Muscle Cramps

Whether you’re lying in bed at night, walking or writing a letter, your muscles are constantly contracting and relaxing. As a result, they need a lot of nourishment. When they don’t get it, they’ll sometimes contract into a tight, painful spasm known as muscle cramps. Cramps are muscle’s way of telling you it’s tired, hungry, and in need of rest.

Muscle cramps are painful, but they play a protective role. Essentially, they force the muscle to remain inactive until it has time to recover, usually within a few minutes.

While you can’t prevent muscle cramps entirely, choosing the right foods will make them less likely to return.

Muscles don’t move without orders from the brain. Before you can stand up, blink an eye, or turn the pages of the book, the brain sends electrical messages to the appropriate muscles, telling them when (and how much) to contract or relax. Minerals such as calcium, potassium, sodium, and magnesium, which are known as electrolytes, play a role in helping the messages get through.

If you haven’t been getting enough of these minerals or have sweated them out during exercise, a muscle may not get message to relax. This can cause it to contract in a painful cramp.

Of all the electrolytes, magnesium is one of the most important, because it helps other electrolytes do their jobs. When you don’t eat enough magnesium-rich foods, minerals such as calcium and potassium can’t get into muscle-fiber cells. So even if you have an abundance of other electrolytes, without magnesium they may be locked out and ineffective. People who are depleted of magnesium tend to have greater irritability of muscles and nerves and this irritability may cause muscle cramping.

Many foods contain large amount of magnesium – for example, a serving of tofu has 128 milligrams of magnesium, 32 % of the Daily Value. A serving of spinach has about 41 milligrams, 11% of Daily Value, a serving of mackerel has 82 milligrams, 20% of Daily Value.

You also need plenty of calcium, which helps regulate the muscle’s ability to contract. Dairy foods are the best source. A cup of skim milk, for example has nearly 302 milligrams of calcium and a serving of low-fat yogurt has 77 milligrams.

Getting enough potassium in your diet will also help preventing cramps. Bananas are good source of potassium, with one banana supplying 451 milligrams. Potatoes are also a good source, with half-cup containing 114 milligrams.

For most people, the problem isn’t getting enough sodium, it’s getting too much, since this mineral is found in a large amounts in many foods, particularly processed foods.

When it comes to fluids, however, it’s almost impossible to get too much. Whenever you perspire, you lose fluids from the muscle cells, which can result in cramping. Sipping water frequently throughout the day will help keep electrolyte levels in balance.

Muscles need more than electrolytes and water to function well. They also need glycogen, a sugar that comes from carbohydrates. When muscle tissue runs low on glycogen, they’re more likely to tire and cramp. Getting plenty of carbohydrates in your diet will help keep muscles working well. Good sources include potatoes, rice, bananas, and bread.