You might experience numbness in your legs when you sit in one position for too long. However, the numb feeling in your legs can result from multiple factors. So if you’ve had a tingling sensation in your leg or if your leg has been falling asleep, carry on reading this blog to learn the causes.
What Causes Numbness in the Legs?
You might feel one leg numbness due to your posture or an injury. Nevertheless, underlying medical conditions also have leg numbness as a symptom. This is especially true if you’ve been experiencing a numbing sensation in your leg for a while.
The causes of leg numbness include:
1. Your Posture
Usually, the posture you’re sitting in is responsible for the numb feeling in your leg. This is because adopting a poor posture can reduce blood flow in your lower limbs. As a result, you might experience temporary numbness in your legs and feet. You might have heard people say that their legs have fallen asleep. Medically known as transient paresthesia, the following habits can lead to this condition:
- Crossed leg for a long time
- Kneeling or sitting for too long
- Sitting on your feet
- Wearing clothing items and accessories that are too tight, like pants, socks, or shoes.
2. You Had an Injury
Your feet and legs could go numb if you had an injury. This includes injury to the torso, hips, spine, legs, ankles, and feet. If you injured yourself, seek immediate medical attention to avoid complications.
3. Diabetes
If you have diabetes, the risk of numb legs increases. Diabetic neuropathy is a medical condition where nerve damage occurs, and it can cause discomfort in the legs. Therefore, symptoms like tingling, numbness, and pain in the feet might occur. Severe diabetic neuropathy might cause pain and other symptoms in the legs as well.
Managing your blood sugar is essential for people with diabetes; otherwise, serious complications arise. Thus, you should visit a reputable clinic for a treatment plan.
4. Tarsal Tunnel Syndrome
You might have tarsal tunnel syndrome if the nerve running down the back of your leg is compressed, squeezed, or damaged. The nerve runs down to the inside of your ankle and foot, and the narrow space inside of the ankle is known as the tarsal tunnel. If you have this condition, you’ll experience the following symptoms in your ankles, heels, and feet:
- Numbness
- Tingling
- Burning
- Shooting pain
- A healthcare specialist can diagnose the condition and offer adequate treatment based on your condition.
5. Alcohol Use
Excessive alcohol consumption can lead to multiple harmful consequences, one of them being numbness in the legs. This is because chronic or excessive alcohol use might lead to nerve damage, resulting in numbness. The toxins in alcohol are also not good for your health. Moreover, alcohol use might cause nerve damage that is associated with lower levels of B vitamins.
What’s the Takeaway?
The numbness in your legs might be due to your posture, an injury, diabetes, tarsal tunnel syndrome, or alcohol use. Our Aqeeq Internal Medicine team can help with many acute and chronic conditions. Visit us at 16125 Cairnway Dr. Ste 114 Houston, TX 77084, for a diagnosis, treatment, or even consultation. You can also talk to us at (832) 786-8195.