Does Reflexology help foot pain/tension or plantar fasciitis?

What is a muscle cramp? Normal movement of our bodies involves muscles alternating between contract and relaxation. A muscle that contracts involuntarily and is unable to relax is a spasm; and a forceful and prolonged spasm becomes a cramp. A muscle cramp can last anywhere from a few seconds to up to 15 minutes or occasionally longer. Any muscle can develop a cramp, but the most common site for muscle cramps are the legs, particularly the front of the thighs (quadriceps), back of the thighs (hamstrings) and calf muscles (gastrocnemius & soleus). Unfortunately almost everyone, one estimate is 95% of the population will experience a muscle cramp at some time in their life. Muscle cramps are one of those things that also increases as we get older. Those of you that have already had a muscle cramp will undoubtedly remember the unrelenting pain! Tip: Most muscle cramps can be stopped if the muscle can be stretched. Muscle spasms & cramps are one of the most common complaints that massage therapists deal with.

In my lifetime I have seen more and more people become what a friend insightfully called amateur athletes.  This is due to the impact of the public health campaign to get to us to recognise the importance of regular exercise to keep us healthy.  This has led to more people going to the gym regularly taking part in all forms of sporting competitions. I appreciate I am older than most of the clients who visit out clinic.  But when I was growing up it was quite rare for people to go the gym or for adults to take part in sports-based competitions who were not professional athletes. A recent review published by the British Journal of Sports Medicine concludes that sleep is an important determinant of health, wellbeing and performance in collegiate athletes, it is not always a priority for them.   In addition sleep allows the body to repair itself which is crutial if you are working towards a fitness goal e.g. a triathalon or marathon or big hockey game etc This made me wonder about the clients we see at the clinic, who are juggling demanding careers, personal fitness goals, busy social lives, families and sometimes living in environments that are not conducive to restorative sleep. So, I wanted to leave you with a question, how much of a priority is sleep in your life? Here is a reminder of some Sleep tips Reference https://bjsm.bmj.com/content/53/12/731.full

By January I am seriously missing the sun.  While I know we have had the shortest day, the grey weather and the snow jsut reminds me we are in deep winter.  So with the Brexit impass being deeply demoralising and frustraing, I wanted to share some tips to combat the blues. 1. Vitamin D Most people are short of Vitamin D in the uk.  One of the signs of being short of Vitamin D is feeling blue. 2. Spice it up. Earlier today I was planning my meals for the week before I went to the supermarket.  At this time of year  I always fancy dishes containting yellow rice i.e. paella or pilau rice.  I know its the yellow colour that particularly appeals which you get by adding either Tumeric or Saffron.    In clinical trails Curcumin the main active ingredient in Tumeric (the bright yellow Indian spice) has been to be as effective as Prozac.  A review of several trains of Saffron found it was a safe and effective treatmetn for depression. While I like to cook with the spices, it isn't as effective as supplements which are standardised extracts.  For me cooking with the spice is fine as I am not depressed. 3. 5-HTP A naturally occuring amino acid, 5-HTP is used by the body to make serotonin the "happy hormone".  Suplements produced from the seeds of the West African medicinal plant Griffonia Simplicifoia show promised for depression. References Woo YS, Kim S, Jeong JH, Jung YE, Kim MD, Bahk WM. Vitamin D Deficiency/Insufficiency among Inpatients with Depressive Symptoms. Clin Psychopharmacol Neurosci. 2019 Feb 28;17(1):121-124. Sanmukhani J, Satodia V, Trivedi J, Patel T, Tiwari D, Panchal B, Goel A, Tripathi CB. Efficacy and safety of curcumin in major depressive disorder: a randomized controlled trial. Phytother Res. 2014 Apr;28(4):579-85. Moshiri E, Basti AA, Noorbala AA, Jamshidi AH, Hesameddin Abbasi S, Akhondzadeh S. Crocus sativus L. (petal) in the treatment of mild-to-moderate depression: a double-blind, randomized and placebo-controlled trial. Phytomedicine. 2006 Nov;13(9-10):607-11 Birdsall TC. 5-Hydroxytryptophan: a clinically-effective serotonin precursor.  Altern Med Rev. 1998 Aug;3(4):271-80.