Today I want to introduce you to - [Restless Leg Syndrome]: Do you feel uncomfortable in your legs as soon as you lie down when you go to bed at night? Sometimes it is a tingling and itching feeling? Sometimes you want to move involuntarily? The occurrence of these symptoms affects the quality of sleep, causing you to feel restless the next day?

[What is restless legs syndrome?]

Willis-Ekbom disease, also known as "restless legs syndrome", becomes more obvious at night. When lying down, the legs will feel like ants crawling up, stinging and itching. Some people have a sore and numb feeling, but as soon as they get up and move around, the symptoms disappear. In order to eliminate the uncomfortable feeling, they have to keep moving their legs, which often results in insomnia or poor sleep, which seriously affects the quality of life.

[4 steps to self-detect restless legs syndrome]

  1. Do you feel discomfort in your legs when sitting or lying down?

  2. Have the urge to move your legs when sitting or lying down?

  3. Uncomfortable feeling or urge to move, will it feel better after getting up and walking around?

  4. Uncomfortable feeling or urge to move, worse in the evening or at night, especially before bed?

【How to deal with restless legs syndrome?】

Dr. Liu reminds everyone that if you have restless legs syndrome, you can improve it by following the following points:

  1. The cause of restless legs syndrome may be iron deficiency, folic acid deficiency or electrolyte imbalance. Blood tests are required to check whether the iron content, ferritin and folic acid concentration in the blood are sufficient, and whether there are any abnormalities in the electrolytes. If you are deficient in iron, take iron supplements and vitamin C; if you are deficient in electrolytes, you can eat more bananas, avocados, and potatoes to supplement potassium ions.

  2. You can also improve symptoms through massage or cold or hot compresses on your legs. You can do stretching exercises to relax or lift your legs before going to bed.

  3. It is best not to take sleeping pills or drink caffeinated drinks, and quit smoking and drinking, so as not to aggravate the symptoms.

  4. If you have "restless legs", please see a sleep specialist for further evaluation and diagnosis to determine whether it is restless legs syndrome and other possible causes, so that you can improve your sleep problems!