Varicose veins are a disease that is becoming more and more common. So people have a lot of questions about it. One of the hotly debated topics is whether a bath will harm varicose veins. Consider which bath you can visit with varicose veins, what rules apply and what the tradition of visiting the steam bath can lead to.
Is it possible to bathe in the bathtub with varicose veins?
Varicose veins of the legs are a disease that imposes many restrictions on a person. As for visiting the baths, in the early stages of the disease they are allowed to visit. In addition, the procedure of bathing in a steam bath can be beneficial.
If the disease has moved to the stage of thrombophlebitis, you will have to abandon the bath, this stage is characterized by the formation of cobwebs and the expansion of veins.
Being in a room with too high a temperature worsens the patient's condition. That is why it is better to give up the bath in favor of a contrast shower or a visit to the pool.
The benefits of the bathtub for varicose veins
Visiting a bath under certain conditions becomes one of the measures for the treatment of varicose veins.
The beneficial effects of high temperatures in vascular diseases are associated with such positive effects:
- elimination of blood stasis by normalizing blood circulation;
- blocking inflammatory foci;
- stimulation of the regeneration process of venous tissues;
- elimination of discomfort sensations - heaviness and fatigue in the legs.
Baths are useful for thinning the veins. The temperature effect strengthens blood vessels, improves their tone. Water treatments, when used correctly, cleanse and heal the body. They become one of the preventive measures to reduce the risk of complications of varicose conditions if the disease is in the 1st stage.
The use of heating pads, scalding the legs with hot water and high temperature baths can lead to thrombophlebitis.
Rules for visiting a bath with varicose veins
Baths will not harm varicose veins of the lower extremities if you follow the rules for visiting them.
They are as follows:
- take water procedures on an empty stomach;
- you should refuse to visit the bathroom if the disease has worsened;
- care must be taken not to squeeze the vessels - you can stand or lie in the bath, but in no case sit cross-legged;
- a beneficial effect on the condition of the vessels has a massage of the lower limbs with a pre-steamed broom, it is better to collect it from juniper or oak leaves;
- to complete the trip to the bathroom, you need a cool shower and a lie-down rest.
With varicose veins, the legs should be washed using the evaporation method. It consists in rubbing them with a wet cloth. Then you need to go to a dry room and wait until the water evaporates. This procedure helps to eliminate swelling and heaviness in the legs. Thanks to it, the risk of recurrence of exacerbations of varicose veins is reduced.
It is forbidden to visit the bath if moderate or severe varicose veins are diagnosed. Contraindications for this type of water procedures are also thrombophlebitis, rehabilitation period after surgery and varicose veins complicated by chronic or inflammatory diseases.
Rules for visiting the steam bath
It is not necessary to refuse to visit the steam bath with varicose veins of the lower extremities. It is enough to follow the rules, thanks to which it is possible to prevent damage to dishes from elevated temperatures.
To change the habit of steam cooking not to harm, but to benefit, the following recommendations will help you:
- for the first time you need to enter the steam bath for no more than 2-3 minutes, this approach allows the dishes to adapt to the high temperature;
- it is possible to use a broom, peeling and other procedures aimed at healing in those areas where varicose veins do not have a pronounced manifestation;
- one visit to the bath implies no more than 5 visits to the steam bath, in case of more pronounced symptoms of varicose veins, they should be reduced to 3;
- visiting the steam bath, you should observe how the legs are located - they should be at the same level as the body.
High temperatures can cause discomfort in the legs, where the signs of varicose veins are most pronounced. To get rid of such a manifestation, it is worth covering the affected areas with a damp cloth.
The benefits and harms of the sauna for varicose veins
When visiting a sauna during varicose veins, you need to weigh the possible risks. This procedure can affect both negatively and positively. Among the beneficial effects of visiting the sauna is an increase in vascular tone, stimulation of blood flow to the tissues, elimination of fatigue and heaviness in the legs. By improving blood circulation, more oxygen and nutrients are delivered to the tissues.
The negative effects of water procedures in the sauna include excessive load on the blood vessels, blood stasis and possible progression of the disease. The mechanism of formation of complications begins with excessive blood flow to the tissues.
With a hereditary predisposition to varicose veins, but in the absence of symptoms, a visit to the bathhouse will be an excellent prevention.
Due to the disease, the vessels cannot bear a heavy load. Blood stagnates in them and blood clots form. Therefore, before you decide to visit the sauna, you should consult your doctor.
The benefits and harms of the contrast shower
A contrast shower is used as a prevention of varicose veins. It is also included in the complex therapy of the initial stage of the disease. Its positive effect is aimed at improving blood circulation and increasing vascular tone.
A contrast shower will not harm if you follow the following rules:
- the procedure must be carried out regularly;
- you must monitor the choice of water temperature regime - it must be average, not lead to hypothermia or overheating;
- you need to get used to the contrast shower, starting with warm water and lowering its temperature by 1 degree every day;
- the first attempts to accept the procedure begin with a 2-minute shower, gradually increasing to 5 minutes;
- every 10 seconds you need to change the temperature of the water;
- you cannot hold the jet of water in one place for more than 2 seconds, you must move it from the lower back to the legs.
In the initial stages of the disease, a contrast shower should be approached with caution. Sudden changes in temperature can cause pain.
Prolonged exposure to heat will lead to varicose veins.
The blood in them can flow too quickly and unevenly. As a result, edema is formed. Thus, varicose veins become a contraindication to the use of a contrast shower with hot water. The procedure should be abandoned if there is an average or severe stage of the disease.
The benefits and harms of heat loads in varicose veins
If there are pronounced varicose veins, it is strictly forbidden to resort to thermal stress. This also applies to burning feet, hot baths. The negative impact of heat treatments is associated with dry air in saunas.
It leads to deterioration of the structure of blood vessels, to their fragility. Due to high temperatures, the area affected by varicose veins increases. The vessels cannot cope with the provision of normal blood flow due to an increase in the volume of blood circulation.
If, after consultation, the doctor has prescribed a visit to baths and a contrast shower as an addition to the main methods of treating varicose veins in the initial stage, you must follow the rules for the procedures. Only in this case will they be useful.