Health
Is your sleep interrupted by leg cramps? Here are some of the most surprising causes
If painful leg cramps have woken you up in the middle of the night, the condition can be both scary and confusing.
You may think it’s due to the position you’re sleeping in — but there’s more to know about nighttime leg cramps than that.
In original interviews, two physicians gave a “leg up” on the causes and treatments of nighttime leg cramps.
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Here’s what to know.
What are nighttime leg cramps?
More commonly known as a charley horse, a nighttime leg cramp is when the muscles in a leg quickly tighten up.
A charley horse is a sudden, painful and involuntary muscle spasm or cramp, noted health.com. While it usually happens in your leg, especially the calf, it can actually happen in any muscle.
“Sometimes the cramps last a few minutes, but I have had patients whose leg cramps lasted longer than that,” said one doctor. (iStock)
A person can be woken up as a result of painful leg cramp symptoms, said Mike Sevilla, M.D., a family physician with Family Practice Center of Salem in Salem, Ohio.
“Sometimes the cramps last a few minutes, but I have had patients whose leg cramps lasted longer than that,” he said.
Who gets nighttime leg cramps?
Nighttime cramps become more common as people get older and unfortunately, can become more frequent, Sara Austin, M.D., an associate professor of neurology at the Dell Medical School at the University of Texas at Austin, told Fox News Digital.
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She is also a fellow of the American Academy of Neurology.
If you experience frequent leg cramps, your primary care doctor should test to make sure your thyroid hormone level is normal.
Most of the time, nighttime leg cramps just happen — but there are some causes, she said.
Being human. “That’s the most common cause. We all get them sometimes,” she said.
“If you notice that the cramps are associated with weakness in the extremity, or if they consistently interfere with the way you walk, you should bring that to your doctor’s attention.” (iStock)
Hypothyroidism. If you experience frequent cramps, she said, your primary care doctor should test to make sure your thyroid hormone level is normal.
Dehydration or very intense exercise. “Make sure if you sweat excessively or are dehydrated that you drink more fluids, preferably with some electrolytes,” she cautioned.
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Restless leg syndrome. Those who have restless leg syndrome seem to describe some of their symptoms as cramps, she said.
“If you consistently feel like you wake up after being asleep for several hours and you feel symptoms in your leg — cramping, tingling, burning, aching — that are relieved by getting up and walking around, you might have restless leg syndrome,” Austin said.
“If you find that you’re having two to three cramps every night for weeks to months, you should check in with a neurologist.”
Speak with your doctor for further evaluation.
Can leg cramps be a sign of serious conditions?
Some neuromuscular diseases are associated with more frequent muscle cramps, but this is not common, said Dr. Austin.
“They are very rare,” she said.
There are also prescription medication options for nighttime leg cramps, “but patients should check with their family physician before considering prescription meds.” (iStock)
“But if you find that you are having two to three cramps every night for weeks to months, you should check in with a neurologist,” she advised.
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“Or, if you notice that the cramps are associated with weakness in the extremity, or if they consistently interfere with the way you walk, you should bring that to your doctor’s attention.”
How can someone treat leg cramps?
When leg cramps begin, start with a gentle stretching of the muscles, said Sevilla of the Family Practice Center of Salem.
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“In addition, what may help symptoms include massage of the area and application of a heating pad.”
When leg cramps begin, start with a gentle stretching of the muscles. (iStock)
Also, he said, “consider over-the-counter pain medication like acetaminophen or ibuprofen.”
There are also prescription medication options, “but patients should check with their family physician before considering prescription meds.”
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The key to feeling better in a fast, overstimulated world might be surprisingly simple: Live a little more like your grandparents.
A growing social media trend, dubbed “nonnamaxxing,” draws inspiration from the slower, more intentional rhythms associated with an Italian grandmother.
The lifestyle is often linked to activities like preparing home-cooked meals, spending time outdoors and making meaningful connections.
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“Nonnamaxxing is a 2026 trend that embraces the slower, more intentional lifestyle of an Italian grandmother (a Nonna). Think cooking from scratch, long family meals, daily walks, gardening and less screen time,” Erin Palinski-Wade, a New Jersey-based registered dietitian, told Fox News Digital.
Nonnamaxxing, derived from the name for an Italian grandmother, is a trend that incorporates lifestyle habits hundreds of years in the making. (iStock)
Stepping away from screens and toward real-world interaction can have measurable benefits, according to California-based psychotherapist Laurie Singer.
“We know that interacting with others in person, rather than spending time on screens, significantly improves mental health,” she told Fox News Digital, adding that social media often fuels comparison and lowers self-esteem.
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Living more like previous generations isn’t purely driven by nostalgia. Cooking meals from scratch, for example, has been linked to better nutrition and more mindful eating patterns.
Adopting traditional mealtime habits can improve diet quality and support both physical and mental health, especially when meals are shared regularly with others, Palinski-Wade noted.
One longevity expert stresses that staying healthy isn’t just about food — it’s also about joy and community. (iStock)
There’s also a psychological benefit to slowing down and focusing on one task at a time. Anxiety often stems from unfinished or avoided tasks, Singer noted, and engaging in hands-on activities can counteract that.
