The Longevity Book by Cameron Diaz

Author:Cameron Diaz
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: HarperCollins
Published: 2016-03-02T16:00:00+00:00

At the same age when our RMR is slipping, many of us slow down a bit and are less physically active. Combine the factors of less lean body mass, a lower RMR, and a more sedentary lifestyle, and boom! The extra pounds will just keep collecting if you don’t change your habits.

VARICOSE VEINS

Your circulation relies on one major pump, your heart, which sends oxygen-rich blood through your arteries to be delivered to all your tissues and organs, and then pumps that blood back through your veins, which carry oxygen-depleted blood to your lungs for refueling. This amazing system stretches through miles of veins and arteries and capillaries to keep you alive. And unless you’re spending most of your day in a headstand, it’s usually working against gravity. Oxygen-rich blood has to make it all the way to your fingers and down to your toes—and then it has to make its way back up to your heart. That reverse journey is powered by muscles in your legs that contract and act like a pump to push the blood upward. Then there are small valves in your veins that open and close to make sure that blood keeps going in the right direction, toward your heart.

With age, your veins become less elastic, like stretchy jeans that bag at the knees. The wear and tear on the valves that control the direction of blood flow means that with age, they sometimes let some blood back into your stretched-out veins, where it pools and collects. The result can be a web of veins that show up on the surface of legs and feet as spidery lines—spider veins—or thicker, more obvious bulges known as varicose veins. Varicose veins may trouble you cosmetically, but they are important to note because they can lead to health issues ranging from pain while standing to, at the extreme, blood clots.

Aging is a risk factor for varicose veins, and so is being a woman. Women are more likely than men to develop varicose veins, possibly because changes in hormone levels during monthly cycles, pregnancy, and menopause may influence blood flow. Other risk factors include being overweight, being sedentary, and wearing high heels or tight, uncomfortable shoes.

There is no cure for varicose veins (other than cosmetic procedures) but here are some of the best ways to prevent them:

•EXERCISE: Keep your blood moving and keep weight in check.

•HOLD THE SALT: Avoiding salty food will keep your legs from swelling.

•WATCH YOUR WARDROBE: High heels and tightly cinched waistlines cut off blood flow.

•PUT YOUR FEET UP: Getting your legs over your heart eases pressure.

•UNCROSS YOUR LEGS: Crossing your legs can cut off blood flow.

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