People suffering from varicose veins must adhere to certain nutritional principles, which are auxiliary means to alleviate the condition of the patients. You can learn more about what a diet for varicose veins is from our article.
The essence of the diet for varicose veins
The main essence of the diet for varicose veins is to regulate nutrition, which will allow you to bring your weight back to normal (which will reduce the load on blood vessels) and reduce the thickness of the blood - one of the main dangers of varicose veins.
It has been proven that with varicose veins the blood can thicken, which can lead to thrombosis. In addition, viscous blood is harder to pump, so the load on the heart also increases.
How to make blood thinner? This will be helped, first of all, by diet, as well as by maintaining a drinking regime. According to statistics, most of the problems with blood vessels occur in those people who do not drink enough fluids. As a result, the body loses its own fluid, the blood becomes viscous and blood clots form in the capillaries and other vessels.
From this we can conclude that to replenish fluid losses and ensure normal metabolic processes, you should drink at least 2 liters of clean water every day - this is a natural, affordable remedy for reducing blood viscosity. It is allowed to replace water with herbal or green tea without sugar, or freshly squeezed juices from fruits or vegetables. The most preferred juices are grape, citrus, tomato or berry.
Alcoholic drinks, including beer, will have to be excluded, because they do not contribute to saturating the body with moisture.
Before you start creating a nutrition menu for varicose veins, you need to remember that the greatest benefits come from natural products that dilute and renew the blood. Most foods that contain preservatives, stabilizing, coloring and other chemicals contribute to blood thickening - they need to be removed from the daily diet.
Patients with varicose veins are recommended to always have two lists of food products on hand - those that are allowed and those that are not recommended and can harm the body. We'll talk about such products a little later.
In addition to affecting blood circulation, food should also help facilitate liver function. The fact is that the liver is responsible for many reactions and metabolic processes that occur in our tissues. In particular, this organ produces special components that prevent increased blood viscosity. Needless to say, dietary deficiencies, bad habits, unfavorable environmental conditions, frequent and uncontrolled use of medications have a negative effect on liver function. Hence the following conclusion: nutrition should be made in such a way as not to overload the liver, but to facilitate its work. That is, it is necessary to limit fatty, smoked, canned, heavy foods - all those products that require additional resources for processing.
In order to alleviate the manifestations of varicose veins and prevent the disease from worsening, it is recommended to reconsider your attitude towards bad habits, pay attention to the medications you are taking and evaluate the advisability of taking them (especially for hormonal drugs and diuretics) - all these factors greatly influence the increase in coagulabilityblood.
What substances are most necessary in the treatment of varicose veins?
- Vitamin E (tocopherol) ensures the elasticity of blood vessels. It can be found in sufficient quantities in sprouted grains, in the yolk of eggs, and in vegetable oils.
- Ascorbic acid thins the blood and eliminates inflammation in blood vessels. Berries, tomatoes, citrus fruits, and kiwi are rich in vitamins.
- Rutin is considered an essential vitamin for healthy blood vessels. It can be found in citrus fruits (especially the peel), black currants, nuts and green tea.
- Bioflavonoids are beneficial substances that facilitate venous circulation. The substances are found mainly in dark varieties of cherries.
- Copper is required to produce a sufficient amount of elastin in tissues, which serves to prevent the appearance of venous "nodules". A lot of copper is found in seafood.
- Fiber forces the digestive system to work, preventing constipation - one of the factors causing varicose veins. Fiber is found in plant foods, bran, and cereals.
- Water thins the blood, facilitating blood flow and reducing the load on the vascular walls.
Diet for varicose veins of the lower extremities
The lower extremities are perhaps the most susceptible to varicose veins. Basically, this can be explained by the increased load on the legs: a person walks quite a lot during the day, stands, sits cross-legged, etc. At the same time, the vessels experience quite a lot of pressure. This is especially noticeable if you are overweight or have unfavorable heredity (one of your relatives suffers from chronic varicose veins).
If your varicose veins are associated with a genetic predisposition, then you should focus all your efforts on maintaining normal vascular permeability and tone: do not overexert your lower limbs, wear special underwear and stockings, eat right and lead a healthy lifestyle, drink enough water. It’s good if your work activity does not involve prolonged stress on your legs.
If you are overweight, then the first task is to reduce it - preferably not by fasting, but by following a proper diet, with enough protein foods and limiting simple sugars.