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“Nonnamaxxing encourages us to be present around a task, like gardening, baking or knitting, or just taking a mindful walk, that delivers something ‘real,’” she said.
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Palinski-Wade cautions against turning the trend into another source of pressure, noting that a traditional “nonna” lifestyle often assumes a different pace of life.
The key, she said, is adapting the mindset, not replicating it perfectly.
Nonnamaxxing, derived from the name for an Italian grandmother, is a trend that incorporates lifestyle habits hundreds of years in the making. (iStock)
The goal is to reintroduce small, intentional moments that make you feel better.
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That might mean prioritizing a few shared meals each week, taking a walk without your phone or setting aside time for a simple hobby, the expert recommended.
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Singer added, “Having a positive place to escape to, through whatever activities speak to us and make us happy, isn’t generational – it’s human.”
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Feeling lonely may take a toll on older adults’ memory — but it may not speed up cognitive decline, according to a new study.
Researchers from Colombia, Spain and Sweden analyzed data from more than 10,000 adults ages 65 to 94 across 12 European countries and found those who reported higher levels of loneliness did worse on memory tests at the start of the study, according to research published this month in the journal Aging & Mental Health.
Over a seven-year period, however, memory decline occurred at a similar rate regardless of how lonely participants felt.
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“The finding that loneliness significantly impacted memory, but not the speed of decline in memory over time was a surprising outcome,” lead author Dr. Luis Carlos Venegas-Sanabria of the School of Medicine and Health Sciences at the Universidad del Rosario said in a statement.
Loneliness may be linked to memory performance in older adults, a new study suggests. (iStock)
“It suggests that loneliness may play a more prominent role in the initial state of memory than in its progressive decline,” Venegas-Sanabria said, adding that the findings highlight the importance of addressing loneliness as a factor in cognitive performance.
The findings add to debate about whether loneliness contributes to dementia risk. While loneliness and social isolation are often considered risk factors for cognitive decline, research results have been mixed.
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The study looked at data from the long-running Survey of Health, Ageing and Retirement in Europe (SHARE), which tracked 10,217 older adults between 2012 and 2019. Participants were asked to recall words immediately and after a delay to measure memory performance.
Social isolation and loneliness could play a surprising role in cognitive health among seniors. (iStock)
Loneliness was assessed using three questions about how often participants felt isolated, left out or lacking companionship.
About 8% of participants reported high levels of loneliness at the outset. That group tended to be older, more likely to be female and more likely to have conditions such as depression.
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Researchers found that those with higher loneliness had lower scores on both immediate and delayed memory tests at baseline. Still, all groups — regardless of loneliness level — experienced similar declines in memory over time.
The results suggest loneliness may not directly accelerate the progression of memory loss, though it remains linked to poorer cognitive performance overall.
Researchers look at a brain scan at the National Institutes of Health in Bethesda, Maryland. (Saul Loeb/AFP/Getty Images)
Experts warn, however, that the findings should not be interpreted to mean loneliness is harmless.
“The finding that lonely older adults start with worse memory but don’t decline faster is actually the most interesting part of the paper, and I think it’s easy to misread,” said Jordan Weiss, Ph.D., a scientific advisor and aging expert at Assisted Living Magazine and a professor at NYU Grossman School of Medicine.
“It likely means loneliness does its damage earlier in life, well before people show up in a study like this at 65-plus,” Weiss told Fox News Digital.
By older age, long-term social patterns may already be established, making it harder to detect when the effects of loneliness first took hold, an aging expert says. (iStock)
He suggested that by older age, long-term social patterns may already be established, making it harder to detect when the effects of loneliness first took hold.
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“By the time you’re measuring someone in their late 60s, decades of social connection patterns are already baked in,” he said.
Weiss, who was not involved in the research, added that loneliness may coincide with other health conditions, and noted that participants who felt more isolated also had higher rates of depression, high-blood pressure and diabetes. The link, he said, may reflect a cluster of health risks rather than a direct cause.
“While they can go hand-in-hand, it’s not clear that loneliness contributes to dementia,” a psychotherapist says. (iStock)
Amy Morin, a Florida-based psychotherapist and author, said the findings reflect a broader pattern in research on loneliness and brain health, and that the relationship may be more complex than it appears.
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“The evidence shows there’s a link between loneliness and cognitive decline but there’s no direct evidence of a cause and effect relationship,” she said. “So while they can go hand-in-hand, it’s not clear that loneliness contributes to dementia.”
Morin added that loneliness, which can fluctuate, may not be the root of the problem, but rather a symptom of other underlying mental or physical health issues.
Researchers suggested screening for loneliness be incorporated into routine cognitive assessments as one way to support healthy aging. (iStock)
She said staying socially and mentally engaged is crucial for overall brain health.
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“It’s important to be proactive about social activities,” Morin said. “Joining a book club, having coffee with a friend, or attending faith-based services can be a powerful way to maintain connections in older age.”
The researchers also suggested screening for loneliness be incorporated into routine cognitive assessments as one way to support healthy aging.
Fox News Digital reached out to the researchers for comment.
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