Pickle relish will do in a pinch against leg cramps

Q. I appreciate the suggestion to use pickle juice for leg cramps. I don’t usually keep pickles around, but I always have dill relish in the fridge. When I feel a cramp coming on, I just take 2 tablespoons of relish and it goes away in seconds.

A. Pickle relish should work just as well as pickle juice for stopping a nighttime muscle cramp. Presumably, the sharp taste of the vinegar is largely responsible for triggering TRP (transient receptor potential) channels in nerves to reverse the muscle contraction.

Q. I was in the hospital for three weeks after major surgery for colon cancer. Needless to say, it was very painful to cough.

I had my husband bring Vicks VapoRub from home and asked the nurses to put it on the soles of my feet as a cough suppressant. They witnessed firsthand how well it worked and said they couldn’t wait to try it on their kids.

A. Smearing Vicks VapoRub on the soles of the feet strikes many people as an improbable cough remedy. We have seen it work, however.

Menthol, which is one of the ingredients in Vicks, is found in most cough lozenges. It inhibits coughing by stimulating specialized nerve endings found in the skin as well as the mouth and throat (Current Pharmaceutical Design, Vol. 22, No. 15, 2016). This may explain how Vicks VapoRub on the soles of the feet calms a cough.

Q. I am in my early 60s and have heart disease. My first heart attack was 10 years ago, and I have two stents. My doctor says I must stay on a statin despite unbearable muscle pain.

I have tried Coenzyme Q10, but that doesn’t seem to solve the problem. Is there anything else I can take that will help ease this pain?

A. Possibly. Muscle pain associated with statins can be hard to manage, especially in a situation like yours, where stopping the statin is not an option.

An international group of researchers has suggested that a curcumin supplement could help ease this pain (Journal of Cachexia, Sarcopenia and Muscle, February 2017). This component of turmeric, the yellow spice in curry, has anti-inflammatory properties. It has been tested for preventing muscle soreness and atrophy.

You would not be able to use curcumin, however, if you are taking an anticoagulant to keep your stents clear. Both turmeric and curcumin appear to increase the risk of bleeding when combined with such drugs.

Q. Chigger bites make me miserable. The most effective prevention I have found is a layer of baby oil around my ankles, behind my knees and around my waist and neck. Then I put sulfur powder in a sock and dust myself with it around my pants legs, socks and boots.

I also keep a towel in the garage, take my clothes off when I come in from outside and vigorously rub down with the towel before taking a soapy shower. And lastly, I apply sulfur granules to my lawn each year.

It does take some effort, but it’s worth it.

A. Thanks for the tips. Sulfur powder is a long-standing remedy to keep chiggers off the skin.

2017 King Features Syndicate, Inc.