You should not deny yourself seafood: sea fish, shrimp, algae, squid are rich in minerals, which our vessels really need. Thanks to seafood, blood vessels become elastic, their fragility and permeability decrease.
Also, food should provide the body with sufficient vitamins. Rutin (vitamin P) and ascorbic acid are especially useful for the vascular system.
Such vitamins are found in large quantities in tea leaves, rose hips, citrus fruits, rowan berries, etc. By the way, for a healthy person, the daily norm of routine is from 25 to 50 mg, and in case of vascular diseases, this amount increases to 150 mg per day.
Vitamins C and P tend to stimulate the production of collagen, which is considered one of the main components of the skin and vascular walls. If there is no deficiency of the listed vitamins, then the walls of the capillaries are usually strong, elastic, durable, and allow blood flow well. Normally functioning vessels mean the absence of pressure problems, swelling and varicose veins.
Dietary changes, taking into account the enrichment of the diet with vitamins P and C, should be started already with the following symptoms:
- rapid fatigue in the legs;
- the appearance of causeless bruises and spider veins;
- pain in the joints of the lower extremities.
Diet for varicose veins and thrombophlebitis
With thrombophlebitis, like with no other disease, blood thinning measures are relevant. Nutrition is of no small importance: the food consumed must contain all the necessary substances to prevent clogging of the veins with blood clots and the development of the inflammatory process.
The diet for thrombophlebitis involves the predominant consumption of plant foods. Dishes with pineapples, watermelons, melons, ginger, all types of onions, as well as cinnamon are especially welcome. It is not recommended to eat bananas, legumes, meat products, and soy in large quantities.
It is important to reduce the proportion of foods high in vitamin K in your daily diet, which enhances the process of coagulation - blood clotting. This vitamin is present in all green plant foods - lettuce, parsley and cilantro, any type of cabbage. There is also a lot of vitamin in walnuts, eggs, whole milk, meat, liver, fish. If you like to drink herbal teas, then you should exclude plants such as nettle, raspberry leaves, linden, and rose hips from the teas.
In addition, it is necessary to limit the consumption of fatty foods. The fact is that fat promotes better absorption of vitamin K, since it is fat soluble.
What food should you take for varicose veins and thrombophlebitis? Give preference to colored vegetables, fruits, berries, dairy products, and cereals. You can cook casseroles, stew, steam, etc. Also, do not overeat or drink alcoholic beverages.
Diet for varicose veins of the pelvis
Pelvic varicose veins are a disease that occurs predominantly in women. It is associated, in most cases, with pregnancy and childbirth, with a sedentary lifestyle, and with internal use of contraceptives. The disease especially often affects those who already have varicose veins of the extremities and hemorrhoids.
In addition to drug treatment, diet will help relieve the symptoms of pelvic veins. It represents a transition to a healthy diet rich in plant-based foods with fiber. Fiber is necessary, first of all, to prevent constipation, which aggravates varicose veins, increasing the load on the vascular system of the abdominal cavity.
The body also needs protein foods, which help regenerate vascular walls.
What you should give up first is alcohol, smoking, fatty and carbohydrate foods.
What recommendations can be given regarding the diet for pelvic varicose veins:
- If possible, eat a couple of pieces of pineapple daily;
- prepare this medicine: chop 200 g of peeled garlic, mix with 300 ml of honey. Leave for a week. Take the finished mixture 1 tbsp. spoon before each meal;
- Sea kale is considered an excellent remedy for varicose veins. It should be consumed several times a day every day for 3 months;
- It is recommended to eat a handful of pine nuts every day;
- It is useful to add a little nutmeg powder to your food, as well as cinnamon and ginger.
All other recommendations correspond to the general rules of nutrition for varicose veins.
Diet for varicose veins of the esophagus
Esophageal varicose veins are a rather insidious disease, since for a long time the patient may not be aware of its existence. And only in an advanced state the disease makes itself felt.
Dilatation of the veins of the esophagus requires a fairly strict diet, which reduces the load on the digestive system and facilitates the passage of food.
- The number of meals should be divided into 5-6 times, and the portions should be small.
- Food should be crushed and chewed well, or even better, cook food in a semi-liquid state so as not to injure the walls of the esophageal tube.
- The last meal of the day should be taken approximately 4 hours before bedtime.
