Numbness and tingling in the arms and hands, muscle weakness, pain in the fingers and toes, and loss of balance are often symptoms of conditions or diseases such as peripheral neuropathy, Vitamin B12 deficiency, or a medical problem that is secondary to other conditions such as diabetes and vitamin deficiencies. These could also be side effects associated with certain pharmaceutical drugs.
Below is a list of diseases and conditions associated with symptoms like numbness and tingling in the arms and hands, muscle weakness, pain in the fingers and toes, and loss of balance, as well as a list of medications related to similar side effects. We are not medical professionals, and these may not be comprehensive lists. Please contact your doctor if you are experiencing any of the following symptoms or side effects, or similar health issues.
Numbness and Tingling in the Arms and Hands, Muscle Weakness, Pain in the Fingers and Toes, and Loss of Balance Are Symptoms Of:
Diabetic Neuropathy: Diabetic neuropathy is common in people with diabetes. It is nerve damage caused by high blood sugar. It can affect any part of your body, but usually affects the legs and feet. Good control of blood sugar levels can help prevent or slow the development of diabetic neuropathy.
Vitamin B12 Deficiency: Vitamin deficiencies, especially a lack of B12, can cause peripheral neuropathy, manifesting symptoms such as numbness and tingling in the arms and hands, muscle weakness, pain in the fingers and toes, and loss of balance. Vegetarians, vegans, alcoholics, and people with inadequate stomach acid, including those who take medications that reduce stomach acid, have a high risk of Vitamin B12 deficiency.
Hypothyroidism: Hypothyroidism is an underactive thyroid gland. Low thyroid causes your body to slow down in many ways including your metabolism and motor responses. It can also cause fluid to build up in your tissues, putting pressure on nerves and causing symptoms including numbness and tingling in the hands and feet, pain, and muscle weakness.
Lupus: Lupus is an autoimmune disorder. In autoimmune disorders your body’s immune system attacks your healthy cells. Lupus can cause damage throughout the body, including nerve damage resulting in pain, numbness, and tingling in the hands and feet. Other common symptoms of Lupus include fatigue, hair loss, and sensitivity to the sun. The symptoms vary greatly from person to person, depending partly on the systems of the body that are affected.
Numbness and Tingling in the Arms and Hands, Muscle Weakness, Pain in the Fingers and Toes, and Loss of Balance Are Side Effects Associated With:
Denture Cream: Poligrip, Fixodent, and other denture creams contain zinc. We need some zinc for good health, but too much zinc can cause zinc poisoning leading to neurological disorders with symptoms such as weakness in the arms and legs, loss of balance, pain in the fingers and toes, and numbness and tingling in the arms and hands.
Chemotherapy: Many chemotherapy drugs can cause peripheral neuropathy. Numbness, tingling, and pain in the hands and feet are the most common symptoms of Chemotherapy-induced Peripheral Neuropathy. Muscle weakness may also occur. Loss of balance has been associated with Taxol and Taxotere used to treat breast cancer.
Statin Drugs: Statin drugs, such as Lipitor, Lescol, Mevacor, Pravachol, Crestor, Zocor, and Livalo, are used to lower cholesterol. Statin use is skyrocketing, but statin drugs have many dangerous, and even fatal, side effects including neuropathy.
Can Adderall xr cause numbness in hands fingers feet and toes?
I am a 64 year woman. I suffer from rheumatoid arthritis a CVA five years ago and the problem is as follows:- I had a fall on my knee 4 weeks ago, the hospital x-rayed as they thought my patella was broken, fortunately it wasn’t. I am awaiting physiotherapy. I have had two more falls, both on arising from bed. When I get up from bed my feet are completely dead (or should I say the soles of my feet and ankle which causes the falls, I forget overnight about the numbess of my feet and have no control over my balance. During the day if I sit for more than 25 minutes the same thing occurs, completely numb soles and ankles, no pins and needles but my numbess goes away. When I had my CVA I had a slight balance loss to the right of my body, which was the same side as my injured knee, since then I have walked with a cane – but since this fall my balance is very bad, no control of it, since the fall the rheumatoid in my right knee I have a lot of pain. I have a bad thyroid deficiency and am on 125 mlg of thyroxine. I have never suffered with my circulation but could have cried yesterday with a temperature drop, my hands are the worst, go lilac also my feet slightly better, My whole body is very cold to people around me.
