Mustard for Cramps

So, there is an interesting study about cramps.

I read this after going Keto and leg cramps became a real problem for me in the middle of the night. I have a great supply of dill pickles in my refrigerator. I suspect the mustard packets were used because they are much more portable than a jars of pickle juice.

www.trainingpeaks.com/blog/the-real-cause-of-muscle-cramps/

Maintaining Neuromuscular Performance
Some important clues have surfaced over the past few years that lend support to the notion that “calming” hyper-excited nerves will prevent muscle cramps. An initial finding is that cramp-prone subjects require less electrical stimulation to produce a cramp, suggesting that their neuromuscular systems are more sensitive to cramping2. This observation helps explain why some athletes are haunted by cramps, while others rarely have a problem.

There have been many proposed “cures” for muscle cramps, including eating mustard and drinking pickle juice. At first, the effectiveness of pickle juice baffled scientists, but laboratory studies confirmed its benefit, at least on small muscle groups in the foot that were electrically stimulated to cramp3. Those results led scientists to speculate that pickle juice might activate sensory fibers in the mouth and throat and send signals to the nervous system that calm down hyper-exitable motoneurons and reduce the duration of a cramp.