. Another muscle spasm remedy is eating food items like bananas, soya, potatoes, bran wheat, flour, apricots and tomatoes which are high in potassium content. Some other natural cure for muscle spasms is using hot and moist herbal packs. This helps in increasing muscle spasm by treating painful areas on consumption of tea or juices to soothe muscles and nerves. The use of cramp bark can be used for relieving muscle spasms. Celery seeds are also a natural remedy for muscle cramps as they have anti-inflammatory properties. They can trim down muscle spasm and act as a cure for muscle spasm. Natural remedies for muscle cramps are thus very useful.
Sometimes muscle spasm can occur as soon as we wake up and are still in bed. At such times, it is best to stretch your leg and tilt the toes in the direction of your head. This has to be done for 30 seconds each time until the pain is gone. This exercise stretches the muscles of the calf and can be done when in standing position as well. Similar muscle cramps remedies include intake of chamomile tea. Some amino acids like glycine which is found in tea works as a home remedy for muscle spasm. This helps in relaxing the muscles. Another natural remedy for muscle spasms can be the use of hat water. Soak your feet in a bucket of hot water for about 20 minutes for relief from muscle spasms. Ensure that the water is not too hot and does not scald your skin. Using bath water is just fine. The addition of mustard will help further. Place a handful of black mustard seeds in a muslin cloth and wrap the ends together. Now hang the cloth with the mustard seeds in the hot water like a tea bag. This is a great remedy for muscle spasms. Another effective remedy is getting a herbal oil massage. Herbal oils are easily available in the market or you can even make some at home. You will need an alcohol solution of lobelia (half ounce), cramp bark (1 ounce) and Wintergreen (about 3 ounces). Add these to approximately 1 cup of almond oil and your herbal oil is ready. It is best to make the oil slightly warm and then apply for the herbal oil massage.
