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4 Everyday Things You Can Do To Get Rid of Varicose Veins

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Human

April 13th, 2020· 5 min read

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Have you ever noticed a visible blue or purple line appear on your leg or calf? If you have, then you may have varicose veins.

Generally, mild varicose veins do not give you constant pain. However, they can be aesthetically unpleasant to see. If you wish to get rid of varicose veins, this article is for you!

What are varicose veins?

Varicose veins are twisted and enlarged veins. This condition mostly occurs around your leg area because standing and walking increase the pressure around your legs area. Varicose veins usually look blue or dark purple and often look lumpy. Some people want to get rid of their varicose veins for aesthetic reasons, but there are some cases where varicose veins cause pain.

That being said, anyone can suffer from varicose veins. These are some of the common cause of varicose veins: [1]

Ageing process: as you age, the valves prevent the blood flow from flowing up to your heart. These valves do not work as well as when you were younger in regulating your blood flow.

Sex: women have more tendency to develop varicose veins, and there are a lot of factors that contribute to it, such as:

  • Hormone treatments
  • Hormonal changes

Pregnancy: women produce more blood during pregnancy to support the growing fetus. This causes their veins to enlarge.

Family history
Obesity

Standing or sitting for too long

4 things you can do to get rid of varicose veins

Watch your diet

Food plays a vital role in battling varicose veins because certain foods can improve your blood flow, such as [2]

  • Green tea: green tea is full of antioxidants that can widen the blood vessels in your body, allowing your blood to flow up to your heart quickly.
  • Fruits: fruits like oranges, for example, are high in vitamin c. Vitamin c is a natural blood thinner and strengthens your capillary walls.
  • Nuts: nuts like walnuts and almonds are high in vitamins, magnesium, and iron. These nutrients help improve circulation.
  • Dark chocolate: dark chocolate is made of cocoa fruit that can improve blood circulation.
  • Cayenne: cayenne pepper contains capsaicin, a compound that can stimulate blood flow. [3]

Exercise

Exercising helps push your blood up to your heart. Aside from that, exercising also helps you manage your weight and prevent your veins from becoming twisted. Walking is one of the most helpful exercises to improve your body’s workflow because it also prevents new varicose veins from developing. [4]

Wear compression stockings

If you have mild varicose veins, you can try using pantyhose, knee-high socks, or knee socks during the day to relieve aching or swelling.

Mild varicose veins do not need treatment if there are no symptoms that come with it. If the symptoms of your varicose veins are more serious, you can be prescribed compression stockings from your doctor. [5]

Put your feet up

Putting your feet up above your heart level helps relieve the symptoms of varicose veins as it moves your blood that is accumulated at the lower part of your legs to climb back up. Aside from that, putting your feet up also improves your blood circulation. [6]

Conclusion

The 4 points that I have explained above play a significant role in helping you achieve your beautiful legs back. Make sure that you implement a balanced diet alongside exercising.

Do note that you still need to consult your doctor if the symptoms of your varicose veins are more serious.


Dr Cheng Shin Chuen is a General Surgeon with a sub-speciality in Vascular and Endovascular procedures. He is the clinical director at Cheng SC Vein & Endovascular Clinic.

Dr Cheng graduated from the University of New South Wales and then completed his training in General Surgery in Singapore. Following that, he did his Endovascular fellowship at Price of Wales Hospital, Sydney as a Senior Clinical Fellow in 2007.


I hope that you've found this guide useful, and perhaps gained more insight into the application process. Most of the admissions-related information (admin and logistics wise) can be found on the official NUS Faculty of Dentistry website.

To help yourself out, you should take note of what people look for when they look for a dentist.

This article was written by Human and published on Wednesday, 25 January 2017. Human medically reviewed the article on Wednesday, 25 January 2017. The last update was made on Friday, 18 September 2020.

Disclaimer: Opinions belong to the author and not to the platform.

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