What Are Night Leg Cramps And How Are They Caused?

Don't you just hate waking up in the wee hours of the morning to the excruciating pain caused by night leg cramps? Sometimes, the pain is so unbearable that your eyes begin to tear up!

As of right now, the exact cause of night leg cramps has yet to be identified; however, unconventional electrolyte processing is believed to play a major role in cramping at night.

Here is the wiseGEEK's explanation of what an electrolyte is:

"An electrolyte is a liquid substance which acts as a medium to conduct electricity. One speaks of an electrolyte in a number of different contexts, the most common including health and fitness, and various electronics and automotive disciplines. An electrolyte is full of ions, which are atoms that have some sort of net electric charge, either positive or negative. A dilute electrolyte has a relatively small amount of ions for its volume, while a concentrated electrolyte has a high amount of ions"

Experts have also pointed at the over exhaustion of your leg muscles during the day to cause night leg cramps. It is believed that standing too long, sitting too long, or even the positioning of your legs while sitting during the day could be a big factor in the cause of your legs cramping at night.

Because of the importance of water to our body, and how it is in charge of transporting minerals and vitamins to the rest of the body, if you are not getting enough water, your chances of getting night leg cramps are much higher.