Wearing high heels causes varicose veins in the legs?

The article was professionally consulted with Master, Doctor Nguyen Minh Son - Interventional Cardiologist - Department of Medical Examination & Internal Medicine - Vinmec Nha Trang International General Hospital.

Wearing high heels a lot, wearing tight clothes, ... can increase the pressure of small blood vessels in the feet, hindering blood flow to the heart. Over time, you may experience varicose veins of the lower extremities.

Varicose veins of the legs (varicose veins of the lower extremities) are now a very common disease. According to many studies in the world, about 40% of the adult population may have varicose veins. In particular, the rate of women infected with the disease is about 2-3 times higher than that of men. In Vietnam, about 25% of adults have varicose veins.
Varicose veins of the lower extremities is a condition in which the lower extremities' veins are impaired in their ability to return blood to the heart, leading to blood stagnation, causing many hemodynamic changes and deforming surrounding tissues. The disease can lead to many complications such as eczema, bleeding in the legs, leg ulcers that do not heal, dilated superficial veins, deep vein thrombosis,...
Late complications of the disease are thrombosis, blood failure return to the heart, causing swelling and pain in the legs. Especially dangerous if the blood clot spreads up the vena cava, to the heart or lungs, which can be fatal.

Women are more likely to develop varicose veins than men. One of the reasons is due to women's dressing habits, specifically the habit of wearing high heels.
So does wearing high heels have any effect? According to doctors, women's habit of wearing high heels causes body weight to be pushed down on both feet and puts pressure on the leg veins. This condition for a long time will cause bad effects on health, especially leading to varicose veins in the legs.
In addition, there are a number of factors that increase the risk of varicose veins of the lower extremities. These are:
Jobs involving long standing or sitting too much such as: seamstress, banker, seafood processor, receptionist, ... or burden. The condition of less blood circulation due to holding a position for too long will increase the pressure in the veins of the lower extremities, leading to valve failure, reduced blood flow to the heart, long-term numbness, ulceration and blood clot formation in the lower extremities. foot; Working in a humid environment will make the disease worse; About 70% of pregnant women have varicose veins in the legs because the pregnancy process causes sudden hormonal changes, combined with the large fetus, causing pressure on the veins, obstructing the blood flow from the legs to the heart. leg edema; Women's habit of wearing tight clothes regularly increases pressure on small blood vessels in the legs, compresses the veins of the thighs and pelvis, obstructs blood flow to the heart and gradually causes varicose veins; People who are obese, have a low-fiber diet, are sedentary; Aging: The older you get, the more health problems you'll have, including varicose veins; Congenital hypoplasia of the venous system.

To prevent disease, everyone should note:
Do not wear high heels a lot, give preference to shoes with flat soles or low heels, soft skin; Have the correct sitting posture, do not sit cross-legged and should change positions often; Wear looser and looser clothing, avoiding tight clothing (especially at the legs and hips); At night, when going to bed, you should put your feet higher than the bed so that blood can easily circulate to the heart; Daily exercises can be applied to the exercise of heel rotation, heel tipping, leg raise,...; Increase fiber in your diet and drink plenty of water to avoid constipation because when you have a bowel movement, if you are constipated, it will put a lot of pressure on the veins of the lower extremities. To improve the condition of varicose veins in the lower extremities, experts have given some advice to patients such as:
In case of mild varicose veins should wear compression stockings. When doing sports, patients should avoid sports that require a lot of running such as badminton, football, and switch to lighter exercises such as slow walking, swimming,...; Patients with varicose veins should avoid soaking their feet in warm water, not taking hot baths because high temperatures will make blood vessels more easily dilated. Wearing high heels a lot is one of the factors that increase the risk of varicose veins. Therefore, each person needs to pay attention to change bad habits to prevent and reduce the risk of getting this disease.