Varicose Veins
Very Close Veins in the Calf
Varicose veins are veins close to the surface that have become enlarged, usually in the calves. They appear like cords under the skin and typically start out skin colour and sometimes turn blue. Spider veins are the same thing but smaller. Varicose veins may eventually cause pain from the swelling.
Weak Walls
Varicose veins are due to weakening walls of veins. As the wall weakens and stretches out, the one-way valves in the veins don’t work as well as before, causing extra blood to stay in the calf. To pull blood from your feet, your heart has to work against gravity and pull it up a long way. Your veins have one-way valves that help ratchet blood up with each heartbeat. This keeps blood from pooling in your feet.
About ⅓ of women get them and fewer men. Usually, they occur later in life, but often, they first happen during pregnancy, when the heart has extra blood to pump.
You’ve Got to Move It
To minimize the risk, avoid prolonged sitting or standing - stay active. Prop your feet up for 10 minutes every 4 hours. This helps clear blood that pools in your calves. Exercise can help, as strong leg muscles help push blood back up to the heart. Walking is great for your legs and your leg veins.
Compress Those Calves
It might also help to wear compression socks. It doesn’t cure varicose veins, but it helps ease the swelling and pain. Compression socks have much stronger elastic; they are not just tall socks. They are woven in such a way to be tighter at the bottom and less tight on the top. This helps push blood up. Compression socks are usually rated by the amount of pressure they apply: 15 mmHg to 50 mmHg. Some compression socks interfere with circulation so you should check with your doctor as to the best ones for your condition.
Get Dressed in Bed
Put on compression socks while you are still in bed for maximum benefit. This may mean showering the night before so you can put your compression socks on the bed-side stand and put them on before you stand up in the morning. Don’t wear them at night without doctor’s orders.
Sweet, Cool Relief
Sometimes soaking your calves in cool water at night can shrink some of the swelling. Hot baths or even in floor heating systems can make it worse. The heat relaxes the muscle which causes further pooling in the calves. That is why they often get worse in the summer.
Herbal Help
There are a few products from the health food store that may help. One is called Gotu Kola. Look for one that has at least 10% Triterpenes. Use 500mg twice a day. Another is Horse Chestnut. Try to find one that has at least 20% Aescin. Take 250mg every 12 hours. Another is a Pine Bark Extract called ‘Pycnogenol.’ Take 100mg with breakfast and supper. This is an excellent supplement for all kinds of circulation issues. The best Pycnogenol seem to come from France. It is similar to Grape Seed extract but more potent.
Collapse the Problem
Because varicose veins and spider veins are surface veins, they are not the primary carriers of blood, so they can safely be collapsed and closed off. There are several techniques for doing this.
They can be injected with a type of glue or foam that forms a plug. This works best for smaller veins. This is called sclerotherapy. For larger veins, a small surgery called a phlebotomy can be used to remove the veins.
Several different laser treatments do the same thing in a different way. They seal the vein by zapping it with a small laser fibre. These procedures are pretty quick and mostly painless.
What Should I Do?
Varicose veins can be a symptom of an underlying condition. Varicose veins affect the surface veins. If the deep veins in the calves have valve weakness, it can be a condition called CVI (Chronic Venous Insufficiency). Varicose veins can develop into CVI. If you haven’t seen a doctor about your varicose veins, it is a good idea to do so to develop a long-term plan.
