You’ve just fallen asleep when it hits. That uncontrollable urge to move your legs. 

Your legs also ache and throb. 

It’s known as restless leg syndrome (RLS), and it makes you feel like you need to put a leash on your legs to keep them from trying to run away. Down boys! Down!

Restless leg syndrome is a condition where your legs are fidgety and uncomfortable, usually at night during sleep. But sometimes it can happen during the day when lying down or sitting for a long time, like when you’re in the car or at the movies. 

 

Symptoms of Restless Leg Syndrome

The main symptom is the urge to move the legs. However, people with restless legs describe other symptoms such as:

  • Aching
  • An “electric” feeling 
  • Crawling
  • Creeping
  • Itching
  • Pulling
  • Throbbing

The condition is known for:

  • Happening when lying or sitting for a long time. 
  • Relief with movement. The urge usually goes away when walking or stretching. 
  • Occurring mostly at night.

In some people, the disorder happens together with twitching or kicking of the legs while they’re sleeping. This condition is known as periodic limb movement of sleep.

 

Causes of Restless Legs Syndrome

There are a lot of reasons why you have restless legs. Since I specialize in treating women with gastrointestinal disorders I’m really familiar with one of the most common causes of RLS—small intestinal bacterial overgrowth, or SIBO for short. An imbalance in the gut microbiome—what scientists call dysbiosis—is also often to blame. 

But there are other factors that can cause restless legs. In fact, there might be more than one culprit involved. Let’s dive into all those factors in this blog post and I’ll tell you the natural remedies for restless legs syndrome that have worked for my patients.  

 

SIBO and Restless Legs

In my clinical practice, I see a lot of patients with SIBO who also have restless legs. Studies in medical journals confirm the link between SIBO and restless legs. 

If you want to know more about what is SIBO, I recommend you read this blog post I wrote. Meanwhile, in a nutshell, SIBO is an imbalance in the microbes that live in the small intestine. 

This can mean that there are too many bacteria or the wrong kind of bacteria that don’t belong in the small intestine.   

So what does SIBO have to do with restless legs? A lot. 

SIBO causes inflammation in the gut, which leads to the release of hepcidin, a hormone critical in delivering iron to the body and the brain. 

Iron is necessary for growth and development as well as supplying the body with oxygen through the blood. But more important for our topic here, iron is a cofactor in the production of dopamine, a brain chemical (neurotransmitter) that tells leg muscles to relax at night. Without enough dopamine, muscles can remain hyperactive. The result? Restless legs syndrome. 

When the body releases too much hepcidin, you might not even realize there’s a problem with iron. When you get tested for iron levels or for ferritin, the tests come back normal. And yet your body isn’t able to use the iron that’s available. 

Eating enough protein is also critical for making dopamine. The body needs the amino acids tyrosine and phenylalanine from protein as well as iron to make dopamine. 

I’m not the only one who connected the dots between SIBO and restless legs. In a small study published in the online version of the journal Sleep, SIBO was found in all seven participants with RLS. Compare this to the general population without restless legs; SIBO occurs in less than 15% of people. 

Restless Legs Treatment #1: Work with a functional medicine provider to test for and treat SIBO. Dietary changes, probiotics, fiber, digestive support, and antimicrobials are often used to turn around SIBO. Eat 1-1.2 grams of protein per kilogram of body weight, taken daily in divided doses.  

 

Gut Microbes Gone Bad

Sometimes, treating SIBO isn’t enough and the restless legs continue. There could be many reasons for that, but one of them could involve gut dysbiosis beyond just SIBO. Gut dysbiosis causes inflammation in the gut and the body. In my practice, I don’t just test for SIBO. I use stool testing to look for bacterial overgrowth, fungus, and parasites.

Imbalanced gut bacteria lead to many of the same problems that occur with SIBO, such as the release of hepcidin and the inability of the brain to use iron.   

Restless Legs Treatment #2: Balance the gut microbiota through the use of a good probiotic and avoid factors that lead to an imbalance such as eating too much sugar and processed foods and stress. Your functional medicine provider may use antimicrobials, antiparasitics, and/or digestive support to optimize your gut microbiome. Eat 1-1.2 grams of protein per kilogram of body weight, taken daily in divided doses.  

 

High Histamine 

Another reason why SIBO or dysbiosis causes restless leg syndrome is because they can lead to histamine excess. 

