I don’t think there is a scientific explanation. It seems I remember something to do with the Vagus nerve, but no one has done a proper study.
It will not prevent cramps, but take in the mouth it will stop them right now. I carry some of those small pack of mustard in my bike kit and it has helped me make it home more than once.
CurrentlyI am a high dose ofd 40mg of prednisone for 2 weeks and then a taper off, This off course is affecting my BG management, but has possibly depleted potasium. I have had cramps in my calves, hamstrings, quadricep and whatever muscles control the fingers. Anyway a spoonful of mustard helps the muscles relax.
My PCP indicated I should take CoQ10 to prevent muscle cramps resulting from another med (Metformin?) he prescribed when dx’d as T2. On change in dx to T1, my first Endo confirmed I should keep taking it, as did my second/current Endo. I don’t know that this would help and mustard would be considerably less expensive, but it’s an alternative. I do notice when I forget to take the CoQ10 that muscle cramps tend to start up again.
I’d rather prevent than treat the condition as cramps usually happen at night kicking in while I’m sleeping. I don’t know if this is the same condition as @CarlosLuis gets during cycling, causes may be different.
The CoQ10 is probably a good thing. It sounds like it is preventative. I don’t take it, personally. About the niight cramps, my daily swimmer friend would get the cramps at night and he would keep a handful of those small mustard packs on his night stand.
Bacto CoQ10, It seems that it is not well studied, but it seems to help with the leg pain that some get from Statins. I have been on Statins for more years than I can remember and never had any issues with my legs. A friend that I worked with had a different story. He was having trouble walking until he stopped them. We are all different.
That doesn’t surprise me. Mustard contains vinegar. One thing that’s always helped me with leg or foot cramps is to drink (plugging your nose helps) a splash of apple cider vinegar in a glass of water. The cramps vanish and don’t return. I don’t know what the science is. But if it means I can get back to sleep, I don’t care.
@Beacher Hadn’t heard of the apple cider vinegar solution for cramps, I may give that a try. I have used Apple Cider Vinegar for addressing EPI issues (common amongst T1s). It was recommended by a former nurse and hospital administrator as an aid to addressing EPI symptoms (diarrhea and flatulence). I confirmed it worked for me! I told my Gastro doc about it, she’d never heard of it before and admittedly it doesn’t address all potential symptoms. Interesting that both can result from pancreas hormone/enzyme production issues.
@CarlosLuis Thanks for the reminder, it WAS the atorvastatin my PCP put me on, NOT the Metformin! My apologies for my error. And you’re right, it was a “possibility” without proven relationship. Some people get it, some don’t; some it seems to help, other’s not so much.
Still, the mustard/vinegar relationship is interesting. I still get leg cramps once in a great while, usually when forgetting the CoQ10, so I may give it a try…can’t hurt as much a continued cramp!
Ifit works to stp a cramp, message me, well either way. I just want to add to the anecdotal evidence.
Evidently the effect is ideopathic, no one knows and no one will do the due diligenceand probably no where to get funding. But this link from the Peoples Pharmacy is interesting.
I love mustard but not all mustards are alike!! Most contain sugar! I prefer the German mustard which has no sugar, just mustard seed and apple cider vinegar. I wasn’t aware that it could relieve muscle spasms.
I just checked my emergency bottle of French’s mustard white vinegar, mustard seed, turmeric, garlic - no sugar. If I remember tomorrow I will check out the Guldin sic brown mustard.
I get muscle cramps often - no matter what preventative I’ve tried ( including mineral supplements). Even my shin muscles will spasm/cramp.
But I’ve never tried CoQ10, and never tried mustard to halt the cramping. I buy only unsweetened mustard and love it, so that’s ideal. And apple cider vinegar is a staple in my home.
One thought is that mustard stimulates the cells in the mouth lining. I’ve been holding it in my mouth for a while, but also noticed some sort of reaction in the back when I swallowed.
This is so interesting! I have always assumed the cramps were from dehydration. I have the hardest time drinking enough water. At the time of my diabetes diagnosis, I was terribly dehydrated and getting up multiple times a night with cramps - hopping all around the bedroom at all hours. It was absolute torture. Now, when I get them, I know I need to increase my water intake. Actually, I have been suffering lately from the cramps and have been struggling to drink enough. Maybe the mustard will help - I’m bringing it to bed with me tonight!
@jpf I’ve always been told the cause is an electrolyte (essential mineral) imbalance and hydration. Historically, I’ve taken a little salt (ordinary table salt, though the last few years the supposedly Himalayan Pink variety, along with increased water intake. My docs (plural, all that reviewed labs) have all commented on my being borderline dehydrated, can’t seem to keep the problem corrected. The use of mustard with small packets available for keeping in a nightstand for quick treatment/relief is intriguing…
Probably low electrolytes is the cause of most muscle cramps. I think that the one thing known about mustard relieving cramps is not from electrolytes, but somehow calming nerves.
Anyway mustard is no prophylactic but for many stops a cramp quickly.
I’ve been on a high course of 40mg prednisone for 2 weeks, doing a 5 week taper starting yesterday. Prednisone is known to deplete electrolytes especially potassium.
I have blood work tomorrow and will update if my electrolytes are low.
More anecdotal reports that mustard helps some girls and women with menstrual cramps. The one woman in my life to suffer from those was my 4 year older aunt. She’d be miserable when in high school and me in grade school.
I am really intrigued by this discussion. I have only had an issue with leg cramps at night twice in my life - in December 2020 - February 2021 and the fall of November 2022-January 2023 just before I was diagnosed with diabetes. I now suspect that the first bout was diabetes related but that I didn’t know it at the time. The cramps then were intermittent and eventually stopped on their own. How I wish I’d had a BG test or A1C at that point! Then in the fall of 2022, they came roaring back with a vengeance. This time with all the other diabetes symptoms - thirst, vision changes, weight loss, muscle fatigue, overall exhaustion. The muscle cramps were the worst of all the symptoms because I wasn’t sleeping more than 2 hours at a time. I tried compression socks, calcium/magnesium and potassium supplements, magnesium spray, wearing shoes with low heels, wearing sneakers, a leg massager, a foam roller, you name it, I tried it! I finally went to the doctor to get some tests - one of which was for blood glucose. She called later and told me to head right away to the ER. I remember in the hospital bed with the IV, I could literally feel the tissue in my mouth re-hydrating. It was the oddest sensation. Like I was salivating but on the inside. Anyway, I was absolutely panicked to be hooked up to an IV because I thought I’d be needing to jump up to walk off the leg cramps. I wouldn’t let them put up the bed rail either. I’d been so tortured at night. I tried to stay awake but eventually fell asleep and it was the first time in about 10 weeks that I didn’t have any cramps. I really thought that they were from the high BG but then I got them after it had come down to a normal range. I freaked out! How was this possible?? The doctor said it was likely dehydration. I upped my liquids and they stopped the next night. Honestly, I struggle with drinking enough water. I bring a big thermos to work and it sits on my desk all day until I actually ‘see’ it and drink. I am generally not surprised when I get cramps at night now because I know if I am not drinking enough throughout the day. If anyone has any tips, I’d love to hear them! You’d think that the threat of leg cramps at night - especially after those tortured months - would be enough to keep me drinking, but no. I’m a hard nut to crack apparently.
I agree on electrolyte imbalance being a possible cause of cramps. I started taking a magnesium supplement which magically stopped the leg cramps, mostly occurring while sleeping but sometimes even while running. My diet gives me the RDA of magnesium but I think the running causes a deficiency. I still get foot cramps but that may be due to a different cause.