Restless Legs Syndrome (RLS) Discussion Board

I have RLS but have also suffered from leg, foot, toe, and abdominal cramps almost daily and nightly for several years. I've been a coffee drinker with Splenda for decades - at least 2 cups per day. A few weeks ago, I started having morning stomach aches (not cramps), and thought perhaps the coffee was irritating the lining of my stomach, so I quit. Cold turkey. Within just a few days of quitting the coffee (and Splenda), my muscle cramps miraculously disappeared. I cannot believe it. Three weeks ago, if someone told me to stop drinking coffee or eliminate artificial sweetener, I would have told them that was ridiculous. Just sharing. I am amazed. Can't think of any other changes in my diet or daily habits that might have relieved the cramps.

My RLS symptoms always significantly within 24 hours once I completely stop caffeine.

Unfortunately, even relatively small amounts of caffeine like 1/2 cup of coffee can massively worsen my RLS within 2 hours after consumption.

I am not surprised you are making this experience. There are lots and lots of substances that can worsen RLS. However as far as I can tell, only pharmalogic active substance can worsen RLS in my experience. So I am pretty sure it doesn't have anything to do with artificial sweeteners.

Thanks, I appreciate your comments.

Did your WED/RLS improve when you stopped the coffee? Or just the cramps?

I was at one point 100% certain that coffee was worsening my WED/RLS symptoms, so I quit for about 2 years. I've been off and on since then. Sometimes I can drink it without apparent effect. But if I drink it too many days in a row, I start to feel my legs being abnormal in the mornings, and I know I have to cut it out again for a while.

badnights wrote:Did your WED/RLS improve when you stopped the coffee? Or just the cramps?

I was at one point 100% certain that coffee was worsening my WED/RLS symptoms, so I quit for about 2 years. I've been off and on since then. Sometimes I can drink it without apparent effect. But if I drink it too many days in a row, I start to feel my legs being abnormal in the mornings, and I know I have to cut it out again for a while.

Ye, the overall symptoms can improve quite a bit and I can reduce opioid intake by about 1/4 when I don't drink caffeine on a regular basis.

For the most part, I kind of do the same things you do. I am aware that I should not consume any caffeine whatsoever but I just can't help myself. Unfortunately my legs don't only feel "abnormal" in the morning but I have way more pain symptoms during the day than without using. And pain medication is also not as effective when using caffeine.