- It is not recommended to sleep on a low pillow to avoid reflux of stomach contents into the esophagus.
- It is necessary to greatly limit (or better yet eliminate) the consumption of fatty, fried, smoked foods, canned foods, as well as dishes with hot spices and a lot of salt.
- Fasting days have a good effect: watermelon, melon fasting, as well as days on freshly squeezed fruit or vegetable juices are especially welcome.
It is advisable to limit meat in the diet - it is replaced with shrimp, lean fish, and squid. You should also "forget" about aspic, canned food (both fish and meat), alcohol and rich broths. The consumption of black coffee is also limited.
All dishes are steamed, oven-baked, boiled or baked. Experts advise paying more attention to plant-based and fermented milk products and grains.
Diet menu for varicose veins
In order not to think about what to cook for yourself throughout the day, without breaking your diet, it is recommended to draw up a sample menu in advance. In the future, using the already compiled diet, it will be possible to change it, simply replacing some products with other similar ones.
Let's give an example.
The first day:
- We have oatmeal with raisins for breakfast.
- For a second breakfast, you can make a smoothie of kiwi and orange with honey.
- For lunch - buckwheat soup and vegetable salad with Borodino bread.
- Snack – fruit yogurt.
- We have dinner with a piece of boiled fish and a portion of seaweed salad.
Second day:
- For breakfast, prepare a portion of low-fat cottage cheese with fruit and honey.
- For second breakfast, fruit jelly or mousse is suitable.
- We have lunch with pumpkin porridge and baked eggplant with tomatoes.
- As a snack - carrot and apple salad with yogurt.
- Dinner: a serving of mashed potatoes with beet salad.
Day three:
- For breakfast: rice pudding with prunes.
- For second breakfast, bake a pear with honey and nuts.
- You can have lunch with onion soup and vegetable casserole.
- For a snack – a glass of tomato juice.
- For dinner – steamed chicken meatball with vegetables.
Day four:
- We have steamed cheesecakes with fruit for breakfast.
- For second breakfast: a smoothie of yogurt and fruit.
- We have lunch with tomato soup and carrot cutlet with sour cream.
- Have a snack with a cup of vegetable salad.
- For dinner, you can boil chicken breast with mint sauce.
Day five:
- For breakfast: whole grain bread with peanut butter.
- Kefir with berries is suitable for second breakfast.
- We have lunch with okroshka and stuffed tomatoes.
- Snack: freshly squeezed apple juice.
- We dine with a piece of steamed salmon with lemon sauce.
Day six:
- We have breakfast with buckwheat pancakes and applesauce.
- For second breakfast - a handful of pine nuts or dried fruits.
- We have lunch with rice soup and a piece of fish casserole.
- Snack – apple with cottage cheese.
- We have dinner with a portion of vegetarian pilaf.
We make the seventh day a fasting day.
Before bed, half a glass of low-fat kefir or yogurt without additives is allowed.
Diet recipes for varicose veins
- Kiwi and orange smoothie– a healthy sweet-sour drink that is quite simple to prepare. All you need is a blender and ingredients: peeled orange, kiwi (if desired, you can also add tangerine or other fruits), one tsp. honeyIn summer, it is also recommended to add a few cubes of edible ice for freshness. Grind all the products in a blender and pour into glasses or glasses.
- Eggplant baked with tomatoes- a healthy dietary dish. Ingredients: two medium eggplants, 4 tomatoes, 2 or 3 cloves of garlic, vegetable oil, sour cream, spices. Let's start cooking: cut the washed eggplants into slices (about 5 mm), do the same with the tomatoes. Peel the garlic and squeeze it through a press, or simply chop it. Sprinkle the eggplant slices a little with spices and place them on a sheet greased with vegetable oil. Bake in the oven until golden brown, turning once to the other side. Place the finished eggplants on a plate, put 0. 5-1 tsp on each circle. sour cream mixed with garlic, and put a piece of tomato on top of the sauce. Already in this form the dish can be served to the table. If desired, you can sprinkle with grated cheese or sesame seeds.
