What is the cause of lumbar cramps? What should I do?

Many people have had this experience: a broken hand or a leg suddenly cramps at a certain time. So what should you do if your back cramps?

Causes of cramps

The scientific name of cramp is muscle spasm, which is a spontaneous tonic contraction of muscles. Muscle spasms are most common in the calves and toes. The pain is unbearable during an attack, especially in the middle of the night when cramps often wake people up in pain, and the pain cannot be relieved for a long time, and it affects sleep.

The common causes of cramps are as follows:

① Cold stimulation from the external environment, such as low room temperature at night in winter, using too thin a quilt when sleeping, or exposing legs and feet outside the quilt.

② Fatigue, insufficient sleep, insufficient rest, or excessive rest can lead to accumulation of local acidic metabolic products, which can cause muscle cramps. For example, walking or exercising for too long, which can cause excessive fatigue of the lower limbs or insufficient rest and sleep, can cause lactic acid accumulation; sleeping and resting too much or too long can slow down blood circulation and cause carbon dioxide accumulation.

③ Decreased estrogen levels and osteoporosis in elderly women can cause low blood calcium levels, increased muscle irritability, and frequent spasms.

④ Bad sleeping posture, such as lying on your back for a long time with the quilt pressing on your feet, or lying on your stomach for a long time with your feet against the bed, forcing certain calf muscles to be in an absolutely relaxed state for a long time, causing "passive contraction" of the muscles.

What should I do when I have a cramp?

Taking the following different countermeasures according to different causes can quickly relieve spasms and relieve pain. When cramps occur, just do the opposite, that is, bend the toes in the opposite direction of the force and persist for more than 1 to 2 minutes, and you will get results. Specifically, if the muscles behind the calf cramp, you can bend the foot to lift the sole and straighten the knee joint as much as possible; when the muscles in the front of the calf cramp, you can press the sole and bend the toes with force.

To prevent cramps, you should pay attention to the following points: ① Keep warm. ② Pay attention to your sleeping posture. ⑧ Do not walk or exercise for too long. ④ Participate in physical exercise appropriately. ⑼ ⑤ Supplement some vitamin E when necessary. ⑥ Supplement calcium appropriately. Dairy products, lean meat and other foods containing lactic acid and amino acids can promote the dissolution of calcium salts and help absorption.