Varicose veins — those twisted ropes of blue and purple veins — aren’t a natural consequence of aging. According to the American Heart Association, almost a quarter of women and men in the United States have varicose veins. Many more have other types of broken blood vessels, such as the engorged capillaries known as spider veins.
If you have varicose veins, over time you may become one of the 2 million women and men who develop a condition known as venous insufficiency, a condition in which your legs don’t receive enough oxygen and blood. Venous insufficiency can lead to nonhealing ulcers, pain, and other complications.
At Texas Heart and Vein Multispecialty Group, expert surgeon Jon-Cecil Walkes, MD, encourages you to do all you can to avoid varicose veins. Or, if you have them already, he advises a consultation and treatment plan from one of our Houston, Texas-area offices.
What are the five factors that put you at greater risk for varicose veins, and what can you do about them? Find out here.
An object at rest tends to stay at rest, and that goes for bodies, too. If you spend all day sitting, lounging, or otherwise in stasis, your circulation also slows down.
Without robust circulation and movement, your muscles and even blood vessels lose their contractility, elasticity, and strength. Over time, the valves in your blood vessels don’t have the needed force and energy to push the blood up from your feet and back to your heart.
Instead, the blood pools behind the valve, engorging that portion of the blood vessel. The vein then becomes enlarged enough to poke up your skin and become a varicose vein.
Ironically, just as sitting all day long can damage your blood vessels, so can being on your feet all day. The missing component in both all-day sitting and all-day standing is periodic movement, activity, and exercise.
Remedy: Add more activity, motion, and exercise to your day. If you must sit for work, stand, stretch, and (if you can) take a stroll for a few minutes every half hour. If you must stand all day, take sitting and walking breaks, too.
You already know that smoking is terrible for your lungs and heart and increases your risk of cancer. It’s also terrible for the health of your blood vessels, including your veins.
Smoking dehydrates your tissues, leaving them thin and stiff. That’s why smokers have more wrinkles on their faces. Their veins are similarly degraded.
Remedy: Ask for a referral to a smoking cessation program so you can restore your health and reduce your risk of varicose veins.
The more pressure you put on your legs, the harder your valves have to work to force blood back up to your heart. That’s why you’re more likely to have varicose veins if you’re overweight or obese.
Unfortunately, even a temporary and wanted weight gain, such as pregnancy, increases your risk for varicose veins. Be sure to exercise regularly, even in the third trimester, to keep your veins healthy.
Remedy: Ask to be referred to a medically supervised weight-loss program if you’re obese or overweight. If you’re pregnant, continue to exercise and follow doctor’s orders so you can have a healthy birth. Enjoy daily strolls, take up a sport, or join the gym to stay active.
Unfortunately, genetics are involved in varicose vein development, too. If your biological mother had varicose veins, you’re more likely to develop them.
Remedy: Control all of the lifestyle factors you can to keep your veins as healthy as possible.
In addition to weight gain, pregnancy comes with an added risk factor: changes in hormone levels. These can affect you during menopause, too, or if you take birth control pills.
Medical conditions, such as diabetes, also raise your risk for varicose veins. High blood-glucose levels damage veins and stiffen them, raising your risk for valve problems.
Remedy: Look into hormone replacement therapy (HRT) or other methods of managing hormonal fluctuations. Be sure you’re under treatment for diabetes or other medical conditions, if appropriate.
If you’re bothered by varicose veins or leg pain, call us at our office nearest you or schedule an appointment online for a consultation and treatment today. We have two Houston offices and another in Kingwood that service Greater Heights, Pearland Market, League City, Lake Jackson, Manvel, Rosharen, Alvin, Fresno, Missouri City, Arcola, Friendswood, South Houston, Kingwood Market, Humble, New Chaney, Atasciacita, and Northeast Houston, Texas.