- Rice pudding with prunes- a good replacement for the usual boring porridge. Necessary ingredients of the dish: 100 g round rice, 600 ml milk, sugar, 2 eggs, lemon zest, cinnamon. Cooking: add sugar (about 60 g, to taste) and lemon zest to the milk. Place on the fire, bring to a boil and add rice. Cook for 10 minutes, stirring constantly. After this, add the dried fruits cut into pieces and washed and put the rice in the oven at t° +120 °C for about 40 minutes. Stir the rice several times during cooking. Take out the cooked rice and leave to cool. Meanwhile, separate the yolks from the whites. Add the yolks to the rice and mix thoroughly. Add a few drops of lemon juice to the whites and beat until stiff, then carefully fold into the rest of the mixture. Place in the oven for about 15 more minutes - this can be done directly in the pan, or distributed into special molds. We serve the dish in them. When serving, sprinkle with cinnamon. You can also top it with honey or fruit sauce.
- Mint sauce- A delicious addition to chicken breast. Ingredients: red wine vinegar 75 ml, sugar 25 g, fresh mint leaves (about 10 g), one small onion (preferably the sweet variety). Mix vinegar, sugar and salt on the tip of a knife. Grind the mint leaves and onion, add to the vinegar and place in the refrigerator for several hours (minimum 2-3 hours). Serve with meat.
- Peanut pastecan be used for a quick and healthy breakfast, or for preparing various sauces and main courses. We will need: 200 g of roasted and peeled peanuts (without salt and pepper), ½ tsp. salt, 40 ml vegetable oil, 5 g honey. Pour the nuts into a blender, add salt and honey and grind at maximum speed for about 1-2 minutes. Add oil, mix and turn on the blender again for 2 minutes. The paste is ready, it can be stored in the refrigerator for 1. 5-2 months.
- Buckwheat pancakes– thin, suitable for any filling, or simply with sour cream. Ingredients: 1 cup buckwheat flour, 1 cup kefir, salt and sugar to taste, 1 cup water, 2 eggs, vegetable oil. Beat the eggs, add kefir, a little salt and sugar. Mix everything. Gradually add buckwheat flour, stirring continuously. After this, add water little by little, kneading and controlling the consistency of the dough. Fry thin pancakes in a small frying pan greased with vegetable oil.
Bon appetit!
If you have symptoms of such an unpleasant disease as varicose veins, then proper nutrition and diet for varicose veins can prevent further worsening of the disease. Moreover, if varicose veins have just begun to develop, then changing your diet will help avoid complications and negative consequences of the pathology.
What can you eat if you have varicose veins?
It is not difficult to choose products that may be useful for varicose veins. It is important to remember the main thing: the food consumed should be fortified, varied, and should not contain large amounts of animal fats, unnatural additives (chemicals, preservatives), salt, simple sugars, hot spices and blood thickening substances.
Recommended for use:
- berry, fruit, vegetable dishes (tomatoes, carrots, onions, garlic, citrus fruits, kiwi, pears, grapes, watermelons, eggplants, pumpkin, melon);
- nuts (except walnuts);
- berries that reduce the permeability of the vascular wall (cranberries, currants, cherries, blueberries, sea buckthorn);
- various cereals (in the form of porridges, side dishes, casseroles and soups - buckwheat, oatmeal, millet, rice);
- lean fish, seafood, seaweed;
- dried fruits (all kinds);
- tea, fermented milk products, cottage cheese, unsalted cheese;
- vegetable oils.
The proposed set of products will help maintain normal vascular tone, control your weight, and prevent fluid accumulation in the tissues. It is good if the diet is supplemented with drug treatment using special creams and medications prescribed by a doctor.
What should you not eat if you have varicose veins?
Proper nutrition for varicose veins involves limiting or eliminating the following foods:
- Sweets. These include baked goods made from white flour, sweets, cakes, jam, chocolate, condensed milk, cakes, ice cream.
- Hot seasonings: black pepper, chili, mustard, horseradish, as well as adjika, wasabi, etc.
- Carbonated drinks, alcohol, coffee, cocoa, store-bought juices.
- Salt and sugar.
- Fatty meat products: pork, lard, meat with layers of fat.
- Marinades, pickles.
- Canned fish and meat products.
- Rich broths, jellies, aspics.
- Bananas, pomegranates.
- Full-fat sour cream, cream, processed cheese, butter.
- Legumes: lentils, beans, peas.
- Walnuts.
It is not recommended to overeat, especially at night. Fasting is also not encouraged. But fasting days, on the contrary, are useful. They can be arranged once a week, using, for example, kefir, watermelon, buckwheat, tomato juice or apples.