A great and simple home treatment to combat foot swelling is to dip your feet alternately in a bowl of hot and cold water because this increases the local blood circulation and facilitates the return of that excess fluid to the blood, and the excess is then eliminated through the urine. But to complement this home treatment, you also need to lie down with your feet elevated and receive a foot massage.
This home treatment can be done during pregnancy, after the caesarean section, after having walked a lot on a very hot day, or when the foot is swollen because of a twist or after having removed the plaster, for example.
All this step by step is well explained in this video, relaxed and fun:
Here are the details of each technique:
1. Switch between hot and cold
To do this treatment against swelling of the feet and ankle, you need 2 buckets or 2 bowls that fit your foot comfortably. The following is due to:
- Put hot water in one container and cold or cold water in another;
- Dip the feet first in hot water for a maximum of 3 to 5 minutes;
- Then soak your feet in the bowl with cold water for 1 or 2 minutes at most.
This sequence can be done up to 3 times in a row, and should always end with cold water. You can do this treatment 1, 2 or as many times as you want, according to your availability of time.
Before placing your feet in hot water you should check with the elbow the temperature of the water, which should not be too hot, not to burn on the skin. And to make sure the water is cool, you can add some ice cubes in the water.
This home treatment should only be done if you have any skin lesions; when the skin is very sensitive or anesthetized or if there are many varicose veins in the ankles.
2. Rest with your legs up
To complement this home treatment you need to lie comfortably with your legs up so your feet are above heart level because this also facilitates venous return and disintegrates the lower limbs more quickly. It is important to always stand on your back and put some cushions under your legs so you do not force your knees.
3. Get foot massage
While lying belly up, one can ask the other person to massage their feet. The massage is also a great complement that helps to deflate the feet, but should always be performed in the upward direction, and so you should press your feet from the toes to the legs. Spending a moisturizing cream or a sweet almond oil, for example, is also a great way to make the massage even more relaxing. Each foot should be massaged for about 1 minute.
What causes swelling in the feet
The feet and ankles may become swollen during pregnancy, after delivery, when the person is standing for a long time, in diabetes, or in case of fluid retention. Also, it is also common for the foot or ankle to become swollen when twisting the foot or after removing the plaster of the foot, for example.
The main cause of swelling in the feet is the severity and so whenever the person is standing for a long time from the same position, whether sitting or standing, the legs can become swollen, heavy and sore. But when there is an electrolyte imbalance in the body and the person is holding fluid this symptom may also manifest.
Lack of physical activity is also another factor that influences body swelling, so anyone who has a tendency to get their feet swollen at the end of the day should invest in regular practice of physical activity regularly because this improves blood circulation and helps to eliminate excess fluids.
