I have recently discovered that when eating food with flavour enhacer 635 I have unberable bouts of RLS that night, much worse than usual. I have suffered fron RSL for over 30 years.  I now stay clear of all food with the 600 range of flavour enhancers and my RLS has subsidded considerably. Previously I blamed the flare ups on alcohol, but I gave up drinking completely and it helped. But the flare ups continued but since giving up food with the adetive I do not get the flare ups. I now have mild RLS and some nights not at all.

I started writing this at 4:15 a.m. this morning - not because I like to get up hours before most normal people, but because my legs are suffering from RLS jolts every few seconds.

I've tried Magnesium pills, which may have helped temporarily (though I now believe that was more mental than actually helpful). And I've tried exercise, which in some cases has actually made it worse - such as after a very hard workout.

I've tried Sinemet and Requip, with much better results from Requip. However, I'm now at the point where even Requip is failing me and I'm experiencing symptoms in the early mornings.

Symptoms throughout the day are much more severe now as well. My legs are starting to jerk uncontrollably while working on my computer, or in an office meeting (very embarrassing).

I have learned to keep my legs still when it's a burning/ticking sensation (the commonly reported "creep-crawly" feeling). But when my leg suddenly jerks forward with no warning, there's nothing I can do.

When my doctor first suspected that I was suffering from RLS about 4 years ago, he suggested I try a small dose of Sinemet to see if it masked my symptoms. The results were immediate and staggering - my symptoms were completely gone, and side affects were only some minor motor control impacts that I quickly adjusted to. But after two years of Sinemet, augmentation forced me to switch to Requip (experiencing symptoms earlier and earlier in the morning).

I started out with 0.5 mg of Requip three times a day and it was once again like a miracle drug. Now, another two years later, I'm up to 6 mg a day (yes, SIX - that's what someone with mid-level Parkinson's would be taking!) and augmentation is hitting hard.

This morning on the way to work at 7:30 a.m. I was hit with RLS "jolts" every 5 to 10 seconds. I was stuck in rush-hour traffic so I just had to endure it and tried to keep my foot light on the gas pedal. The jolts were a combination of a tickling/burning sensation and mild cramps... yes, very uncomfortable.

A friend of mine said he knew an acupuncturist who claimed she has had very good results with RLS patients. I'm almost willing to try anything at this point, but I don't see how acupunture could help at all with this.