Restless Legs Syndrome May Be in Your Head

Restless legs syndrome (RLS), a debilitating condition in which unpleasant feelings in the legs interfere with a person's ability to sleep or remain immobile, may be linked to mental health problems, including depression and anxiety, according to a recent poll by the National Sleep Foundation. Research suggests that RLS affects about 10% of adults in North America and Europe with rates increasing with age.

"There is a strong association between mental health problems and RLS," said study author Barbara A. Phillips, MD, FCCP, chairman of the National Sleep Foundation. "But it's unclear exactly what the relationship is."

While it seems obvious that any medical condition that adversely affects quality of life would cause depression for many, if not most, people, Dr. Phillips says the picture is more complicated than simply RLS equals depression.

WHAT WE KNOW: SHARED RISK FACTORS

What we do know, she said, is that persons with RLS and persons with depression both tend to share certain behavioral risk factors. What are these?

One is smoking, two is being overweight and three is living a sedentary lifestyle. Sound familiar? This is the same unholy trinity of negative behaviors that affects just about all aspects of our physical and mental health.

WRESTLING RLS

In RLS, lifestyle modifications such as stopping smoking, losing weight and exercising regularly have the potential to prevent or drastically reduce the number and/or severity of RLS episodes. However, don't blame it all on lifestyle. Lifestyle modification doesn't always prevent or reduce RLS, she explained, because the predisposition for RLS is genetically determined.

One major challenge in treating those who suffer from both depression and RLS is that antidepressive medications are known to trigger or exacerbate RLS episodes. "This can be a very difficult situation," said Dr. Phillips, "because you wouldn't want to stop medication if the depression is being effectively treated." For more on natural treatment options for depression, see Daily Health News, November 29, 2005.

Other medications that trigger or worsen RLS are antinausea drugs and any medication containing caffeine. Caffeine itself, in coffee or soft drinks, is an extremely potent RLS trigger. In fact, Dr. Phillips reported that her greatest success in treating RLS without medication has been when patients have eliminated caffeine from their diets.

More research is needed to better understand the connection between RLS and depression -- they are clearly associated, though no direct causal link has been established. Who knows which comes first -- whether RLS leads to depression or depression leads to RLS. What we can take away from this is that, at the very least, there's yet another good reason to stop smoking, lose weight and get moving! These steps help on all fronts.

For more information on diagnosis and treatment of RLS, see the sleep library at the National Sleep Foundation's Web site, www.sleepfoundation.org .

Be well, Carole Jackson, Bottom Line's Daily Health News, June 2, 2006

Sources:

The Chemo-Vitamin Debate:- Timothy Birdsall, ND, vice president, integrative medicine, Cancer Treatment Centers of America. A graduate of Bastyr University, he served on the faculty of Bastyr for five years and was a member of the board of directors for the American Association of Naturopathic Physicians. He was the founding editor-in-chief of Alternative Medicine Review. Cancer Treatment Centers of America can be reached at 800-615-3055 or www.cancercenter.com.

Restless Legs Syndrome May Be in Your Head

Barbara A. Phillips, MD, FCCP, chairman, National Sleep Foundation, and professor of pulmonary and critical care medicine, University of Kentucky College of Medicine, Lexington.