I happened to be drinking chamomile tea during an episode of restless legs – which I get night and day – when the symptoms eased. I thought it was a fluke, but another time I had a cup before bed, and I had no symptoms. I’ll be drinking this the next time restless legs syndrome threatens.
Wendy Coleman, Kent.
Dr Martin Scurr replies: Restless legs syndrome (RLS) – the unpleasant urge to move the legs, usually at night – is a common movement disorder which can be profoundly distressing.
The exact cause is unclear, but in some people it may be linked to a lack of iron in the brain. I’ve found that if a blood test shows an RLS patient’s iron levels are low, then iron supplements can reduce their symptoms.
Similarly low levels of magnesium have been linked with RLS. Magnesium supplements or a magnesium-rich herbal tea (such as nettle) may also help.
For severe cases, a group of drugs, called alpha-2-delta ligands, such as gabapentin and pregabalin, may offer relief; the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (Nice) also includes codeine in its list of recommended RLS treatments.
However, medication does carry the risk of side-effects (including dependency). It’s also worth pointing out that some prescription medication – antihistamines and some antidepressants – may worsen RLS.
As to chamomile tea, I have searched the scientific literature and I’m unable to find any proof it helps with RLS.
The exact cause of restless legs is unclear, though in some people it may be linked to a lack of iron in the brain
That said, chamomile is known for its calming effects and if it works for you then I suggest you continue with it – it’s unlikely to do you any harm.
My general advice for those with intermittent symptoms is to restrict alcohol and caffeine intake, and have a well-chosen herbal tea such as your chamomile in the evening. In my house we buy dried chamomile flowers which make a tea I think superior to herbal tea bags.
I feel light-headed and faint most days. Last March it was picked up on an electrocardiogram (ECG) that I’d had a heart attack. I am on medication such as losartan for high blood pressure, and I’m due to have a CT scan. Should I be worried? I feel really weird most days.
Michele Southam, Somerset.
Dr Martin Scurr replies: To hear that you have had a silent heart attack must have been concerning.
I imagine the scan you are due to have is a CT angiogram – where a dye is injected into a vein in your arm to help show up the blood flow in and around your heart in detail, and identify any obstructions in your coronary arteries. In which case this would probably involve inserting a stent to prop the artery open.
I don’t think your feeling faint is related to this – I suspect the cause is bouts of hypotension, i.e. low blood pressure, caused by your treatments with losartan, as sometimes it may briefly send blood pressure too low.
It could be that your blood pressure is normal when checked; however, it would be useful to try ambulatory blood pressure monitoring.
This involves wearing a blood pressure monitor for 24 hours, which takes readings every 30 minutes. Then when you experience the symptoms you describe you can press a button on the device that marks that point on the blood pressure recording.
This can be provided by your GP or cardiac team in hospital whose care you are under.
If your blood pressure turns out to be in the normal range during the moments of faintness, then a 24-hour ambulatory ECG recording could be tried as the other possibility is that the lightheadedness is due to a brief abnormal heart rhythm.
Here, again, the monitor allows you to mark the time of abnormal sensations so your heart rhythm at the time can be noted. I hope your fears are allayed soon.
In my view… This polypill for all over-50s is a good idea
The suggestion last week that a daily ‘poly’ pill – made with aspirin (to lower blood pressure) and a statin (to lower cholesterol) – should be given to everybody over 50 without diagnostic checks is not as crazy as it seems.
Not only would it save vast amounts of money and medical time, but the risk of having a heart attack or stroke will be lowered by one-third across the population – because those at risk of these conditions will get the benefits of these pills in time to make a difference.
There will be some who experience side-effects – even gastric bleeding – and there will be some who decline to take the daily pill. But the risk-versus-benefit outcomes have been well-established.
The concept is strongly supported by the evidence from large trials and an analysis of the research, including one in The Lancet in 2021 which showed a 30 per cent reduction in cardiovascular events.
Personally, I don’t accept the argument that we would be medicalising a whole population – given NHS pressures, the rising levels of obesity and diabetes.
I think the question is, can we afford not to take this step?
