Apple Cider Vinegar
★★★★★
(Seale, Alabama)
04/28/2009
I am new to the site. I have had restless leg syndrom for MANY years now and take medication for it. I DO NOT like the side effects. I see where many people are talking about acv. I have severe rls and would like to know how much acv and water to mix? Also what time of day should this be taken? I can not take naps either because if I take a pill to sleep I am no good for the rest of the day.
I am a 59 year old female, about 5ft6inches and weigh 180, I would also like to try the acv for weight lose. Any suggestions?
Thank you for your time,
Alice Curt
(Texas)
09/29/2015
(Tennessee)
09/29/2015
Apple Cider Vinegar
★★★★★
(Fresno, Ca, 93726)
01/04/2010
★★★★★
Yes. Thank you so very much for posting this. It really worked for me. About an half an hour to an hour before I go to sleep, I warm up a glass of water (8 oz. or so) and add 2 teaspoons of apple cider vinegar and 2 teaspoons of honey. (I buy the one that says unfiltered apple cider vinegar made from ripe apples - organic, pasteurized). This formula really worked for me. The taste is good and I read a lot of things about apple cider vinegar, it is supposed to be a very good thing and has been used for centuries safely. So definitely give it a try. Thank you again!!!
Aspercreme
★★★★★
I guess it is just treating a symptom of RLS and not the underlying cause. I have had RLS for 30 years so hopeful that some of these new tricks will manage the problem.
Aspirin
★★★★★
Everyone in my family has this problem and I have had it since I was a small child. In my family, the "cure" for an episode of RLS is aspirin. Two 325 mg tablets stops all the twitching and crawling sensations in 12-15 minutes and keeps working for at least 3 hours. I go from total twitching overload to sound asleep in moments.
I have been to several specialists about my restless legs because it has become much worse as I get older (I am now over 60). And I develop a temporary tolerance to the aspirin if used day after day, so that I need 3 tablets or 4 to stop the symptoms if I have taken aspirin every night for a week or two. Aspirin has its own serious side effects, especially in these quantities. But, after a couple weeks of no aspirin, 2 tablets will stop the symptoms again.
The neurology specialists I have seen are surprised that common aspirin completely relieves my symptoms. They tell me they have never heard of this or read about it. Their answer is various prescription drugs that have serious side effects for me. I am very interested in several of the remedies described here, but wanted to share my family's experience as well. Has anyone else tried aspirin? It is obviously not a cure, but it stops the symptoms so I can sleep. That's BIG help when you have serious RLS.
(Ashland, Mo)
04/19/2011
★★★★★
I have also found that aspirin cures RLS. My dad is a doctor and he said this really works. Obviously some doctors know what is going on! I also get used to the aspirin and have to take as little as possible for it to work all the time. Try it, it works! Ibprofen does not work as well for me.
(Seattle, Wa)
07/12/2012
★★★★★
Yup, aspirin works for me. I read somewhere that RLS is basically the brain mis-firing low-level pain signals. Aspirin works to block just enough of those signals that RLS goes away - other painkillers work, Tylenol is the safest to take long-term (some studies show elevated liver enzymes after a few weeks, but nothing to be alarmed about and no liver damage occurs). Aspirin has side-effects like blood-thinning if taken over the long-term. I just switch 'em off, but do talk to your doctor.
(Seattle, Wa)
08/09/2013
★★★★★
The reason aspirin is helping may be because it thins the blood, thus helping one's circulation. I've found RLS to be directly related to circulation issues...
(Texas, US)
09/26/2014
★★★★★
I take 2 low dose aspirin every night for my RLS, and that usually does the trick. There are some nights -when symptoms are really bad - that I have to get back up and take 2 to 4 more, but not very often. Soap did help some. Hot, hot baths at 3 in the morning sometimes worked, too. Aspirin has been the most reliable source of help for me. BTW - I have also found that sleeping in lightweight pajama pants, year round, helps.
Avoid Artificial Sweeteners
★★★★★
(Brooksville, FL)
06/07/2009
(Ok, US)
02/12/2015
Stevia is widely available. I buy mine at Walmart. Among other things (oh, joy), I have Interstitial Cystitis (Painful Bladder) and artificial sweeteners cause flares.
