I would only have found this report by luck or some other diligent member of the forum doing lots of homework and discovering it. Thank you team. I hope it makes this forum obsolete. I don't really expect that to happen!!!
Magnesium citrate has given me tremendous relief from RLS. I’d be interested to see if Potassiium citrate has same affect. Don’t expect there to be a big PR push for any treatment that does not require a prescription. Money controls most of medicine.
I am a little confused. I hope this means that after 45 days 68 patients out of 68 were fully relieved of their symptoms. Going out to buy some Potassium citrate!
More on Potassium - I take Cream of Tartar w/sea salt (1/4 tsp. each) mixed with juice. It's also called the adrenal cocktail and it supplies about 350mg of potassium. My sleep goes up and down - probably better when I take this every day. Here's a video... youtube.com/watch?reload=9&...
I’m happy to see some “official” results on potassium. I’ve been taking potassium for about a year and have found that it is one of the most important things I take to cope with my RLS. I take the equivalent of about 2500g minimum every day. If I don’t, I don’t, I twitch and flail.
In the US potassium is only available in 99mg caplets over the counter. To get it as a prescription you have to have a blood test showing it’s necessary. The daily recommended amount of potassium stated by FDA is 4700 mg. You can see the problem for dosing without a prescription. It would take more than 40 over the counter pills to reach that goal! Potassium citrate, while easy to take and readily available, can cause diarrhea and is supposedly not as well absorbed.
I had already begun taking potassium and was unwilling to go off just to get tested. So, I take about 1 gram (1000mg) each day in two - 500 mg doses, making sure I take the last one well before going to sleep to make sure it’s in my system. (I have gastroparesis so processing everything is an issue, therefore I have to plan when I ingest certain meds/foods)
I also try to eat enough food items containing potassium during the day to reach about 2500mg, or more, between the food and the caplets. This is often difficult with the gastroparesis.
I have a list of potassium rich foods on my fridge that I try to keep on hand to use as part of my meals and snacks. Bananas are not the only source, and not even the richest source of potassium.
In addition to potassium I take 2 (two) Magnesium Malate 1000 mg twice daily (am and pm). This form of Magnesium as well as Magnesium Taurate, is one of the best absorbed and least likely to cause diarrhea. Together, these two are my one-two punch in relieving symptoms.
I do take other things for my RLS as well- some are anti inflammatory, some are precursors to dopamine. Thankfully all have helped me keep off of any of the “big-gun” drugs that are normally discussed on this site.
I am also prescribed hydrocodone (10 mg., up to 3 times /day) and a muscle relaxer for a neck and back injury. I’ve used them for a long time, and when my RLS started it broke through that dose. Even so, I know it does help some in addition to all these other things.
I recently (about a month ago) had to go on Gabapentin for sciatica. (300mg - 3 times daily) I’m not a good candidate for injections (cortisone) in my spine because I have a clotting issue (clot too much) so we’re trying gabapentin for the nerve pain. The jury is still out in that, I will probably have to try a higher dose. I don’t think it has helped much for the RLS as I had a couple slight breakthroughs this past week. Interestingly, it was on days I did not get enough potassium because I just couldn’t eat enough because of the gastroparesis.
I also take trazadone (50-100mg) for sleep. Without this medicine I would not function. I’ve always (since childhood) had sleep problems - my brain just doesn’t shut off and it’s like I see a movie all night long. Trazadone takes care of that. I rarely take more than 50 mg.
I have tried Kratom (Bali) and CBD oil, and for me it gave only mild relief results. Not enough to justify the cost.
I take a lot of supplements. Some in pill/capsule form, some in liquid, some in spray, some in gummies/chewables. (The easier it is to digest, the better for me.) I basically take the dosage on the bottle except for the potassium and the magnesium.
I recommend starting with the Potassium and Magnesium. Oh, and Calcium. I can’t take Calcium supplements as I produce calcium kidney stones. What I do get is through food. But the three work better together, and definitely help me.
Oh, and if it helps, I started with RLS at 28, during my 2nd of 4 pregnancies. It went away after giving birth. I had no problems until I had to go off my pain med to take the gastric emptying study done to diagnose the gastroparesis almost 2 years ago. My RLS mostly affects my legs at night. On a very bad night it also affects my arms. I am 62.
