When I worked down the pit, we had saline orange juice as we came through into the baths. A few of the older men who had stopped working where it was so hot to lighter duties elsewhere (and therefore not needing the drink) used to complain of cramps in the night that went away if they went back to having the drink. I remember the arguments when the GP advising the colliery medical centre told them not to allow these men the drink as their salt levels would be too high if they aren't sweating it off.

A couple of years later, medical opinion was to not give it to us either but carried it on without the salt to encourage plenty of liquid intake.

That may be placebo, may be something in it. Scanning up the thread, Frog Prince asked if placebo can work when you know it to be placebo. Medical trials seem to dictate that it does. In fact, vetinary trials as well as early trials on destined to be human medicines carried out on animals have a similar 20% placebo success. Spooky.

One old wives tale my sister told me when I complained of such cramps was not to drink so much coffee. Dunno where she got it from.