Dealing with Restless Leg Syndrome? Try an Adjustable Foot Wrap

An adjustable foot wrap can relieve the symptoms linked to restless leg syndrome. This is an effective natural alternative to taking drugs, which have detrimental side effects. Researchers established that this foot wrap is 1.4 times as efficient as a typical drug treatment.

Dr. Phyllis Kuhn was the one who led this study, which you can find in the Journal of the American Osteopathic Association.

Defining Restless Leg Syndrome

Let’s begin with defining the restless leg syndrome – RLS, which is also referred to as Wills Ekbom disease. It’s a commonly met condition, which is caused by a disorder of the nervous system. The patient experiences discomfort and an odd urge to move the legs, whenever he/she is trying to sleep/rest. It often causes insomnia as well, which leads to fatigue, weariness, depression and anxiety.

Studies highlight that 10 percent of Americans suffer from this condition, namely 9 million persons live with this syndrome, in its mild or severe form.

In order to relieve the symptoms linked to the disease, drugs may be prescribed – including dopamine. The primary downside is that the administration of this medicine results in vomiting, nausea, and dizziness. Plus, there is always the risk that the patient may become addicted to the medication.

Therefore, opting for an adjustable foot wrap is an alternative that is more than welcome. The wrap applies pressure to the primary muscles of the foot – namely the flexor hallucis brevis, and the abductor hallucis. This is an effective method that soothes the effects of RLS. Did you know that, by applying pressure on these muscles, the release of dopamine in the brain is stimulated? The effect the foot wrap accomplishes is similar to acupressure or massage therapy.

The body heals itself without drugs

Dr. Kuhn and other specialists carried out an 8-week clinical study, which included 30 adults aged between 30 and 75 years old – 22 women and 8 men. They were all healthy individuals, who experienced mild to harsh symptoms of RLS.

Every patient wore the foot wrap on each leg, for fixed amounts of time. After the study ended, the results were amazing. The specialists analyzed the findings in comparison with the results of other studies, which demonstrated the efficiency of medication ropinirole, as well as a placebo. Ropinirole is a traditional dopamine antagonist that is typically prescribed to patients suffering from RLS.

The findings highlighted the following aspects: the patients who wore the wrap experienced improvement in their condition – up to 90 percent, as opposed to ropinirole, which presented a 63 percent enhancement on the study participants’ conditions. It was also noted that the patients who wore the wrap observed improvements in their sleeping patterns.

7 of the study participants informed the researchers that they experienced the following side effects: warm feet, spasms, pain, pins and needles.

Dr. Kuhn’s conclusion was that the body could aim at regulating itself, without the intervention of drugs; the adjustable foot wrap is the perfect example.