I hope you may be able to help me,
thanking you in anticipation,
Barbara Smethurst
Hello there!
I was diagnosed two years ago with lupus (I had severe pleurisia and almost died before the doctors could find out); now I have been on Plaquenil 400 mg everyday and other medication such as aspirin 80 mg. Since yesterday I am experiencing tingling and numbness in my left forearm and hand: actually, this morning it took me while before I could get of bed since my left hand was completely numb.
Any idea?
Sorry my English is so so…
Thank you so muche!
Jeanne Laperle
I have been using Fixodent for quite some time, as I have loose fitting dentures. In the past few years, I have had sharp pain in my shoulders and deep in my arms. I wonder if this could be related to the zink content in the fixodent that I have been using; I recently heard there was a recall on this product of zink poisening. ” Hope not” also, my legs get numb and I have been bothered with my legs involentary jumping, I feel like my legs should be pulled and streched to get releaf. Not to mention, I get extremely dizzy only when I first go to bed and when I get out of bed in the morning. ” I have to sit for a spell till the room stops spinning. Old age Maybe? I am 74 years old.
I’ve carefully read the above comments concerning use of Zinc based denture adhesives. I’ve used both Fixodent and Polygrip since 2001. I’M 63 yrs old and recently had a very extensive physical including blood work and there where no red flags showing large amounts of Zinc or abnormally low readings for B12 … all of this was because I had a viral infection in my stomach. Right now I’m taking a mild medication to keep my acid levels normal and I have always taken vitamin supplements such as Vitamin E, D, C, and multi Viatamins containing B12.
What do people expect their health to be like when they are past 60, part of growing old means things just begin to break down….get used to it. It’s not going to get better, memory problems are something everyone eventually suffers from the same with joint problems. Ask a pro athlete about muscle spasms and soreness all part of the game.
Ken
Sorry to hear of your problems, Ken, but don’t attribute them to age. I am no 70 and had all kinds of problems (IBS, High BP, migraines, overweight, tiredness and more) in my late 50s. At age 55 I saw a naturopathic doctor who changed my diet and lifestyle completely… diet of only veggies, fruits, nuts, and seeds… no meat, dairy, sugars, refined products… only fresh natural food. As I said I’m now 70 and have had NO problems for nearly 14 years! Also lost weight and have had no medications… not even aspirin… for the past 14 years. My husband, 71, had a heart attack 18 years ago and was told he could never get off his meds. He has not taken a single med for 13 1/2 years. Again, ALL due to changing our diet and lifestyle (adding yoga and walking… I also now do aerobics). We feel great and full of energy and have no joint pains or memory problems. Age is NOT the problem… the Standard American Diet is the problem, along with taking meds. Once you are one them it just increases as they all have side effects and you are then given more to control the side effects!
For months I have been suffering with severe pain in my shoulders, extreme sweling in my hands and the lightest of objects feel like they weigh a thousand pounds. I have to force myself to get up every day due to lack of sleep from the pain I’m enduring. So, I had my daughter bring me to the emergency room where I found out I have hypertension stage 2. Thats great. But, nobody could answer why I’m so weak and in tremendous pain. Blood test show”something” but I was just sent home with blood pressure pills and a pills for swelling. Those pills helped for a couple days now, I’m back to feeling like I’m destined for a wheelchair at the age of 47! My every muscle aches and I have to force my legs to walk. At first I thought maybe lyme disease. Doctor told me if I had it, I would be on the tail end of disease. Do you have any suggestions? I’m at wits end and tired of paying for doctors visits that leave me with no answers!
