Folk remedies for numbness in fingers: how to use, advice from doctors

Numbness of the upper extremities bothers every person at least once in their life. Typically, this condition occurs during night rest, which negatively affects the duration and quality of sleep. If it appears too often and causes discomfort, you should consult a doctor. The specialist will order a test and, based on this, tell you why your hands are going numb. The doctor will also determine appropriate therapeutic measures.

Sources of Vitamin B12

This substance is found in sufficient quantities only in products of animal origin. It is especially abundant in the liver of ruminants, chickens, pigs and large fish (salmon, cod). In addition, cobalamin is present in the meat and milk of goats, cows, and sheep.

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Plants do not need this substance, so they practically do not produce it. Vitamin B12 is completely absent from grains, fruits and many vegetables. In negligible quantities (no more than 0.1 mcg per 100 g) it is found in broccoli, asparagus, mung beans, spinach and some mushrooms.

In the food industry, yeast, breakfast cereals and soy products are artificially fortified with cobalamin.

Stroke

Has much in common with the process mentioned above. Hands go numb due to disruption of tissue innervation, destruction of brain centers localized in the parietal and frontal lobes, which are responsible for motor activity and physical sensations.

Not every type of stroke is accompanied by such a manifestation; it depends on the location of the deviation. Otherwise, everything is identical, except for the irreversibility of the changes.

Synthesis in the human body

People can only get vitamin B12 externally. This is not to say that this substance is not produced in our body. But its absorption occurs in such a way that it is simply not absorbed.

Let's remember how our intestines work. In short, there are several types of intestines - duodenum, small and thick. Cobalamin is absorbed only in the lower small intestine and produced in the colon. Since it cannot be absorbed there, it is therefore completely eliminated from the body with feces.

Cobalamin enters the intestines as part of digested food. There are a number of diseases in which a large number of pathogenic bacteria are formed in the gastrointestinal tract. These microorganisms, while in the small intestine, also absorb vitamin B12, which causes its deficiency.

Another important point is that the absorption of cobalamin in the intestines requires a substance called intrinsic Castle factor. It is produced in the stomach.

Raynaud's disease

A relatively rare pathological process, which is typically characterized by narrowing of the arteries of the upper extremities.

A sharp weakening in the quality of blood flow is accompanied by a feeling of numbness, a decrease in tactility, the inability to control the hands, and the fingers become cold.

Typical signs of the disorder are a change in skin tone to whitish or blue.

As a rule, the disease does not pose a threat to health or life, but in some cases it can lead to rapid necrosis of soft tissues. Gangrene.

Therefore, therapy is required immediately, immediately after the discovery of Raynaud's disease or a cause that can cause this syndrome.

Why is there a shortage?

The factors listed above determine the causes of cobalamin deficiency in the body. This:

1. Exclusion from the diet of meat and dairy products, as well as fish. Vegetarians should take vitamin complexes that contain cobalamin.

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For prevention purposes, they should include breakfast cereals, soy products that are meat substitutes, and bread fortified with vitamin B12 into their diet.

2. Age. The older a person gets, the worse his body absorbs cobalamin. Therefore, people aged 50 years and older need to undergo regular tests showing the amount of this substance in the blood.

3. Pregnancy and breastfeeding.

4. Surgical intervention, which results in problems with the gastrointestinal tract. Quite often, patients who are obese undergo gastric bypass surgery (its volume is reduced). This also removes part of the intestine where vitamin B12 is absorbed.

5. Taking medications that interfere with the absorption of cobalamin or reduce its level in the blood. Such drugs are the antibiotic Chloramphenicol, the proton pump inhibitors Lansoprazole and Omeprazole, the drugs Cimetidine, Ranitidine, Tagamet, Zantac, taken for peptic ulcers, as well as Metformin, prescribed for diabetes. diabetes

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6. Any diseases of the small intestine of an inflammatory nature.

7. Any diseases of the stomach that reduce or block the production of internal factor Castle (malignant neoplasms, inflammatory processes in the gastrointestinal tract).

If vitamin B12 enters the body but is not absorbed, it is completely excreted in the feces.

Causes of numbness in fingers at night

At night, fingers most often go numb not due to illness, but from being in an uncomfortable position for a long time. Popularly this is called a “stuck” hand. The blood vessels are compressed under the weight of your body, and therefore the hand becomes numb. When the blood flow becomes normal again (you changed your position, rubbed your arm), the numbness goes away. When blood begins to rush to the area of ​​the arm, an itching and/or slight tingling sensation is felt that lasts from a few seconds to several minutes.

