Why do my feet swell in summer and how can pressotherapy help us?

High temperatures and poor blood circulation can cause some people to suffer from swelling in both the legs and feet. These signs are known as peripheral edema and consist of an excessive accumulation of fluid in the lower legs and feet.

Heat causes blood vessels to widen, meaning the veins responsible for return circulation increase in size, making venous return difficult. If this return does not occur properly, it causes an increase of fluid in the legs and feet.

Main causes affecting blood circulation

As we mentioned before, heat is one of the main causes that can cause foot swelling, however, it is not the only reason. The main causes that can cause peripheral edema, besides high temperatures, are the following:

• Lack of hydration: it may seem contradictory to hear healthcare personnel say it is necessary to drink more water when we have fluid accumulation. However, the explanation is simple: when the body does not have enough hydration, it retains the little fluid it has, thus causing peripheral edema.
• Poor diet: foods rich in salt such as ultra-processed foods increase fluid retention. Therefore, nutritionists recommend in these cases to consume more fiber, foods rich in magnesium, potassium, and water, such as fruit (watermelon, melon, pineapple, etc.) which will help regulate the electrolyte imbalance that causes fluid retention, drink infusions, reduce salt, etc.
• Excessive hours standing or sedentary lifestyle: both standing for many hours and sitting for many hours are counterproductive for our circulation since they cause excess fluid to accumulate in the lower limbs.
• Few hours of rest: sleeping approximately 8 hours is very important to avoid any type of illness. Specifically, for fluid accumulation it is essential because when sleeping in a horizontal position we suppress gravity and help the return circulation to do its job.
• Overweight: when a person suffers from obesity, the feet and ankles make more effort than usual to stand or walk. This causes an overexertion of our circulatory system, which little by little will perform return circulation worse than a person with an adequate weight.
• Hormonal changes: menstruation, menopause, or pregnancy cause an increase in fluid retention due to all the hormonal fluctuations that occur in a woman’s body.
• Injuries or trauma: when we suffer an injury it is common for inflammation to occur. Let’s take the case of an ankle sprain. Moments after a twist, the foot swells. However, in this case this swelling is not bad; it is a defense mechanism the body has to keep the ankle more stable. It is important that this swelling is controlled and never excessive.
• Use of certain medicines: if when you take certain medicines you suffer a worsening of venous return thus increasing fluid retention, it is advisable to see your doctor.
• Inappropriate shoes or socks. If you wear shoes or socks that are too tight, they cause some compression on the ankles and feet that can hinder venous return.
• Diabetes. Diabetic people are more prone to retain fluids and suffer infections in the feet.

How can SIZEN help you with the swelling of your feet?

Just as there are many causes that can cause an increase of fluid in the lower legs and feet, we can also reverse the situation by following a series of tips:

The first of these is to use the SIZEN pressotherapy system. Specifically, it is recommended to use mode 2. This choice is determined by its effectiveness in draining the excess accumulated fluid, helping the return circulation to do its job.

Mode 2 works by inflating chamber 1, then inflating the second, and so on until all are inflated, always maintaining the inflation pressure of the previous chambers. Once all are inflated, they deflate at the same time, and the process starts again.

Additionally, for swelling of feet and legs it is recommended to use the SIZEN PANTS (boots that cover from the feet to the groin) or FULL PANTS (which cover from the feet to the navel). Since we can also regulate the pressure and the minutes, we recommend the pressure be between 30 and 40 mmHg and a duration between 30 and 60 minutes. Regarding position, we should be lying on our back (supine) or sitting with legs stretched and feet at heart level.

Besides pressotherapy, we can carry out a series of routines closely related to the causes mentioned earlier:

• We should increase water intake (approximately 2 liters a day) and eat foods that contain it. Good hydration is of little use if you are a sedentary person, so… move! If you work many hours sitting, try to move occasionally and take a short walk. On the other hand, if you work many hours standing, also try to move your legs and promote return circulation.
• In free time, it is recommended to take walks and do sports because if we do physical activity, we increase the speed of blood and lymph circulation with the increase of heart rate. This speed increase helps promote venous return.
• On the other hand, taking contrast baths (cold and hot water) or directly immersing the feet in cold water causes vasoconstriction (narrowing of a vessel) in the veins, which is the opposite of vasodilation, the cause of foot swelling.
• Finally, we can also raise the feet when sitting or sleeping so that the excess fluid moves to more proximal areas and is finally absorbed.

In conclusion, we can say that it is true that high temperatures cause an increase in fluid accumulation in the ankles and feet due to the widening of the vessels, but it is not the only cause that can provoke it.

Thanks to SIZEN pressotherapy and changing a series of bad habits, we can reverse this situation.