Thank you,
Kacey
I always experience on my both hands tingling ( needles & pins), numbness, pain, heaviness as if there is a problem with blood circulation in my hands. Can’t also sit for long esp. without soft pillow to sit on, find it very difficult to manually sew my clothes. I am past 60 years old.
Hi
I am 47 and had carpal-tunnel done to both of my hands. I also have tingling and numbness and swelling all over my body, but mainly in my hands. It can be annoying at times. I have been trying to diagnose it myself for awhile now and I too, don’t want to keep paying to see the doctors and not getting the answers. I would like to know what it could be or if it could be from the material I have been reading could be Diabetes?
If you could help me settle my mind would be good.
Thanks
Judy
I have had in past herniated disc in neck area.I did not have surgery,and was told i would loose the use of my limbs. Well i have started to feel numbness,bolts of electric it feels like and tingling in my hands and legs…….If in fact this is only B12 related how long befor i would be able to tell a difference.If it is from the disc problem will i ever be able to get strength in my limbs again Help Sharon
For the past month now I have been experiencing numbness in hands and feet, severe muscle cramps, electrical impulses and tingling tongue, difficulty using my hands as well as on and off extreme heaviness in my legs. I have seen two neurologists and have had nerve tests and mri’s and no one can tell me what is wrong with me. I have became very depressed over this. I feel no one believes me and they all think that I am crazy.
You dont happen to take medicin for ADD? I have had all those same symptoms at one time or another that I believe is being caused by Ritalin or adderall.
I have been having pins & needles, numbness and pain in my fingers and hands so badly that I quit my job. At first I was waking up with my right thumb numb…I thought it was because I was a side sleeper and sleep with my arms under my pillow. Then it started to spread to the other fingers on my hand, and soon after, my other hand. The pain had really become unbearable, so I went to the doctor and she diagnosed me with Carpal Tunnel Syndrome. I have an appointment on Feb. 14,2012 for and EMG test…I guess it’s a nerve test to find out if you do have CTS or not.
I have also been on Adderall since last March, and I’ve been hearing that that may be the cause of it. I’ve been taking Ritalin this month because Adderall is too hard to find. So now it’s just a wait and wonder pain game.
I had been taking adderall and was having leg cramps and some tingling in my hands I switched to Ritalin and am have worse tingling in my hands especially when I wake in the morning. I have suffered a loss of strength in my hands as well.Can really feel it all day to some extent. I have stopped taking both as of today to see if this goes away.
Tammie Meadows, Have you taken quinolone antibiotics (cipro, levaquin, avelox) at any stage in the last year or two?
An outstanding share! I have just forwarded this onto a colleague who had been conducting a little research on this. And he in fact bought me breakfast simply because I discovered it for him… lol. So let me reword this…. Thanks for the meal!! But yeah, thanks for spending time to talk about this issue here on your web site.
I have had numb arms and hands for about 4 months.I was told by the v.a. I lack b12.also I take statin for cholesterol.the question is will taking b12 in pill form and alsostop taking statins help me?
for months now I havw felt a growing weaknes in my legs and blance, I tried a cain but it did not help, I am 74, a diabetic, and overweight. I also take daily a variety of medicine including one clorestial reducer, but no vitatim B-12. I need help and thank you in advance. My steps are painful and require so much energy. I am a socail personality and this is harmful.
My body feels real heavy and I have muscle spasms really bad in my legs and feet.My whole body feels numb and tingle and a constant ache all over my body.I have memory loss. My Dr. did blood work and everything came back fine, except my red blood cells are enlarged and my esr is mildly elevated;this is a nonspecific indicator of inflammation. The Dr. said my thyroid,vitamin B12 levels. blood counts, liver and kidney function are all normal. He is going to do the blood test over. I also read that Fixodent could cause these problems, because of Zinc. I have used Fixodent for 12 yrs. for my Dentures. I have lost weight and my eye sight has got alot worse. I went to the eye Dr. and in the back of my one eye is swollen and red Dr. is sending me to a specialist. If you have any answers to the problems I am having or comments,Please get bac with me Thank You. God Bless!!