The next reason why fingers go numb at night is clothing that pinches blood vessels. Therefore, you should not wear uncomfortable and tight pajamas, underwear, etc. at night. During sleep, when throwing your arms above the level of your heart, swelling and numbness are also possible. This happens if your hands are behind your head, under your head, etc.

If your bed or pillows are uncomfortable, numbness is also likely. It is better to give preference to orthopedic bedding.

Symptoms

Only with the help of a blood test can one accurately determine whether or not there is a deficiency of cobalamin in the body. However, there are a number of signs that indicate that such a problem has arisen. This:

1. Chills. A person who has a lack of cobalamin feels cold all the time.

This is caused by a disruption in the synthesis of red blood cells, which transport oxygen and nutrients to the cells. Without them, sufficient energy is not produced. That's why a person is cold all the time.

2. Lack of attention, memory impairment, inability to concentrate on the task at hand.

3. Unreasonable mood swings, depression, anxiety.

4. Muscle tension. With a lack of cobalamin, the synthesis of red blood cells, which are responsible for transporting oxygen to the cells, is disrupted. As a result, the amount of energy produced from food decreases in a person, and muscle function is disrupted.

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5. Numbness and tingling in the limbs, ataxia (impaired coordination of movements). Vitamin B12 is involved in the production of myelin, an amino acid that is part of the protective sheath of nerve cells. This causes numbness in the arms and legs or a tingling sensation, as if thousands of needles were stabbed into the limbs.

6. Drowsiness, chronic fatigue. Even in the morning after sleep, a person feels as if he had been unloading cars with cement all night.

7. Mouth ulcers. They can heal on their own and then appear again. The ulcers are very painful. They react especially sharply to sour and hot foods.

8. Swollen tongue. This disease is called atrophic glossitis. It is characterized by redness and swelling of the tongue, causing it to become smooth (the papillae disappear). It is painful for patients to talk, eat, drink. Sometimes vitamin B12 deficiency leads to tongue cancer.

9. Heart rhythm disturbances, shortness of breath. Such symptoms occur due to a disruption in the supply of oxygen to cells.

10. Loss of appetite, digestive problems, constipation.

Diagnostics

The etiology of hand numbness is determined by a neurologist. In case of vascular pathology, consultation with a vascular surgeon is required. The specialist examines the history of the disease, assesses the condition of the limb, pulse in the arteries, identifies swelling, signs of inflammation, and other changes. A neurological examination includes the study of sensitivity, reflexes, and muscle strength. Based on the results, the following are assigned:

• Electrophysiological studies
  . ENG, EMG, evoked potentials are carried out to differentiate damage to nerves, muscles and structures of the central nervous system, to clarify the location and degree of damage to the nerve trunk.
• Radiography
  . Performed for injuries, suspected compression of nerves by bone growths, neoplasms. Visualizes fractures, dislocations, osteophytes, bone deformities.
• Vascular studies
  . Informative for scalene muscle syndrome, Takayasu's disease, thromboangiitis obliterans. To determine the localization and severity of occlusion, vascular ultrasound, angiography, and aortography can be performed.
• Other visualization techniques
  . Computed tomography and magnetic resonance imaging are performed for diseases and traumatic injuries. Prescribed in case of ambiguous results of basic studies and planning of surgical interventions.
• Lab tests
  . Recommended for confirming the infectious and dysmetabolic genesis of polyneuropathies and diagnosing Takayasu’s disease.

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Anemia

This disease is directly related to a violation of the synthesis of red blood cells, which inevitably leads to oxygen starvation of tissues. Its other names are megaloblastic anemia, malignant anemia, Addison-Biermer disease.

When vitamin B12 is deficient, the bone marrow begins to produce megaloblasts (immature precursors of red blood cells). A person's digestive system is disrupted. This is evidenced by the following signs:

• refusal of food;
• distortion of taste;
• pain in the tongue area;
• diarrhea;
• nausea, which often provokes vomiting.

The patient begins to lose weight, experiences weakness, and loss of interest in life. Also, with megaloblastic anemia, disruption of the heart, blood vessels and nervous system is observed. The patient's skin becomes pale, and the whites of the eyes acquire a yellowish tint.

Transient ischemic attack

It is a temporary, transient disorder of cerebral circulation. This is a typical pre-stroke condition and has much in common with necrosis of cerebral structures.

First of all, they are united by the clinical picture.

Among the signs:

• Headache. Expressed, strong. Pressing, shooting, localized in the occipital region or crown, radiating to other areas.
• Problems with orientation in space. A person takes a forced body position. However, this does not always help.
• Nausea, vomiting.
• Speech and articulation disorders.
• Muscular weakness.
• Numbness of fingers, hands and other structures. If blood flow in the left lobes of the brain is disrupted, the right limb loses sensitivity and vice versa.

