The bane of many runners is exercise-associated muscle cramps: a sudden seizing of the muscle. You gasp in pain, unable to walk another step, much less run another mile. The extreme tightness in the muscle, whether it’s in your foot, calf or hamstring, screams “Stop!”
As an endurance athlete, Rod MacKinnon, M.D., was well aware of muscle cramping, but one day it put his life in danger. Kayaking in the choppy waters off Cape Cod, Massachusetts, he was rendered helpless by muscle cramps and at risk of capsizing.
MacKinnon managed to pull through, but it got him thinking: Why do we have muscle cramps? What causes it? How can we avoid it?
For MacKinnon, a Nobel Prize-winning neuroscientist, these were not idle questions. He spent the next four years investigating the answers—and in the process uncovered a major breakthrough in our understanding of how muscle cramps can be tamed.
It’s the Nerve, NOT the Muscle
Conventional wisdom holds that muscle cramps occur because of a problem with the muscle. But MacKinnon deduced that muscle cramps stem from an issue with the nerve. This conclusion was rooted in his research on the structure of ion channels, work that earned him the Nobel Prize in 2003.
Ions carry information through the nervous system via stop-and-go switches. Nerve cells are called into action by the opening and closing of ion channels that in turn trigger the muscles.
Under normal circumstances, motor neurons control muscle contractions without incident. But when the motor neurons in the spinal cord are overexcited and fire excessively, the nerves are destabilized and painful muscle cramps can occur.
In other words, muscles do not operate on their own. No matter what conditions impact the muscle in the first place—heat, fatigue, dehydration, electrolyte loss, reduced blood flow—the muscle cramping is caused by the excessive firing of motor neurons in the spinal cord. The muscle bunches up and is unable to relax. The result? Loss of motor control and pain.
Typical methods of treating a muscle cramp include stretching, being well hydrated, and taking in adequate potassium, sodium, and electrolytes. But these address the muscle, not the nerve. They do not remedy the rapid and uncontrolled firing of motor neurons in the spinal cord that is the cause of muscle cramps. That is why none of these methods have proven to be clinically effective in preventing muscle cramps.
Using Fire to Fight Fire
MacKinnon knew marathoners drink mustard diluted in water to relieve muscle cramps.
Bicyclists drink pickle juice.
His aha! moment came when he realized these beverages have a stimulating effect on the sensory nerves in the mouth, throat, esophagus, and stomach. He reasoned that this cascade trigger a response from the nervous system to calm overexcited nerves in muscles.
In other words, we can leverage the nervous system to remedy the problem with none other than natural ingredients.
In 2016, Flex Pharma will introduce the first scientifically proven formula to treat and prevent muscle cramps by harnessing these discoveries. Using more effective ingredients than mustard or pickle juice, MacKinnon has invented a carefully calibrated formulation containing natural ingredients with a spicy kick you can feel it working.
This shot-size drink holds the promise of preventing painful muscle cramps for millions of athletes, no matter their training regimen or skill level. Understanding neuromuscular performance—how the muscles and nerves communicate in perfect sync—paves the way for research on how to best enhance recovery and manage joint pain.
Be one of the first to try it. Learn more at itsthenerve.com.