Insomnia And Leg Cramps

[o2guy]

I am still new to gluten free. I have been gluten free, dairy free, and nuts and seeds free for a little over a month now. The problem is I'm having horrible insomnia and also leg cramps nightly. A lot of times at night it just seems that i can't shut my mind off. I also have lost aprox. 40 lbs in the last 40 day's. Is this normal when going gluten free? Am I missing some vital vitiamins or nutrients that could be causing the insomnia and cramps? The weight loss I can handle, I was overweight to begin with but the other is driving me nuts. I do feel better with all my other symptoms, and surprizingly I really dont feel tired even though I am only averageing about 2 hours of sleep a night. Any sugesstions would be great.

[Reba32]

could be electrolyte imbalance. This is common with dietary changes and weight loss. Make sure you are well hydrated, and get enough salt (if you're not eating manufactured foods anymore, that's a big reduction in sodium in the diet!). Potassium and magnesium rich foods can help with the leg cramps. Try half an avocado, a cup of clear chicken broth (gluten free of course!) and a magnesium supplement every day. Pumpkin seeds, almonds, dark chocolate, and spinach are good food sources of magnesium.

[sahm-i-am]

For leg cramps I can recommend magnesium - my mom used to suffer for years and tried every trick in the book. Last year she started adding magnesium powder to her breakfast drink and they have gone away. You have to experiment and find the right dosage for your body, but it could work for you, too!

[Bubba's Mom]

I agree about the Magnesium and leg cramps. You may need a calcium supplement too? If you're low on calcium it causes insomnia. Melatonin helps with sleep too.

A combo pill that's calcium, magnesium, and zinc might be good for you? Vitamin D is important too.

With that much of a weight loss I'd venture to say you may not be absorbing nutrients very well?

It's just miserable not being able to sleep!

[o2guy]

I Agree it is miserable not being able to sleep. Thanks for the advice I will try the magnesium to see if that helps. I know I have a malabsortion problem I have been taking B-12 injections every 2 weeks for over 10 years now so I would imagine that I am not asorbing other vital nutrients as well.

[PeachBlossoms]

I am still new to gluten free. I have been gluten free, dairy free, and nuts and seeds free for a little over a month now. The problem is I'm having horrible insomnia and also leg cramps nightly. A lot of times at night it just seems that i can't shut my mind off. I also have lost aprox. 40 lbs in the last 40 day's. Is this normal when going gluten free? Am I missing some vital vitiamins or nutrients that could be causing the insomnia and cramps? The weight loss I can handle, I was overweight to begin with but the other is driving me nuts. I do feel better with all my other symptoms, and surprizingly I really dont feel tired even though I am only averageing about 2 hours of sleep a night. Any sugesstions would be great.

I would say go off grain and soy. I've known three other Celiacs who had insomia because of corn and soy. I have also known one who has leg cramps anytime the slightest amount of corn, rice or soy is in their diet. Many Celiacs have trouble with ALL grains... but won't have any traditional "gluten-like" symptoms before they remove it from their diet. After they avoid corn and soy and rice for 5 months and then reintroduce those grains back into their diet, they usually have a big gluten-like reaction.

So stop eating corn and soy and see if things improve. Remember, corn is in EVERYTHING. It is under the name glycerin and a thousand other names. Click here for all of corn's names: Open Original Shared Link

[Di2011]

Banana has been my medicine of choice for my years of leg cramps.

[RiceGuy]

I also agree with the suggestion of a magnesium supplement. It can help with sleep as well.

The B12 is the other nutrient I was going to suggest, so glad you're taking that. However, is it methylcobalamin, or some other type? Usually the shots are better than the typical supplement, which is cyanocobalamin (contains cyanide). However, I don't know if one shot every two weeks would keep the level up enough to help with sleeping in between. I find that taking a sublingual methyl-B tablet about an hour before going to sleep seems to help fall asleep faster and to sleep more deeply.

Other B vitamins are also involved in healthy sleep-wake cycles, so a good co-enzyme B-complex supplement might also be helpful.

With time, your body should repair itself sufficiently, and sleeping should become easier.

[RiceGuy]

Banana has been my medicine of choice for my years of leg cramps.

Bananas are a good source of potassium, so I suppose that's what your body is needing.

[Lori2]

I also agree with the suggestion of a magnesium supplement. It can help with sleep as well.

I definitely agree with the magnesium supplement. However, if diarrhea is a problem, adding more magnesium could cause problems--for example, Milk of Magnesia is used as a laxative. Most magnesium supplements are only about 10% absorbed causing the diarrhea.

I have found a magnesium supplement that is almost 100% absorbable that I can use without a problem and when I take it at bedtime can be cramp free--I think it helps with my sleep also. Check out Angstrom Minerals.

[domesticactivist]

Magnesium and calcium deficiency are a common cause of both those problems. Maybe you are not getting enough, or are not absorbing what you do get.

We use concentrace mineral drops and Epsom salt baths/foot soaks for magnesium. If you decide to supplement calcium I believe calcium citrate is more readily absorbed than other forms.

[EdwardL]

We use Peter Gillham's CALM magnesium and calcium drink. No problem with leg cramps any more, also helps reduce blood pressure, and is calming to help sleep. Soy caused leg cramps and we avoid soy like the plague for many reasons.

[mushroom]

I also am a great fan of the calcium, magnesium and zinc combo, along with D. And I found corn to be a great insomnia-inducer

[jerseyangel]

We use Peter Gillham's CALM magnesium and calcium drink. No problem with leg cramps any more, also helps reduce blood pressure, and is calming to help sleep.

I use this also, and it really does help with my night time leg and foot cramping. It's also relaxing--I make a tea of it (it comes in a powder form) and drink it before going to bed.

Open Original Shared Link

[Reba32]

I had a free sample of that Calm drink mix from the health food store, it was quite nice.

Food trivia: There's more potassium in avocado and cantaloupe than a banana, and less sugar

[PeachBlossoms]

But your body should be able to absorb calcium magnesium from whole foods without having to take supplements. It sounds like you still are not absorbing nutrients and like you are overlooking another food intolerance. Find the food intolerance that is preventing your body from absorbing nutrients and you'll fix the cramps.