Avoid Deodorant With Aluminum
★★★★★
(Jacksonville, Alabama)
03/17/2010
Thanks very much for this site. I've gotten a lot of good ideas from here. I had to laugh at the dog chasing cars in the dreams comment. I can relate. My dreams totally evolved around my kicking legs. I was wondering if aluminum deoderant was behind my rls. We had been using Lavelin for years and suddenly couldn't get it anymore.I bought another kind at the HFS and the label said- no alumninum chlorhydrate. I got faked out by the label and started using it. Then my hubby noticed on the back real small it said- active ingrediant- aluminum. I thought- I'll just use it up since we paid for it. I started eventually to get rls and was wondering if it had to do w/ it. Tom's makes a deoderant w/o aluminum and my hubby likes it. Remember those "mineral stones" are made of aluminum. Learn from my sheeple move and read the fine print~
I've been trying a bunch of stuff that has been reported on this site. It seems to help, unfortunately, I'm not sure exactly which thing is working. One thing I've done too is cut way back on eating Tums for indigestion. I read on the internet it can be an iron blocker. Since I'm a vegetarian, I have to be careful about getting enough iron as it is. I've started back using vinegar for indigestion, it works well and is supposed to be good for rls anyway. I've also cut way back on aspirin, it supposedly can block iron absorbtion is what I read. I've beefed up on slow absorbtion, fem iron (not taking within one hour of tea- tea (chai) is supposed to block it), molasses, magnesium, D-3, folic acid, taking vita C with iron pill, and I tried the baking soda in the water. Baking Soda is really not the healthiest thing long term either, but when you're hurting, you really don't care. I also tried a massager, and hot bathes, so far all those things have helped some. The socks in the bed have helped a lot, I do have a problem with cold feet. I'm going to try the sliver of ivory soap in the socks tonight when I go to bed. What's kind of weird right now is, my legs quit aching and now my arms are instead. They never hurt before.
Hopefully, stopping the aluminum deoderant will make it go away. These other things to speed it up. I knew the Tums were my downfall also.
I'm certain if I keep diligent, I'll get back on top of it again.
Thanks again for this site and for everyone's posts. Thank God for the internet. If we had to rely on doctor's we'd really be screwed! They have their place, but it helps to have tried and true natural and safe remedies that work and being able to share them. God bless you all~ Namaste, Cynthia
(Vista, Ca, Usa)
03/18/2010
You can make your own deodorant:
5 tbsp. Virgin Coconut Oil
1/4 cup Arrowroot Powder (or Corn Starch)
1/4 cup Baking Soda
5 drops Tea Tree Oil
Optional: Jasmine Oil or any Good smelling Essential Oil
Mix the powdered ingredients together
Add the Tea Tree Oil to Coconut Oil (and Essential Oil Fragrance) and stir
Drizzle into powdered mixture until it forms a ball sort of like play dough consistency.
I store mine in a small jar. Cleaned out pimento or small artichoke jar works well.
Apply with fingers.
Hope it helps!
Avoid Grains
★★★★★
Something that has helped my patients/students is to understand that all grains have a calcium-magnesium ratio that throws the natural balance totally out of whack when they eat processed grains. The ratio should be 2-1, but when grains are thrown in (which we do not need to eat, but which are addictive; read "Grain Damage" by Dr. Doug Graham), there is a backwards ratio of 1-9, way too much magnesium, and then leg cramps, restless leg syndrome, foot cramps, etc. begin. Once a person leaves out grains, even whole, organic, wonderful things start happening! Brain fog disappears, for one. Mental ups and downs stabilize. And especially, the leg cramps disappear! Try it! If I eat even one slice, I'm in trouble. It may have something to do with the gluten, because when I sprout the grain and make Essene bread out of it, this doesn't happen. Not the store-bought bread by that name: they actually ADD gluten, which defeats the purpose of spouting it.
Avoid MSG
★★★★★
Avoid Sugar
★★★★★
Even one candy is enough to trigger it so try to find something else to snack on in the evening and see if it helps.