A typical clinical picture consists of focal neurological moments. But there may be cases with a truncated symptomatic complex.

In such a situation, there are individual manifestations characteristic of a stroke or transient ischemic attack. Therapy as such is not required, except in extreme cases.

The person recovers from the condition on his own, the signs completely disappear, until next time. However, this is a wake-up call.

Treatment

For vitamin B12 deficiency, drug therapy is most often prescribed. The patient is injected intramuscularly with the drugs Cyanocobalamin or Hydroxocobalamin.

Recently, oral administration of bioactive supplements, which include cobalamin, has been practiced. When calculating the dosage, it should be remembered that about 60% (and in some cases up to 80%) of the vitamin entering the body is excreted in feces. In this regard, vegetarians are recommended to take at least 10 mcg of cobalamin per day.

A good treatment alternative is to adjust your diet. The menu should include milk, yogurt, cheeses, meat (beef, pork), liver (chicken, pork, beef), fish (trout, salmon). Vegans and vegetarians cannot adhere to this diet. Therefore, they should take dietary supplements that contain cobalamin and eat soy products.

Folk remedies

For numbness of the upper extremities, folk remedies are also used. Their use is possible only after consulting a doctor. Alternative medicine is recommended not to be used as an independent method of treatment, but to be included as part of complex therapy.

If your hands are numb, it is recommended to use an alcohol mixture. To prepare it, take 10 ml of camphor alcohol and 50 ml of ammonia. Both products are mixed and diluted with a liter of water at room temperature. A spoonful of table salt is diluted in the resulting product. The composition is used to wipe problem areas when they are numb.

Use only on the recommendation of a doctor in the absence of pathologies.

If your hands are numb, it is recommended to take baths with rosemary. To do this, pour a handful of rosemary into three liters of boiling water. The product is infused for half an hour and added to the bathroom. The procedure is carried out before a night's rest. The duration of the bath is a quarter of an hour.

Consequences of vitamin B12 deficiency

Not all of the symptoms listed above prompt people to see a doctor and get tested. As a rule, chronic fatigue, drowsiness, causeless irritability, memory loss or decreased performance do not cause alarm. Many people think that they just need to relax and change their surroundings.

However, untimely treatment for women is fraught with infertility. For children, vitamin B12 deficiency is dangerous because their mental activity may decrease. As a result, schoolchildren's academic performance falls, and young children experience developmental delays.

If a deficiency of vitamin B12 is detected in the body, it is important to establish the cause of this phenomenon and carry out a course of treatment aimed at eliminating it. Without this, there is no point in increasing the consumption of cobalamin, because it will still not be absorbed.

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Arthritis

Another typical orthopedic diagnosis. Its essence lies in the development of a pronounced inflammatory process in the upper extremities.

In classic cases, the fingers are affected. As it progresses, the large joints, elbows and shoulders, become involved. Then the lower limbs also suffer.

The disorder is not always generalized, but often, in about 15% of cases.

Without treatment, the result turns out to be the same: the development of areas of absent motor activity (ankylosis), severe deformities, disability and the inability to work and even take care of oneself at home.

Numbness in the fingers is not the first symptom. The pathological process is accompanied by a group of typical signs:

• Pain syndrome. Localized in the area of ​​affected joints. The intensity varies. From minimal to unbearable, in which it is impossible to perform even simple actions.

The unpleasant sensation intensifies after exertion, violent attempts to develop joints, or gymnastics. During the acute period, any activity is contraindicated. Is it dangerous.

• Decreased motor skills for obvious reasons. After the critical phase the symptom still persists. We are talking about indicating persistent, irreversible changes in the musculoskeletal system.
• Redness of the affected joints, an increase in their volume and an increase in local temperature. In the acute phase of the pathological process.

Possible tremor and hand trembling. Damage to the upper extremities affects more than just the fingers. Although most often the disease begins with small structures. Shoulders and elbows suffer later.

Arthritis is a multiple disorder. The most common form is rheumatoid. It is of autoimmune origin, accompanied by regular inflammation and a rapid, aggressive course.

• The gouty variety practically does not affect the hands; the toes are mainly affected, although exceptions are possible.
• The psoriatic type develops for obvious reasons, against the background of this dermatological disorder.
• Infectious and inflammatory forms can occur spontaneously, as a complication of acute respiratory viral infection or other disorders of this kind.

Arthritis is treated conservatively; advanced cases with severe anatomical defects require surgical intervention. The question remains at the discretion of the doctor.

Disease statistics

Numbness of the hands most often occurs during the shuffling of hormones in the human body. Usually - after the age of 39-45 years. Among young people, this symptom is expressed much less frequently - it is known that people aged 30 years and younger experience chronic numbness of the hands on average 13-15 times less often than people over 40 years old.

