Heavy legs (French: jambes lourdes) is a medical condition, described as an 'unpleasant sensation of pain and heaviness', recognised primarily in France, and to a lesser extent elsewhere.

Due to the limited recognition it has received, and because of its proliferation in the media and by the alternative health community, many medical practitioners believe it is a sign of hypochondriasis.

The cause may be venous insufficiency^[1] or peripheral arterial disease.^[2]

Remedies may include drinking plenty of tea, essential oil massages and walking in the sea;^[3] or alternatively sleeping with the legs elevated, wearing compression products like support stockings and possibly taking water tablets.^[4] An underlying condition may be Waldenström's macroglobulinemia.^[5]

It was described by BBC reporter Emma Jane Kirby as "a curiously French complaint … the illness you can only get in health-conscious France."^[6]

[edit] References

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