Histamine is a chemical found in many cells of the body. It causes allergy symptoms like itchy, red eyes, runny nose, and sneezing. When the body makes too much of it, it changes how the nervous system functions. This can be a problem for people with restless legs.

People who make too much histamine or who have histamine intolerance often have problems sleeping, since histamine is a brain stimulant. 

The catch? Because histamine revs up the brain,  people with restless legs who also are making too much histamine can get by on little sleep. They’re not sleepy in the daytime and can function even though they’re exhausted. 

Scientists are now beginning to believe that targeting histamine receptors may reduce restless leg syndrome. Histamine receptors are proteins found on the surface of some cells. These proteins are triggered by histamine.  Think of receptors like locks on a door and histamine as the key that fits into the lock and gets it to open.   

Mast cells are immune cells found in the blood that release histamine as part of an allergic reaction. Now researchers are finding that when mast cells are activated, it may cause restless legs. People who have a condition known as mast cell activation syndrome are more likely to have restless legs compared to healthy controls.  

Restless Legs Treatment #3: You can start by supplementing with DAO, an enzyme that breaks down histamine. Two other ways to support histamine levels are Natural D-Hist from Orthomolecular Medicine and quercetin. A low-histamine diet may also help.  

But keep in mind that histamine excess is complicated. There are different pathways through which people have problems. It’s best to work with a functional medicine provider to find out if histamine excess is part of your problem and if so, why you’re making too much histamine. 

 

B Vitamins for Restless Legs Syndrome

Vitamins B12 and vitamin B1 (thiamine or benfotiamine) can both fend off restless legs. For example, in patients with inflammatory bowel disease, vitamin B12 deficiency is linked to an increased risk of restless legs syndrome. 

Vitamin B1 helps the body make a chemical called acetylcholine, which is involved in motor control. In other words, B1 supports the health of the nerves that control the muscles.  So it makes sense that if you’re low in vitamin B1, your legs and body will fidget. 

The body also needs vitamin B1 to make dopamine. As I mentioned earlier, dopamine is a brain chemical that says to the leg muscles: “Relax! Relax!”

I’ve had patients tell me that even when other restless legs treatments didn’t help, vitamin B1 worked miracles. 

Restless Legs Treatment #4: Start by taking a B complex vitamin or vitamin B1 (up to 100 mg). You may need to go up to 300 mg, which you should only do under the supervision of a functional medicine provider. 

 

Food Sensitivities

Food sensitivities may be to blame for restless legs in some people. A case study of three patients found that food sensitivities caused movement disorders including repeated shrugging of the shoulders. In these patients,  milk, coffee, eggs, aspartame (Nutrasweet), tea, chocolate, citrus, raspberries, strawberries, potatoes, beef, and pork caused the most problems. This matches my experience in clinical practice. 

Restless Legs Treatment #5: Work with a functional medicine provider, who can order food sensitivity tests to find out which foods don’t agree with you. They may also suggest an elimination diet or just removing the foods that bother you from your tests. After a trial period without the foods, your practitioner will instruct you to introduce one at a time while watching for symptoms. That way you can see which food is causing your restless legs.  

 

Other Causes of Restless Legs

Here are other common reasons why my patients develop restless legs:

  • Alcohol, caffeine, nicotine
  • Certain medications 
  • Low vitamin D
  • Pregnancy
  • Stress/anxiety
  • Vigorous exercise

 

Drugs That Cause Restless Legs Syndrome

Sometimes, the cause of restless legs is a certain prescription medication. Here are some of the most common drugs that cause restless legs.:

  • Allergy meds
  • Diphenhydramine
  • Neuroleptics
  • Selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs)
  • Tricyclic antidepressants

 

Getting Rid of Restless Legs

I specialize in treating GI disorders and women’s health. So if you have digestive symptoms and restless legs, I know how to get at the root cause of why your legs are so fidgety. 

The first step? Book a free 15-minute troubleshooting call with me to find out the best course of action. 

If after the call you come on board as a patient, I’ll order certain tests to show whether your restless legs are caused by nutrient deficiencies, gut dysbiosis, or histamine excess. Whatever the cause, I’ll be on it until I find out what’s wrong. Book a call today so you’ll sleep more deeply tomorrow.