Herbs and Essential Oils for Soaking to Prevent or Relieve Leg Cramps

The World Health Organization recognizes herbal treatments as the most popular form of traditional medicine, noting that many turn to natural remedies to address health issues. Soaking in herbal extracts to ease leg cramps is nothing new. Today we soothe away inflammation in our joints the same way patients of ancient Chinese medicine and ayurveda did: by using plant extracts. Herbs synonymous with muscle pain relief include boswellia, camphor, ginger, menthol and eucalyptus; these plants are pressed or distilled to derive their essential oils. Herbal treatments allow us to buy relief in a bottle or whip it up ourselves.

Mix Your Own

• If you've been standing on your feet all day, or taxed your muscles working out, it may be the perfect time to apply a homemade mixture of mustard seed oil and camphor. Mustard seed oil is infused with soybean or vegetable oil after the seeds are ground; you can buy it online or in any natural food store. Measure just over an ounce of camphor with seven ounces of mustard seed oil, and combine in a small glass container with a lid. Store the bottled mixture in sunlight until the camphor dissolves and massage your sore joints with it daily. Coconut oil is another essential oil that reduces leg pain.

A Drugstore Fix

• The Dead Sea in Israel has brought, and continues to bring, soothing relief to visitors who soak in its magnesium-rich waters. When magnesium sulfate is absorbed through the skin, it relaxes muscles, draws toxins from the body and exfoliates your skin. The closest thing to the Dead Sea in your washroom is an Epsom salt bath. Many have relied on Epsom salt soaks to decrease swelling or take away the pain of bruises. Almost every drugstore offers Epsom salt at nominal prices, usually less than $10 for more than 60 ounces. Fortunately, all your aches and pains will require are two cups of Epsom Salt, mixed in with your bathwater.

Ask For Horse Chestnut at Your Natural Health Food Store

• Horse chestnut trees are native to Greece and Bulgaria; their bark, leaves and flowers have treated a variety of diseases for centuries. The seed extract is used for relief in problems associated with varicose veins, ankle swelling, feelings of heaviness, itching, and nighttime leg cramping. If it's not cultivated properly, this extract can have dangerous side effects, so it's important to purchase it from a vendor that specializes in herbal products.

Medicate in a Natural Bath or Apply Oils Directly

• Because of their high concentrations of essential fatty acids, borage and evening primrose oils have long been regarded as inflammation soothers and used in hydrotherapy. Long soaks in the tub are not the only way to relieve joint aches. Birch, chamomile and cypress are effective remedies, and sometimes offered to consumers as a spot massage therapy. Just rub it in and feel your aches and pains ebb away. Look for bottled essential oils containing boswellia (known also as frankincense), ginger, camphor, green tea, turmeric and eucalyptus. They hold anti-inflammatory properties that make them popular in alternative medicine treatments.