Insparenting

Before knowing hot to take care of your legs, lets first find out what are those, Varicose Veins and Spider Veins and why do these appear mostly in the legs, also, what does it have to do with pregnancy?

Varicose Veins are gnarled, enlarged veins which can be flesh colored, dark purple or blue, and spider veins are similar to varicose veins, but they are milder.

And now about the legs. Why legs? Because the force of gravity and the pressure of your body weight increase the pressure in the veins in your lower body. Not only that, the task of carrying blood from the bottom of the body up to the heart can also be the cause.

How are these related to pregnancy? The amount of blood in your body increases when you’re pregnant. This adds to the burden on your veins. The increase of your progesterone levels during pregnancy also causes the walls of your blood vessels to relax.

So, what you can do about it?

• Get yourself low-heeled shoes. They can help strengthen your calf muscles and improve circulation.
• Encourage the blood circulation in your legs by keeping your legs elevated when you sit or lie down, at least at the same level or even higher than your heart; exercising regularly; avoiding standing or sitting for a long period; not crossing your legs when sitting
• Watch your weight to reduce the burden on your legs’ veins.
• Take good care of your legs by keeping them clean and you can soak your feet in warm water.

This entry was posted on Friday, May 11th, 2007 at 6:10 am and is filed under Pregnancy and Childbirth. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.