Does weight have anything to do with leg cramps? I seem to have more leg cramps than my less weighty friends.

If you are a chronic leg cramp sufferer or an expert in home remedies, you may have heard that putting soap under a mattress can help to prevent and relieve leg cramps and charley horses?

Many sufferers attest to its efficacy. But does it really work?

Readers at NoLegCramp.com are discussing it right now.

Click here to go to the conversation…

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My friend is pregnant and lately she has been suffering from really bad leg cramps. What causes this to happen during pregnancy and what can be done to help alleviate the pain?

There are some great resources that discuss the causes of leg cramps.  We will start you out with just a few - but send us your favorites and we will add them to the list!

http://orthopedics.about.com/cs/sprainsstrains/a/legcramp.htm

http://www.medicinenet.com/muscle_cramps/article.htm

In a survey conducted by NoLegCramps.com, we asked participants how confident they were in the leg cramp advice provided by various resources.  Here’s what they said on a scale of 1 (least) to 5 (most):

#1: Doctor:   4.30

#2: Website where many leg cramp sufferers advise what worked for themselves:  3.63

#3: Friend or family member who also experiences/experienced leg cramps: 3.56

It’s  not surprising to see Doctors come up as the #1 choice.  Leg Cramps are surprisingly complex – they are pervasive, linked to many different maladies, and medications, and have similarities to other conditions.

But as we have discussed with our recent discussion -  3 people to ask for help when you have leg cramps  – most people simply won’t get any advice at all, no matter how much they trust it.

NoLegCramps.com is here as a complementary resource —plus we have no waiting room.

Question: Who do most sufferers go to for help when they have leg cramps? Doctor? Family Member? Other fellow leg cramp and charley horse sufferers?

Answer: Often — none of the above.

Most sufferers consult …nobody.

Here were the top choices

1. Nobody (43%)
2. Family (27%)
3. Physician or other medical practitioner (18%)
4. Friends (9%)

By putting together the best ideas from a range of sufferers, NoLegCramps.com hopes that those looking for advice now have an easy, top choice.

Don’t suffer alone! If you want to see what others are asking about, go to our Ask & Answers section.

Without going to the doctor how would I know if I have restless leg syndrome? I don’t have a problem with it everyday, but when I do I feel like I’m going to go crazy. I’ve noticed little things for years, but whatever reason I’ve never said anything to a doctor because I had never really heard of RLS until about a year or two ago.

In a recent survey conducted by NoLegCramps.com, 74% of research participants said leg cramps are “preventable.”

But different groups feel differently about leg cram prevention. Those that say they frequently have leg cramps were twice as unlikely to agree with that assertion (no surprise there). Female leg cramp sufferers are more than 2x as likely as their male counterparts to say leg cramps cannot be prevented. One reason for that seems to be the prevalence of leg cramps and charley horses during pregnancy. We’re going to be doing a study on that, so stay tuned.

What do you think? Have you been able to prevent your own leg cramps? Go to our Share Section and give us your best ideas for leg cramp prevention.

my 12 year old is really bothered by leg cramps at night, as I was at his age. My mother says they are growing pains. Is this true?

I placed a bar of soap in my bed over night and it relieved my pain.  Does that really work?