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Veins are blood vessels that return deoxygenated blood from the outer parts of the body back to the heart and lungs. When veins become abnormally thick, full of twists and turns, or enlarged, they are called varicose veins. Generally, the veins in the legs and thighs have a tendency to become varicose.
Varicose veins are abnormal, dilated blood vessels caused by a weakening in the vessel wall. They may appear as swollen, twisted clusters of blue or purple veins and are sometimes surrounded by thin red capillaries known as spider veins (group of small blood vessels located close to the surface of the skin). Spider veins may also be called venous telengiectasias.
Varicose veins are swollen veins that you can see through your skin. They often look blue, bulging, and twisted. Left untreated, varicose veins may worsen over time. Large varicose veins can cause aching and feelings of fatigue as well as skin changes like rashes, redness, and sores. As many as 40 million Americans, most of them women, have varicose veins.
Varicose veins usually don't cause medical problems. On occasion, they require treatment for pain, skin problems, blood clots, or other complications. People may choose to have cosmetic treatment to improve the appearance of varicose veins.
Symptoms
&bullProminent dark blue blood vessels, especially in the legs and feet.
&bullAching, tender, heavy, or sore legs; often accompanied by swelling in the ankles or feet after standing for any length of time.
&bullBulging, ropelike, bluish veins indicate superficial varicose veins.
&bullAching and heaviness in a limb, sometimes with swelling, but without any prominent or visible blue vein, may signal a deep varicose vein.
&bullDiscolored, peeling skin; skin ulcers; and constant rather than intermittent pain are signs of severe varicose veins.
Vitamins for Varicose Veins
There are many different vitamins for varicose veins available on the market today.
Vitamin C: helps in making the veins wall strong. It is believed that if the walls are strong, they can efficiently help the varicose veins from getting worse. The strong vein walls can easily resist excess pressure without getting enlarged and ultimately allows the valves of veins to work more efficiently.
Vitamin E: There are probably no proper evidences that can show that vitamin E is affective in healing varicose veins, but still it seems that people use it for healing varicose veins. It is actually believed that vitamin E can help in preventing the highest possible complication of varicose veins, the blood clots. According to the different researches made by experts if the stickiness of platelet with vitamin E is reduced, then vitamin can be helpful in reducing the risk of blood clotting in the varicose veins.
Vitamin P is one of the most proven vitamins to help with this condition, and can be found in the skin of fruits such as grapes, berries, and apples. Vitamin B6 an essential vitamin that is required by the body to properly metabolize proteins and carbohydrates. It has also been shown by clinical research to be important in preventing plaque and lesions in blood vessels.
Vitamin K is a fat soluble vitamin that is required for proper blood clotting function, as well as for maintaining bone health. It has been used for many years to help heal bruises and scrapes, as well as for treating varicose veins.
So what are those windy purple marks on the legs, arms, chest, and even face? Many are often curious as to what causes the blood vessels of the body to weaken and lose their ability to function well over time. Is it the environment? Is it diet related? Is it related to fitness? All of these questions are important and they are all a part of the issue.
Spider veins are caused for multiple reasons and many find that they are dumbfounded as to how they have become a victim of poor vein function. Firstly, analysis of one's diet and fitness routine would mean that nine times out of ten, patients suffering from vein dysfunction are not eating a healthy diet and are not physically active on a regular basis. These two components are extremely important. Furthermore, age does play a role and over time, the body will naturally lose its ability to maintain elasticity in various areas. Many patients will find that their body is simply aging and veins will naturally become more visible with time in everyone because the skin is not as supple and vein walls are not as strong. With this in mind, there is a certain amount of vascular dysfunction that cannot be prevented with time. There are a number of reasons for this and all of them pertain to the biological makeup of the human body. Furthermore, hormone levels change with time and many patients, in particular women, undergo hormonal changes later in life which can cause veins to become more prominent. Even pregnancy can put extra pressure on the body and veins, and thus results in spider veins. This is a normal part of pregnancy and the veins may reside over time after the body adjusts when the baby is born. Being overweight and inactive is a deadly combination for the heart and veins. Extra pressure can prove to be too much for the body and veins are the first to feel that added stress.
So if you are looking to prevent spider veins, get fit, get active, eat right, and do the best that you can to maintain a healthy weight and to eat well everyday, not just when “dieting”. Diets are not the key to health and actually, eating right all the time should be a lifestyle choice, and if not, the body will repay you will poor cardiovascular health. It is that simple. Also, when sitting or standing for prolonged periods of time, the body can pool blood in certain areas and this can lead to extra stress on the veins. This extra stress can eventually weaken veins, so if your career involves standing or sitting, make a point to stretch, move around, walk and get active when you are not at work to help ward off any vein incompetency brought on by the pooling of blood. This may seem remedial but it is worth it to keep the body flowing. The key is to keep blood moving back to the heart from where it is in the body, to support proper heart function. If blood begins to pool or move backward, this is a sign that something is not right. People that are aware of their venous health are less likely to have problems because they know how important circulation is. And they also know how unsightly and painful vein dysfunction can be.