I wonder, given that you have clotting issues, would you consider trying dipyridamole (persantin)? Obviously in conjunction with your doctors. It is an anti-coagulant but has been shown to be helpful for rls. I am taking it and while it’s not a silver bullet, I feel better since starting it than I did in a long, long time. For some reason it really boosts daytime alertness and wellbeing.
hi, Go and see a good chiropractor to sort out your sciatica, your problem may be caused by the sciatic nerve being trapped at the lower spine or by the sciatic nerve being trapped by the piriformis muscle. I know because I have had both, the medical profession helped with some pain relief in the short term but it was the chiropractor that cured the problem
I haven't exhausted all possibilities yet but I haven't been able to buy Pottassium Citrate. One pharmacist told me it would be bad for my heart and produce a racing pulse. Does anyone know anything about this. I am now off to see my cardiologist to see if I am allowed potassium citrate.
I don't know if this is true but I thought I should mention this as soon as possible to warn others that we need an expert opinion.
Thanks for sharing that, Graham. I had the same with dipyridamole. My gp thought it too dangerous.
This is the kind of research and checking we all have to do with all supplements and medicines before embarking on taking them. However (?) positive the reported results. (I meant to say: even when positive resultes have been reported).
I have been corresponding with the author (Dr Rouff) of the paper you mentioned about potassium citrate.
Dr Rouff asked me where you found the reference. Did you just do a search for RLS or something else.
I am trying potassium citrate and have been taking one tablet per day for about 16 days so I am waiting for day 45 when I expect to be fully "cured" (I Hope)
Thanks for bringing this to our attention. Your effort might have saved many of us from our unhappy destiny.
Do keep us posted Graham. It will be very interesting to hear how you get on. I am willing to try anything but reluctant to tinker with my current (rather complicated) regime which is giving me the best relief I’ve had in ages. If potassium works for you though ...
What dose are you taking? Did you have to get a prescription for it or are you using an otc preparation?
Its a real problem if your symptoms are almost under control. As you probably know my FODMAP diet plus a few other exclusions is working well but not perfectly. I decided to go for broke and give it a go. With all these ideas the fear is that it doesn;t work and going back to the original situation no longer works. I'll tell you the outcome in a month or so.
I asked at three pharmacies for an OTC medicine. Two refused to sell me any and then my regular pharmacist found a commercial product but he was worried so I got a prescription which I thought would have to be prepared by a compounding chemist. I went back to the regular guy and he said the commercial product was the same as the prescription so he ordered in the commercial product. The pharmacists were concerned that excessive potassium can injure heart and liver so they wanted assurance that I was safe to try a reasonable dose. I appreciate their concern.
Brand name is Urocit-K, manufactured by Mission Pharmaceutical Company, San Antonio Texas, USA 78230 1355
Dose is 1.08g, 1 tablet daily.
I have only taken 11 tablets (despite what I said in previous post) but I think I have slept better for about the last 5 days. Five days of improved sleep might not be significant but there is a hint of success there. The real test will be a garlic and onion milkshake with normal cow milk and a slice of normal bread. I have a problem understanding how taking Pot Cit could suppress an allergic reaction but then it might be an intolerance rather than an allergy and then I'm totally lost. Lets see what happens.
Interesting thing is that a memory from the back of my mind came forward that my mother had given us kids Pot Cit for colds, stomach upsets or other things My brother remembers the name but knows no more than that. Pot Cit has to be potassium citrate and we all survived. Mum was an "old school" nurse so I presume Pot cit was a regular cure in the old days. (1920s to 1940s)
I am trying to find what time of the day the study subjects take their Urocit-K, because I am taking it whit breakfast and I have Restless Leg at sleep, so maybe I need to move the Urocit-K to bed time.
I am also taking it with breakfast. I don't think the time of day matters because it is not meant to be a short term fix like a pain killer but rather it has a longer term effect that builds up over a period of time. So for some people it takes a couple of weeks to have a full effect and for others it takes a month or more. Presumably there will be some people for whom it doesn't work at all. Give it time to have its full effect. I dont know whether you have to continue with the potassium citrate after the symptoms disappear or if you stop after a course of treatment. I'm waiting for advice from the researcher.
Thank God! I’m not sure jow I would have heard about this if I wasn’t investigating RLS snd leg cramps. I severely doubt this is a topic that is on everyone’s lips. So finding this and the help it has given me is enough credibility as fas as I am concerned
Content on HealthUnlocked does not replace the relationship between you and doctors or other healthcare professionals nor the advice you receive from them.
Never delay seeking advice or dialling emergency services because of something that you have read on HealthUnlocked.
Findings of the 2016 Article in MedCrave on 2 June 2016 in relation to the Use of Potassium Citrate in RLS?
The key role of adenosine in restless legs syndrome.
Restless leg cure
Research on Restless Leg & Body Syndrome, RLS/RBS
Restless Leg Syndrome
