restless leg

If you are someone who has unusual feelings coming from your legs, you may be wondering what the cause could be. Well, it may be a condition called restless leg syndrome. Most people do not know a great deal about this aggravating condition of the legs. They may be asking the question, What causes restless leg syndrome?. There are many causes why this condition shows up in a person’s legs. A person’s legs usually feel most uncomfortable when a person is trying to lie still for awhile. Some people have a difficult time getting good sleep when they have restless leg syndrome.

Obesity Cause

Obesity seems to be one cause of restless leg syndrome. What causes restless leg syndrome in an obese person is the fact that their weight is too much for their legs to carry. Another reason this condition is common in those who are obese is that their circulation may not be as good as it should be in their legs. The weight that bears down on an obese person’s legs can cause nerve damage to the person and this nerve damage can affect whether they get restless leg or not. Carrying around this excessive weight seems to be what causes restless leg syndrome.


restless leg syndromeBoth caffeine and nicotine are considered excitants to a person’s body and legs. Caffeine could be another cause for the restless leg syndrome in your legs. The caffeine that you are drinking and eating in your food can make your whole body nervous. This excitant agent tends to send out signals to a person’s brain and then the brain sends out signals to a person’s legs to cause the legs to be become fidgety and painful. Nicotine seems to also have an affect on restless leg syndrome. As an excitant, nicotine has been known to aggravate this condition and it may make a person’s  fidgeting worse.

Dopamine and Iron

What causes restless leg syndrome is sometimes debatable. It has been found that this upsetting condition may be caused by iron deficiency of the brain. Sometimes disease can block how much iron the brain absorbs. When there is enough absorption of iron in the brain, the brain can make the right amount of Dopamine that controls movement from the brain to the legs. If Dopamine is decreased by disease, the brain may send the wrong messages to the legs. Diseases

that can make this happen are Parkinson’s disease and diabetes, amongst others. Iron deficiency during pregnancy could also decrease  a person’s Dopamine.

Interference of Medications

Taking certain medications may be what causes restless leg syndrome. The chemicals in these medications can  trigger a reaction in your legs. You could feel twinges and pain in your legs that do not seem to go away. Some of these medications are antidepressants, anti psychotics, and anti nausea drugs.  If you develop restless leg after taking medication of any kind ,you may want to ask your physician to determine whether you should discontinue them. The good news is that once you quit your medication, your restless leg syndrome may calm down.