The main cause of swelling in the hands and feet arising on waking or walking is poor blood circulation due to excessive consumption of salt or sodium and lack of regular physical activity because these factors are sufficient for one day cause swelling even in young people.
In that case, just drink more water, take a 20-minute walk and take a diuretic tea, such as parsley, to combat the swelling of hands, legs and feet.
What causes swelling in the feet and hands
In addition to poor circulation, other causes include diabetes, high blood pressure, heart failure, or kidney failure. Therefore, it should be observed when the feet or hands become swollen and if there are other symptoms such as little or too much urine, tachycardia or even excessive tiredness. by making small efforts.
In any case, diuretic nutrition, regular physical activity, and less salt and sodium are helpful in disintegrating. If symptoms persist, it is advisable to go to the general practitioner or cardiologist to identify the cause and initiate treatment. can be done by taking diuretic medicines, for example.
How to disinfect your feet and hands
When the feet or hands are swollen what can be done to deflate is:
- Sit and place your feet on top of another chair, to favor the blood circulation of the feet toward the heart;
- Open and close your hands, folding your fingers, because this simple exercise helps drain excess fluids;
- Eating diuretic foods every day is also a great way to eliminate excess fluids from the body, here are the best natural diuretics;
- Putting your feet or hands in a bowl of hot and then cold water is also an excellent strategy. See the steps to do this technique correctly in this video of the physiotherapist Marcelle Pinheiro:
The main cause of swelling in the extremities of the body is the fluid retention that happens in people with high blood pressure, hypertensive or diabetic, but this can also happen when the person has only poor blood circulation. Although this symptom is common during pregnancy, they are more common after the age of 40, affecting both men and women alike.
Swollen feet and hands in pregnancy
It is very common the appearance of swollen feet and hands during pregnancy due to poor blood circulation, which at this stage is due to the excessive presence of the hormone relaxin, which causes dilation of the veins and hinders the return of blood to the heart.
- What to do: Exercising during pregnancy, increasing water consumption, and reducing salt and sodium in food are very important for disinfecting the feet and hands at this stage. The pregnant woman should walk daily for at least 40 minutes at the beginning or end of the day and should drink plenty of fluids, especially water or clear sugarless teas because the more water she drinks, the more urine she will produce, favoring the disinfection.
It is also recommended to avoid standing too long in the same position, either standing or sitting, because this increases the swelling of the feet. So it is best to sit with your legs under another chair, or lie down with your feet under cushions or the arm of the sofa to facilitate the return of liquids to the heart.
Warning signs to go to the doctor
It is recommended to go to the doctor when other than swollen hands and feet, other symptoms such as tingling are present; when only 1 hand or 1 foot is very swollen; if there is difficulty breathing or fever.
How to prevent swelling
So that your feet and hands do not get swollen again, what you are advised to do is:
- Do some physical activity, such as walking 3 to 4 times a week;
- Drink at least 2 liters of water or tea, without sugar, every day;
- Avoid eating sugar-rich foods like biscuit, wafer, cake, sweets and ice creams;
- Decrease daily consumption of salt, avoiding package snacks, putting less salt in the meals and not adding fine salt in the salad, for example;
- Decrease consumption of processed foods because they are full of toxins and sodium in their composition;
- Eat daily diuretic foods like cucumber, pumpkin, melon, orange, lemon and parsley;
Another good tip is to drink a glass of diuretic juice, like watermelon with lemon, for example. See another example in Home remedy for swollen feet and hands.