This might be interesting. There's a lot there and I haven't had time to even read it properly but ...
ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articl...
Its a very big investigation with lots of samples so you would expect it to be accurate but they mention in there somewhere in their conclusions that it doesn't prove any causative relationship.
Its dated 2008 so there might be a follow up study already published.
Cheers
Just read the abstract. It doesn't seem to be a very significant result.
Straight off, my thoughts would be that higher BMI (and I totally disagree with using this term as a medical measurement) means a higher food intake, including liquid.
We know that food intake has a high trigger content for RLS, therefore one would expect a higher degree of RLS symptoms in that cohort.
I await further studies.🦧
Yes, I believe that BMI is an indicator but not a measure of obesity. My BMI says that I'm obese, but my doctors say I'm overweight. Still bad, but not too awful! ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK5...
A later (2018) meta-analysis of published data concludes that "Adults with obesity are more likely to suffer from RLS, with women at higher risk"
pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/296...
I did a brief scan of the study. It lists total number of participants, but not against the general population. So the percentages are within the RLS subgroup. I am not sure what the point of this is.
Especially since it's after Thanksgiving and I have a half of a Peach pie sitting on the counter.
Hi Graham. Over the years I have read many articles about over-eating and the down-regulation of D2 receptors, including this most recently: nature.com/articles/s41598-....
When doing research, I recommend leaving out the term “RLS” and substitute words like dopamine or D2 receptors, because the ultimate solution to RLS is to find ways to up-regulate our D2/D3 receptors. Doing this should lower that pre-receptor pool of dopamine which in turn should allow our brain ferritin to rise, theoretically. On the other hand, raising brain ferritin should also lower dopamine levels via increased activity of the D2/D3 receptors. Two ways to get to same endpoint.
The theory for RLS, I believe, is that early life iron deficiency (even in-utero) leads to decreased brain ferritin and an altered dopamine transport system that cannot be completely corrected by later life iron supplementation. However, there’s also theories about having genetically lousy dopamine receptors to begin with that runs within families. As we know, small and few dopamine receptors means an increased dopamine pool. Like turning up the volume on your TV when reception is bad. Supposedly, that increased dopamine forces a decrease in brain ferritin as part of a protective, balancing act. We see the opposite in Parkinson’s patients. Low dopamine = high brain ferritin. pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/292....
Anyways, there are other articles and research whereby obese subjects are given a severe calorie restricted diet. Their D2 receptors spring back to life even before any significant weight loss occurs. I have often discussed severe calorie restriction on here as a way to up-regulate our receptors, even if not obese.
Am I the only one sick of hearing the word "obesity", and having it blamed for everything wrong with people? I suggest that it's laziness or incompetence or bias on the part of doctors who just find it easy to tell someone to lose weight instead of finding out the real problem. Oh, you broke your leg? Oh, you have a cold? Oh, you have Shingles? Well, it must be because you're obese. That is such a derogatory and insensitive term and it needs to be wiped from medical terminology and never used about a patient ever again.
After you get further in to the article it states no correlation has been proven. But, by then, one has already formed an opinion about the overweight pt with RLS.
I agree!! I have lost over 5 stones in the past two years, and my rls is as bad if not worse than it was before I lost the weight.
BMI was invented by a Belgian in about 1830 and was not intended to be used as a measure of an individual health. Read the full story at en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Body_... Its a good example of the misuse of mathmatics and statistics to produce a number that looks precise. I can imagine in the future a patient saying "My BMI has dropped from 34.175 to 34.170 and my dietician says this proves the value of paying his bill"
I’m seeing a doctor at Mayo for obstructive sleep apnea and Restless leg syndrome. He told me my OSA would be greatly improved and in turn that would greatly improve my RLS symptoms if I lost weight.
My BMI was 34 and now it’s 30.6.
So far I am experiencing improvement with both OSA and RLS but I have a considerable way to go. I think there may be some truth to this article.
I personally have found a loose and fairly weak relationship between weight and restless legs. When I lost a fair amount of weight a while ago I did notice a moderate improvement in the RLS. However I was also restricting carbs which also seems to help so it’s not clear exactly how much effect to attribute to weight. I think that reflects what the article is saying namely that it’s not a cure for most but can help. And that’s my personal experience.
Obesity isn't a cause of RLS but causes of obesity are often causes of RLS. Obesity isn't a result of oveteating but eating the wrong foods namely carbohydrates especially processesd ones which raise blood sugar which in turn raises insulin levels which controls fat sforage. The raised blood sugar causes inflammation which gives rise to RLS.
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