Transient numbness of the hands at night, accompanied by tingling in the fingers and pain, can be a symptom of circulatory disorders, neurological diseases, Raynaud's syndrome, stroke and other diseases.

Since the symptom may signal a life-threatening condition, emergency comprehensive diagnosis and selection of therapy is necessary.

The older you are, the higher your risk of developing these symptoms. The ratio between women and men is approximately the same.

Diabetes

It is an endocrine pathology associated with impaired insulin production to control glucose levels or a decrease in tissue sensitivity to the effects of this substance (so-called resistance).

Impaired tactility is caused by a narrowing of the blood vessels in the hands; Raynaud's disease may develop; this is a typical syndrome within the disorder.

Also, atherosclerotic permanent changes are characterized by tactile problems. With timely treatment of the underlying disease, it is possible to achieve high-quality correction of the condition. Although not always.

Diabetes is diverse in terms of manifestations. But it often lasts for years in an implicit form. The patient does not suspect that anything is wrong with him.

A thorough, comprehensive diagnosis puts an end to the issue. It is likely that it will take more than one week to identify the disorder.

Carpal tunnel syndrome

An occupational disease characteristic of people who constantly load their wrists. Office workers, musicians, typists, and others are mostly affected.

The cause of carpal tunnel syndrome (another name for the disorder) is compression of the median nerve, which passes through a special canal (it is localized at the border of the forearm and hand).

If it lasts for a long time, a person loses the ability to perform usual actions and urgent surgical treatment is required. In the early stages, it is possible to help using less radical methods. Physiotherapy and medication correction are sufficient.

The symptoms of the disorder are typical: pain and numbness of the right hand in right-handed people, loss of sensitivity in the fingers, tingling, goosebumps, decreased fine motor skills and the ability to move.

The recovery period ranges from a month to 3 or more, depending on the situation.

Forecasts

Mostly favorable with timely treatment. This applies to all the described disorders, including stroke. Not counting severe cases.

You can only say specifically if you know the diagnosis. This determines whether and when the numbness goes away. Without therapy, there is little chance of spontaneous recovery.

Tactile dysfunction occurs in many diseases of the musculoskeletal system, brain, endocrine and central nervous systems. Correction required. Otherwise, the prospects are vague.

What examinations are needed

Diagnosis is carried out by orthopedic specialists, less often by surgeons of various specialties. Approximate list of events:

• Oral questioning of the patient. To accurately understand complaints. Tactile dysfunction is a sign of a host of abnormalities. It is important to determine the accompanying manifestations in order to put forward clear hypotheses.
• Anamnesis collection. Habits, past and current illnesses, lifestyle, family history and other points.
• X-ray of the cervical and thoracic spine in several projections. Separately.
• To clarify and confirm pathologies of the musculoskeletal system, a CT and/or MRI is required, possibly in the system. Depends on the suspected disorder. Dopplerography and duplex scanning of the vessels of the brain and neck.
• Ultrasound examination of hand joints. X-ray.
• General blood test, biochemistry, hormonal tests. It is also necessary to evaluate the possibility of developing diabetes using special techniques. Here you will need the help of an endocrinologist.
• Immunological studies.

The list is approximate. In fact, it may require significant expansion. The question falls on the shoulders of leading specialists.

What to do

If blood circulation is impaired or sensitivity in the fingers is lost, the patient must independently take some measures to relieve pain.

Exercises

Experts advise performing a certain set of exercises. They need to be done daily at least twice a day:

• To perform exercise No. 1, you do not need to get out of bed. After a person wakes up, you just need to squeeze or unclench your fingers until normal blood circulation is restored and the fingers themselves become hot.
• Exercise No. 2 is performed while lying on your back. You need to raise your upper limbs and work with your fists: clench and unclench a hundred times. Then they give up and rest. We perform the next part of the task with our legs raised perpendicular to the floor. You need to make rotational movements with your feet up to 50 times with each leg. And finally, work with fists, but the hands are on the floor.
• Exercise No. 3 - standing facing the wall with your arms raised. The essence of the exercise is to stretch the spine. You need to pull it out for at least two minutes. Then comes relaxation. The task requires three approaches. After this, you need to straighten your back, clasp your hands behind you. This position is held for one minute. Then rest. You need to do 5 approaches.

These exercises are aimed at improving blood circulation. Oxygen enters the blood in the required quantity, and health improves.

Massage

When sensitivity appears, you can massage each finger and wrist.

Reducing pain with water

Contrast baths help a lot. Hot water is poured into one container and cold water into the other. You need to alternately dip your brushes in cold and hot water. To increase blood circulation after the procedure, you need to put warm mittens on your hands.