Spider veins are the lesser form of varicose veins, but they can be nearly as devastating to the appearance. Women who suffer from spider veins are more likely to hide their legs behind long skirts or stockings in order to avoid the embarrassment of showing off their marked veins. This problem is preventable, though.
Spider veins tend to appear mainly on the legs, although technically, they could occur on any part of the body. They look like a fine web of dark red, purple or even blue lines under the skin and are not as pronounced as varicose veins. However, they still can cause considerable discomfort. Some women complain that they are extremely painful.
Keeping up great circulation in your legs is the first step to being able to prevent spider veins. You can do this by not using tight clothing on your legs, which might cut off the circulation and encouraging blood flow to the legs. This might be in the form of a daily leg massage or exercise. Simply walking or jogging a little each day reduces your risk of developing these unsightly veins.
Your mother may have told you that crossing your legs would cause varicose veins. She was right. Cutting off the circulation to your lower leg and foot is the perfect way to create a varicose vein problem, since both spider and varicose veins are caused by lack of blood flow. Increasing the blood flow to the areas most at risk will help prevent problems later on. This is good advice to follow even if you are very young, as it can prevent spider veins once you get older.
Maintaining your weight at a healthy level is also very important since extra weight puts extra pressure on your legs and may result in spider veins. This is particularly true during pregnancy when you would gain anyway. Keeping the weight gain to the recommended amount during pregnancy ensures that you are spider vein free after the baby is born.
Avoiding salt in your diet can keep swelling and hypertension to a minimum as well. These conditions often go hand in hand with spider veins and varicose veins. Adding more Vitamin C and E is also a great natural way to reduce swelling in the legs and may work to prevent vein disorders.
If you do end up with spider veins, despite all your attempts to keep your circulation high and eat well, there are still alternatives. Surgery is the most invasive, where the veins are actually removed. This is usually reserved for problem veins that don’t respond to other treatments.
Another treatment is to inject the offending veins with a special liquid that causes the veins to scar up and close. This forces the blood to be redirected and leaves the area clear. The procedure is painless, but may need to be repeated several times. Also, laser surgery may prove effective and is the least invasive of all treatments for spider veins.
If you wish to prevent or treat spider veins, try the tips above before heading to your doctor. While the preventions given are usually quite effective, it really depends on you and your lifestyle as well as your genetic makeup.
Related posts: