Swollen Feet In The Morning, The Remedies

Swollen feet: a condition that can be the result of many different causes, mechanical, physiological but also environmental.

Swollen Feet In The Morning: Causes

It happens that some mornings you wake up more swollen than others. This is because the limbs are often affected, especially the legs, feet, hands, and face. So why does this phenomenon occur? The anatomy of the feet is such that they are particularly prone to swelling. 

So far from the circulatory pump of the heart, subject to the force of gravity, supporting the whole weight of the body, it is easy for them to be affected by their ongoing and vital work. Standing all day, in an orthostatic position, or sitting without a draining movement, they become a basin of stagnation and stasis.

The Causes Can Be Many :

1. Lymphatic and circulatory insufficiency: when circulation to the lower limbs is complex, blood and liquids stagnate on the periphery, swelling all the legs and feet; in particular, the venous circulation, if not adequately supported with the movement, can be slowed down. In turn, lymphatic circulation is not endorsed by a pumping organ. If the muscles do not perform this critical role through the contraction of the movement, they do not collaborate in the correct drainage to the lymphatic ganglia in charge.
2. Unbalanced diet: an excess of salt, sugars, yeasts, refined foods, alcohol, and smoke, and lack of fiber and correct water intake can have a direct consequence of stagnation of liquids;
3. Lack of adequate physical activity: even just one walk a day or simple exercises that interrupt the sedentary posture is enough to allow the return pump, also made up of the leg muscles, to make the liquids go back towards the central lymphatic stations and make it more fluid the circulation;
4. Gout and kidney and liver imbalances: gout is a direct consequence of an unbalanced lifestyle and diet, which the kidneys and liver, the emunctory organs responsible for the disposal of toxins, are unable to cope with;
5. Hormonal fluctuations: especially in women, the monthly and seasonal hormonal cycle leads to water retention with consequent swollen feet.

In the morning, all these conditions are emphasized by the prolonged stationary and horizontal position.

Swollen Feet: Natural Remedies

Natural remedies can be beneficial for preventing and resolving foot swelling that also occurs in the morning, in synergy with some healthy habits that require minimal effort but lead to great results:

1. Sleeping with a pillow at the bottom of the mattress to leave the feet slightly higher than the pelvis promotes venous return and lightens the ankles; be careful to keep the support under the knees so as not to leave a void under the popliteal cavity.
2. Evening foot bath: the evening is a phase of the day in which we can dedicate a little more time to caring for our person. Footbaths are a practice that should be introduced regardless of swollen feet and ankles. Dissolving coarse salt in a bowl of warm water activates an osmotic process that helps to loosen stagnation, drain lymphatic and venous stasis and thus deflate heavy feet and ankles.
3. Hot and cold showers: we exploit the principle of Kneipp tubs, with alternating showers, from hot, vasodilatory, decongestant, and relaxing, to mean vasoconstrictor, astringent, and toning. This practice, activated in the evening before going to sleep, helps to cool down the lower limbs, improve venous and lymphatic circulation, and detoxify the tissues. It takes little time and also helps improve the quality of sleep.
4. Cold scrubs on the body in the morning: if you have a little more time, the scrubs, otherwise called sponging, on the whole body, performed in a heated environment, allow you to revitalize the entire body and also tone the lymphatic and blood vessels; they oxygenate the tissues, allow a correct exchange of temperature between the most superficial and the deepest part of the body. They can be done with a towel dipped in cold water and suitably rubbed on the legs starting from the bottom up.
5. Morning foot massage with essential oils: a blend of cypress and fennel oil, added to base oil, and gently massaged into the feet and ankles upon awakening, up to the thighs and groin, gently and effectively drains the edemas in the lower limbs, thanks to the circulatory properties of these essential oils, which reach profoundly and move the stagnations accumulated especially near the joints, ankles, and knees in particular.

Swollen Feet: Herbal Remedies

Herbal teas, hydroalcoholic extracts, and phyto complexes in fluid or dry extract can support lymphatic drain stasis, favor the recycling of liquids, purify the liver, and microcirculation. Let’s see some draining plants helpful in performing these functions:

1. Centella Asiatica: counteracts venous insufficiency, increases venous tone, and protects the walls of blood vessels. Centella improves the symptoms of heavy legs, also attributable to lymphatic stagnation.
2. Birch: possesses diuretic and anti-inflammatory properties. It is helpful in case of retention due to heart failure and enlarged liver. Birch helps relieve edema from legs and feet and contributes to gout treatment.
3. Fumaria: works on liver function, performs a purifying action on the bile ducts, and can be integrated with other remedies such as birch or Centella to counteract swelling in the lower limbs due to functional difficulties of the liver.
4. Orthosiphon: thanks to the presence of terpenes, Orthosiphon leaves have a draining and diuretic action, counteracting water retention.
5. Red Vine: it has anti-edema and protective properties of microcirculation. The presence of flavonoids in Red vines reduces the permeability of capillaries and vessels, preventing the formation of edema and swelling from venous insufficiency.
6. Butcher’s broom: has diuretic and vasoconstrictive properties. Butcher’s broom is helpful in varicose veins, hemorrhoids, swelling of the lower limbs and feet, and cellulite.

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