Associated symptoms
If other complaints occur in addition to cramps in the toes, this can provide valuable information about possible causes. For example, a magnesium deficiency can also lead to cramps in other muscle groups. Especially the calves and the chewing muscles are often affected. Apart from this, a magnesium deficiency can also lead to digestive problems, palpitations, as well as neurological and psychological symptoms such as increased irritability, numbness in the extremities and dizziness.
Therapy
In therapy, a distinction can be made between acute therapy, long-term therapy of cramps and preventive measures. In acute therapy, physical measures such as local application of heat play a major role. Equally helpful, although painful at first, is stretching the affected muscle or its compression.
For this purpose, it is usually advisable to pull the toe towards the back of the foot during the fight until the cramp is released. Raising the foot can also be beneficial here. Apart from these acute measures, some athletes recommend pinching the sole or back of the foot, as this is intended to interrupt the reflex.
Gently rubbing the foot serves the same purpose. In the therapy of muscle cramps, medicine is still very limited today. A causal treatment, i.e. one that fights the cause, is not known for idiopathic and paraphysiological muscle spasms.
Instead, the main recommendation is still to increase the magnesium intake. Whether this actually provides a remedy is in many cases rather questionable. Nevertheless, in individual cases a conscious diet can provide relief from cramps in the toes and feet.Among the foods with a high magnesium content are nuts and seeds, especially sunflower seeds, linen seeds and sesame.
Oat flakes are also rich in magnesium. In addition, a sufficient fluid intake plays an important role in the prevention of cramps. However, the greatest benefit as a preventive measure against muscle cramps is offered by stretching exercises.
As described above, stretching exercises performed every evening for just three minutes at night could prevent night cramps. This principle can also be applied to everyday life, so that it is recommended to activate and stretch the foot and leg muscles several times a day. Not approved in the USA, but nevertheless frequently used in Germany and Austria for the treatment of cramps, are also preparations containing quinine.
These drugs are actually effective to a certain extent. At the same time, however, they are quite often accompanied by side effects. These include gastrointestinal complaints, but also kidney failure and cardiac arrhythmia.
For this reason, the use of over-the-counter preparations is only recommended to a limited extent and should be carefully considered. Similar to the majority of the diseases and syndromes known today, homeopathic remedies exist for the treatment of muscle cramps in general and even cramps in the toes in particular. It should be mentioned, however, that homeopathic remedies, such as those available in the form of globules or tinctures, do not correspond to current scientific knowledge and methods. Nevertheless, there are numerous online guides and stores that deal with the topic in more detail. For the reasons mentioned above, however, for more detailed information on homeopathy for cramps in the toes it is necessary to refer to these pages.
