Natural Treatments for Varicose Veins

Research suggests that one in three adults has varicose veins.¹ Varicose veins are twisted, bulging blood vessels that appear under your skin. They are blue or purple swollen veins usually visible on your legs, feet, or ankles. 

Varicose veins are more common in women and older people between ages 40 and 80. They affect about 11 million men and 22 million women, of which 2 million may develop varicose vein symptoms and complications such as vein ulcers.²

Symptoms of Varicose Veins

You can easily recognize a varicose vein by its appearance. Enlarged, bulging, knotted, bluish-purple blood vessels under your skin’s surface indicate that you have varicose veins. 

Other varicose vein symptoms include:³

• Heaviness or discomfort in your legs
• Itching around the veins
• Pain, aching, or soreness, especially behind your knees 
• Muscle cramps
• Swelling or throbbing in your legs
• Skin discoloration and ulcers or sores

Causes of Varicose Veins

Doctors don’t know the exact cause of varicose veins. But they usually occur when the walls of your veins grow weak due to increased pressure. There are valves inside your veins. They act as gates to pump blood from your legs to your heart against gravity.

If blood pressure increases in your vein, the vein walls stretch and affect the function of the valves. The blood doesn’t flow upward and starts pooling in the vein, causing it to stretch, bulge, and twist to form varicose veins.⁴

Vein walls and valves can grow weak due to these risk factors:⁵

• Aging
• Excess weight
• Hormonal imbalance in females 
• Pregnancy
• Standing or sitting in the same position for too long 
• Family history
• Tobacco use
• Other health conditions like constipation or tumors

Varicose Veins Natural Treatment

If you have varicose veins, you can try these natural home remedies and lifestyle changes to reduce discomfort.

1. Movement

Long hours of sitting or standing in one place, especially during work, can worsen varicose veins. Moving around and changing your position frequently prevents pressure buildup in your leg veins and improves your circulation. 

2. Exercise

Regular exercise helps lower your blood pressure and maintain your body weight. It also improves blood circulation in the legs and prevents varicose veins from worsening.

Low-impact exercises can help strengthen your legs without putting too much pressure on them. They include:

• Swimming
• Walking
• Cycling
• Yoga poses
• Stretching

Avoid high-impact exercises like running or lifting, as they can increase discomfort if you have varicose veins.⁷

3. Gradient compression socks

Compression stockings are socks that squeeze your legs and promote blood circulation from your legs to your heart. They help relieve pain, swelling, and discomfort caused by varicose veins. However, they may not be suitable for everyone. You’ll need to check with a vein specialist before wearing compression stockings.⁸

4. Dietary changes

A nutrient-rich diet can help improve your vein health and relieve some symptoms of varicose veins. Eating salty or sodium-rich food can lead to water retention or swelling in your cells. It can increase your blood pressure and worsen varicose vein symptoms.⁹ So, avoid salty food. Instead, have potassium-rich foods like nuts, leafy vegetables, potatoes, and legumes to prevent water retention.¹⁰

Include more fiber in your diet to improve bowel function and prevent constipation. High-fiber foods include fruits, vegetables, legumes, whole grains, and nuts. Also, avoid eating high-fat, fried, processed, and sugary foods. Such dietary changes can help maintain your weight and prevent the buildup of pressure on your veins.¹¹

Apart from this, eat more foods containing antioxidants called flavonoids. They help reduce blood pressure, keep your veins healthy, regulate blood circulation, and improve varicose vein symptoms.¹² 

Some flavonoid-rich food includes:

• Vegetables like onions, bell peppers, and broccoli
• Green leafy vegetables like spinach and kale
• Fruits like oranges, grapes, cherries, and blueberries
• Garlic

5. Massage

Massage can prevent varicose veins from getting worse. Applying gentle pressure to the affected area can help relieve painful symptoms and improve blood circulation. You can use a moisturizer or aromatic oils for massaging.

However, avoid applying direct or excessive pressure on the varicose veins, as it may damage the vein.¹³

6. Herbal remedies

Varicose veins natural treatment includes herbal remedies such as horse chestnut seed, diosmin-hesperidin, butcher’s broom, and maritime pine bark.¹⁴ They can be consumed orally or applied as extracts, oils, and ointments. Also, botanical extracts of witch hazel, hawthorn, and bilberries can be added to creams or ointments and applied to varicose veins.¹⁵ Grapeseed extract is also another potential herbal remedy for varicose vein symptoms.¹⁶

These herbal remedies have antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties that reduce symptoms like pain and swelling, promote blood circulation, and strengthen your veins.¹⁷

7. Clothing and shoes

Tight-fitting or restrictive clothes can affect blood circulation and worsen the symptoms of varicose veins. Wear loose and comfortable clothes that don’t restrict blood flow to your legs. Also, avoid wearing high-heeled shoes, as they can increase the pressure on your legs. Wear flat, comfortable shoes instead.¹⁸

8. Raising your legs

Elevating your legs at or above the level of your heart can help improve blood circulation. It reduces the pressure in your leg veins and helps the pooled blood to flow to the heart.¹⁹ You can elevate your legs against the wall or use leg elevation pillows for support.

Why Visit a Vein Specialist?

Natural treatments for varicose veins can help manage the condition at home. But they can’t completely cure varicose veins. Some people may have painful symptoms, which can worsen and lead to complications like venous ulcers if left untreated. So, if you have severe varicose vein symptoms or wish to get rid of the affected veins for cosmetic purposes, visit a vein specialist to remove them.

Your vein specialist will recommend minimally invasive varicose veins treatment options to eliminate the affected veins and restore healthy circulation. Varicose vein treatments include endovenous laser ablation, endovenous radiofrequency ablation, and similar treatments.²⁰

Find a Vein Specialist Near You

If you’re looking for a qualified vein specialist near you, My Vein Treatment is here to help you find one at the earliest. Our vein specialist locator tool will help you search for a qualified healthcare professional in your locality. Schedule an appointment with them and seek treatment to prevent your varicose veins from worsening. 

SOURCES:

1. Cleveland Clinic: “ Varicose Veins.”
2. Circulation: “ Varicose Veins.”
3. Cleveland Clinic: “ Varicose Veins.”
4. NHS: “ Overview.”
5. Cleveland Clinic: “ Varicose Veins.”
6. NIH News in Health: “ Bulging Veins.”
7. International Journal of Advances in Nursing Management: “ Prevention of Varicose Veins.”
8. NHS: “ Treatment.”
9. Current Opinion in Nephrology and Hypertension: “ Vascular Effects of Dietary Salt.”
10. Advances in Nutrition: “ Potassium and Health.”
11. PCRM’s Nutrition Guide for Clinicians: “ Venous Insufficiency and Varicosities.”
12. Vascular Pharmacology: “ Therapeutic potential of flavonoids in the treatment of chronic venous insufficiency.”
13. Procedia – Social and Behavioral Sciences: “ Study Concerning the Efficiency of the Reflex Massage in the Treatment of Varicose Veins.”
14. PCRM’s Nutrition Guide for Clinicians: “ Venous Insufficiency and Varicosities.”
15. International Journal of Advances in Nursing Management: “ Prevention of Varicose Veins.”
16. NIH: “ Grape Seed Extract.”
17. PCRM’s Nutrition Guide for Clinicians: “ Venous Insufficiency and Varicosities.”
18. International Journal of Advances in Nursing Management: “ Prevention of Varicose Veins.”
19. Cleveland Clinic: “ Varicose Veins.”
20. NHS: “ Treatment.”