(Los Angeles, California)
04/13/2024
★★★★★
After decades, I finally found the solution to no longer have these sensations in my legs and to be able to sleep: eliminating sugar.
B-1
★★★★★
(Pretoria, South Africa)
02/10/2024
★★★★★
Vitamin B-1 is the best. I am a 78-year-old male blessed with good health, but over the past fifteen years, I have had serious trouble with restless legs. I do use prescription medicine, but despite that, I often find that the troublesome problem still bothers me when I want to sleep. I have tried a few of the remedies on this website, but none of them brought relief worth mentioning—although I must add that bicarbonate of soda does help. Then I came upon Sophie's contribution regarding Vitamin B-1. What a blessing that was. I take 100mg twice a day. It is still early days for me, but I cannot believe the calmness Vitamin B-1 has brought to my legs; it is as if the RLS has completely disappeared. I will follow up on this post when I have been using the Vitamin B-1 for a longer period.
I must add that over the years, I have found a few triggers of restless legs which I try to avoid. The most important ones being: coffee late in the day, sugar in any form, and alcohol.
(Pretoria, South Africa)
04/03/2024
As promised in my previous post on 02/10/2024, I wanted to provide an update. While I continue to use Vitamin B-1, there are still days when Restless Leg Syndrome (RLS) bothers me. Around ten days ago, I began taking additional supplements in the morning: a Magnesium Chelate 100mg capsule, a combination capsule containing Vitamin D-3 (1000IU), Vitamin K-2 (10mcg), and Selenium (27.5mcg), and twice a day two tablespoons of Apple Cider Vinegar mixed in a glass of water.
It is clear there is no one-size-fits-all solution, but this combination appears to alleviate my RLS symptoms. The challenge now lies in pinpointing which specific supplement or combination thereof is responsible for the improvement, especially since I'm still using prescription medication alongside these supplements.
While I could experiment by eliminating supplements one by one to determine their individual effects, I'm currently just grateful to experience relief and hesitant to disrupt what seems to be working.
B12, Folic Acid, Niacin
★★★★★
What I came up with is three B vitamins: Vitamin B12, folic acid, and niacin, all in megadoses. Within a matter of a few days on this protocol, my restless leg problem rapidly diminished down to nothing. I now take 300mcg of B12, 800mcg of folic acid, 1000mg of niacin.
I take these amounts with each meal, so that is a total of three times those dosages each day.
Niacin (with flush) (nicotinic acid) is apparently more effective for restless leg than no-flush niacin. I discovered my body quickly adapted to the flush, and barely registers it any more. But I started at a much lower dose so my body could have time to adjust to the niacin.
(Seattle)
06/26/2019
While that's great to hear, I wonder if the B12 or folate is doing much considering you're taking such a massive dose of niacin (which would deplete the B12 and folic acid). Might be worth a try to see if it works on it's own...or...even better, increase the B12 and folate (both methyl donors).
Bach Flower Remedies
★★★★★
Baking Soda
★★★★★
One hour ago I mixed the baking soda with water and although the taste was unpleasant I have to say my left leg which was driving me crazy has completely calmed down within approximately 15 minutes. Thanks to everyone who shared their experiences. I am hoping this provides the help I need. God knows we need an answer.
(York PA)
09/10/2023
I am updating on my post from last evening. After I went to bed within an hour the terrible symptoms of RLS came on with a vengeance. I was hoping the baking soda would work. I must admit I had a significant sugar intake early last evening; no, not from a dessert, but had pork barbecue that I purchased at a farmer's market which tasted sweet. I looked at the label this morning it was made with corn syrup AND sugar. This is a huge issue with me. Our society is obsessed with sugar. I do not want sugar in real food. I make most of what I eat in my kitchen. Long story short, I put ice packs on my calves and took 3 different meds. After suffering for 5 hours I finally slept for a few hours. Good luck to everyone.
Baking Soda
★★★★★
So I desperately searched Earth Clinic (which I always do when in need for remedies) and found baking soda. AND THAT DID THE TRICK THIS TIME!
Thank you guys and thank you so much Earth Clinic for bringing so much relief, clarity, and sanity into our stressful and demanding lives.
Baking Soda
★★★★★