Vitamin deficiency and Restless Legs

In previous blogs I wrote that vitamin deficiency can play a role in Restless Legs Syndrome (RLS). By vitamin deficiency I also mean deficiency of certain minerals. In many cases, taking a supplement helps to solve such a deficiency. If all goes well, you will no longer suffer from restless legs.

However, I know from fellow sufferers that it does not always go smoothly if a deficiency is found after a blood test. One of the problems can be that a person’s body does not properly absorb that particular vitamin from food. For example, this may be due to another condition that the person suffers from.

Another possible complication is that taking supplements doesn’t help for some people, basically for the same reason. Ultimately, such a person often ends up with injections in such cases. Before this point is reached, an enormous medical process has usually been completed.

In this blog, a number of vitamins and minerals are discussed in connection with restless legs. These are iron, magnesium, vitamin B12 and folic acid.

Lack of iron

From the medical world, a deficiency of iron is most often mentioned and recognized as a possible cause of restless legs. GPs will probably think of this first in connection with blood tests.

Iron is in food, but you don’t always get enough of it. Vegetarians and vegans have an increased risk of iron deficiency, because iron is mainly found in animal products. Other foods also contain iron, but in a variant that is less absorbable.

Women of childbearing age in particular have to deal with deficiencies. This is due to the fact that they menstruate monthly. Iron deficiency is also common during pregnancy and breastfeeding.

If you are having a blood test, it is important to have your ferritin measured. Not all GPs are aware of the fact that someone with RLS needs more ferritin than the value that is normally used. The default value for ferritin is at least 20. However, for someone with RLS, it should be at least 50. Talk to your GP about this or have yourself referred to a specialist.

Lack of magnesium

I first started taking a magnesium supplement when I started to suffer from restless legs. That was quite a search, because I found out that there are many different types and forms of magnesium on the market. I ended up with magnesium citrate.

Magnesium helps against excessive muscle tension. If you suffer from restless legs, you know that the muscles in your calves can feel like hard muscle cables at night. I have always been a fanatic athlete and this feeling reminds me of acidification after prolonged or explosive exercise. It is a big question how it is possible that this occurs at night in people with RLS.

I know from my own experience and from fellow sufferers that they use a fairly high dose of magnesium. However, magnesium also has a laxative effect. Personally, therefore, I cannot take as much of it as I would like for my restless legs. Others seem to tolerate it better. This is a matter of trial and error.

Another thing is that the magnesium may stop working after a few years of taking it. I don’t know the reason for this. I myself have tried a few times to stop completely for a while and then start again after about a month. Usually the magnesium works better after a period of abstinence. You have to keep experimenting with these types of resources. I wish it were otherwise, but unfortunately there is no definitive solution for restless legs.

Lack of vitamin B12

Vitamin B12 influences many processes in the human body. It is therefore sometimes difficult to determine exactly whether a deficiency of vitamin B12 causes certain complaints or whether those complaints have another cause. Be that as it may, I have heard from some fellow sufferers that taking a B12 supplement helps them for their restless legs.

Like iron, vitamin B12 is mainly found in animal products. Here, too, vegetarians and vegans run a greater risk of becoming deficient. However, such a deficiency can also arise because vitamin B12 is not properly absorbed by the body from food. In that case, injections may offer a solution.

A deficiency of vitamin B12 does not happen overnight. The body normally has a large stock. However, once you have a shortage, it also takes some time before the stock is brought back up to standard.

Lack of folic acid or vitamin B9

Folic acid is another word for vitamin B11. Both terms are used interchangeably. It is good to keep that in mind if you read something about this. To add to the confusion, folic acid is also referred to as vitamin B9 in other countries.

Deficiency of folic acid mainly occurs in pregnant and breastfeeding women. It is known that pregnant women often suffer from restless legs. A folic acid deficiency may play a role in this.

If you’re not pregnant, it’s less likely that folic acid deficiency plays a role in your restless legs. However, there are a number of conditions that can ensure that folic acid from food is not properly absorbed by your body and therefore a deficiency still arises. You have to think about certain intestinal diseases. Alcoholism is also not beneficial, as are certain medications.

General practitioner

Not everyone who suffers from restless legs has a vitamin deficiency. However, it is a possibility. Having blood tests done through the GP therefore seems to me at least worth considering.

If you are thinking about taking vitamin supplements, it is best to ask for advice from someone who is a bit more knowledgeable about this. Ideally, this is the GP. After all, this is usually your first contact in health matters.

However, your doctor may not be as knowledgeable about restless legs as you would like. A general practitioner is a generalist. This means that he or she knows a little about a lot of things. It is therefore not completely strange that he or she does not always know every detail about something as specific as RLS. However, it is also possible that your doctor does not take your complaints seriously.

In all such cases, I think it is better to consult another general practitioner or to be referred to a specialist. Also in the alternative circuit there are people who know more than average about vitamin deficiency and vitamin supplements. I think it certainly wouldn’t hurt to consult someone like that. Finally, use your common sense.

Good luck!

1 thought on “Vitamin deficiency and Restless Legs”

  1. Ik spuit al jaren vit b12
    En of het helpt weet ik niet want heb ernstige Rls
    Zal bij mijn neuroloog even aangeven over de ferritine.

    Reply

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