This is how your health suffers if you spend all day standing

• This deteriorates your body by spending eight hours sitting every day
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We are tired of reading that spending so many hours sitting will end up killing us. Experts do not stop alerting us that 'sitting' is the new 'smoking', a global pandemic that undermines our health slowly but surely. But what happens if our problem is just the opposite? How does our body suffer if we spend most of our day standing?

"Standing, without walking for a long time, causes a bad lymphatic and venous return to the heart . The liquid component of the tissues accumulates in the lower areas of the body following the laws of gravity, due to the absence of muscle movement ", says Juan Fontcuberta, head of the Angiology, Vascular and Endovascular Surgery Department of the Sanitas La Moraleja University Hospital (Madrid).

Why? Dr. Fontcuberta explains: " When walking we flex the joints of the leg and ankle , as well as the sole of the foot, due to the contraction of the muscles. It is these muscles that, when contracted, cause a massage on the veins and lymphatic vessels , so that they push the venous and lymph blood up, that is, towards the heart. "

Normally, older people are those who "tolerate long periods without mobility worse." Especially if other pathologies such as "obesity, osteoarthritis or any other disorder that affects mobility" are associated. There are also medical problems of the elderly that make these symptoms worse, such as heart or kidney failure.

What pathologies can trigger? " The absence of activity and spending long periods of standing still can contribute to the development of venous or lymphatic insufficiency , which can be manifested by the appearance of venous dilations in the form of varicose veins or edema, which mainly affects the foot and ankles. accumulation of fluids distends the skin and can generate, in advanced cases, cellulite outbreaks, dermatitis or the appearance of skin ulcers . "

What symptoms should we take action on? "Usually the first manifestation consists of a sensation of heaviness in the legs and edema in both feet and ankles , with an increase in diameter in these areas. The socks leave a mark on the skin and the footwear can disturb certain areas of the foot," Fontcuberta clarifies. .

PREVENTION AND TREATMENT

The best way to prevent these problems is "maintaining a certain degree of activity in the muscles of the legs." This specialist recommends " performing intermittent exercises , such as repeatedly standing on tiptoe or simulating gait without advancing, which can help maintain venous and lymphatic return , since the calf and foot muscles contract effectively."

Likewise, "the use of compression stockings in certain exposed professions, such as waiters, guards, guards, etc., helps reduce symptoms and prevents complications." . As a general rule, in these cases, " average compression degrees to the knee, groin or waist are used , depending on the user's preferences".

The ideal footwear to cope with this situation should be " comfortable enough to allow good foot mobility . If possible, elastic ; that it is not too tight and has a sufficiently wide last. The use of heels is not prohibitive, but should have low height to avoid chronic deformities of the joints of the fingers and the sole of the foot, "he clarifies.

What do we do if the dreaded varicose veins appear? "The first thing to do is go to the specialist in Angiology and Vascular Surgery to study them using a venous echo-Doppler. Through this test, which is like an ultrasound applied to the circulatory study, the anatomy and functioning of the veins is understood and the best treatment option is sought, "recommends the head of the Angiology, Vascular and Endovascular Surgery Department at the Sanitas La Moraleja University Hospital (Madrid).

Each venous anatomy and each patient requires a personalized treatment . "Nowadays there are very little aggressive techniques that solve these problems with radiofrequency, lasers, adhesives or sclerosing foams . They can be done in a single time or in several different ones, alone or combined with each other, in an operating room with anesthesia or outside it. definitively, there are many options, all of them valid as long as they are carried out after a good diagnosis and are well applied by a specialist ".

According to the criteria of The Trust Project

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