Sitting in one place for too long can cause edema of the legs.
Edema is swelling or puffiness of parts of the body and is caused by water that gets trapped in the tissues of your body. Also known as water retention, it usually happens in the feet, ankles and legs. For reducing water retention, eat less sodium and salt. Ideally, reduce your daily sodium intake to about 1000 milligrams a day, until your water retention problem goes away.
The only way to achieve such a reduce sodium intake is to avoid processed foods and eat more fresh food. When buying packaged or canned food, always check the label for sodium content. Most important, do not add salt when cooking or eating food.
Choose alternative spices, or add lemon juice, or low-sodium chili sauce. A good diuretic herb is parsley.
•Drink at least 8 glasses of fluids, per day. Mineral water, grapefruit juice, cranberry juice and herbal teas (eg. nettle and dandelion) are good choices. Paradoxically, the more hydrated the body, the less water it retains.
•Aim to eat six small meals/snacks a day. Do not go longer than 3 hours without eating.
•Enjoy plenty of good diuretic fruits in your regular diet. The best are melons and citrus fruits. They are rich in potassium, which balances sodium and helps to eliminate fluid.
•Include lots of good diuretic vegetables in your daily diet. Choose leafy green, celery, cucumber, watercress, lettuce, tomatoes, peppers, carrots and onions. Like fruit, most vegetables are rich in potassium, which helps to maintain a healthy fluid balance.
•Include regular amounts of starchy wholegrain carbs in your daily diet. Some people find they do better on rice, pasta, couscous and potatoes, rather than wheat.
•Include unsalted nuts, seeds, bananas, wholegrain unsalted crackers in your snacks.
•Aim to take in 1200-1350 milligrams of calcium, per day, until your water retention eases. Two 8oz glasses of 1 percent milk (600 milligrams of calcium) plus one cup of low-fat yogurt (415 milligrams of calcium) will give you most of what you need.
•Substitute salmon, tuna, sardines or any other oily fish for red meat, at least twice a week. Oily fish has numerous health benefits, especially for women who suffer from PMS.
Diet plan to reduce water retention
Breakfast: A large bowl of chopped fresh fruit (eg. citrus, berries, melon), topped with 4oz/120g of low-fat bio-yogurt, sprinkled with seeds or chopped nuts.
Snack: Handful of unsalted nuts or seeds. One small banana.
Lunch: A salad of brown rice, slices of orange, sliced avocado, sliced cooked chicken, topped with chopped walnuts. Add vinaigrette, made without added salt and serve on a bed of lettuce leaves.
Snack: Handful of unsalted nuts or seeds.
Dinner: Portion of chicken baked with garlic and lemon juice, served with steamed broccoli and carrots.
Dessert: A slice of cantaloupe melon.
What is Edema? Edema is swelling or puffiness of parts of the body. It is caused by water that gets trapped in the tissues of your body. Edema usually happens in the feet, ankles and legs. It also can affect the face and hands. Pregnant women and older adults often get edema, but it can happen to anyone.
What causes Edema? Many things can cause edema. Sometimes gravity pulls water down into your legs and feet. Sitting in one place for too long can cause edema of the legs. Eating food with too much salt can make the problem worse.
Congestive heart failure and liver, kidney and thyroid diseases can cause edema. You cannot catch edema from other people. It does not run in families.
How do I Know of I Have Edema?Your doctor can tell by examining you whether you have edema. The skin over the swollen area may be stretched and shiny. Pushing gently on the swollen area for about 15 seconds will leave a dimple. If this happens, your doctor might want to do tests to see what is causing the edema.
What can I do to treat my edema? Edema cannot be cured. The only way to treat edema is to treat the condition that is causing it. The following are some things you can do to keep the swelling down:
•Put a pillow under your legs when you are lying down.
•Wear support stockings, which you can buy at most drugstores. Support stockings put pressure on your legs and keep water from collecting in your legs and ankles.
•Do not sit or stand for too long without moving.
•Follow your doctor’s orders about limiting how much salt you eat.
The common home remedies for water retention are:
Go into deep water: Exercising in the swimming pool will be an excellent remedy for curing this problem. This is due to the water pressure forcing out the excess water out of the tissues and into the bladder. It is advised to exercise gently in the pool at the temperature of 80 to 90 degrees F. if you are pregnant, avoid water above 100 degrees.
Avoid diuretics: Though diuretics are effective for the flushing out of excess water in people with heart, kidney or liver disease, they can also cause rebound edema. Continuous usage will activate the salt and water retaining hormones and when stopped, these hormones are activated and cause water retention.
Minimize salt intake: Avoid foods high in salt like hotdogs, burgers, pizzas etc. They contain very high salt content and the fluid released will remain in the body till kidneys have a chance to excrete them, which is about 24 hours.
Exercise continuously: Exercise has been shown to reduce water retention by flushing out water and salt through sweating, higher respiration and increased urine flow. If you have been sitting for a long time, walk up and down or climb stairs every hour. You can also try the following exercise: point the toes downward, then raise them up as high as possible which pumps up the calf and foot muscles. You can also raise your hands up overhead.
Increase fluid intake: Water moves through the kidneys and bladder thus diluting the urine. It becomes easier for the kidneys to flush diluted urine out along with the salt contained in it. Plain water is the best option, since juices, sodas and colas have salt content.
Sip on the herbal tea: Many herbs are slightly diuretic. Parsley is the best known one. Take two teaspoons of dried leaves for each cup of boiling water and seep for ten minutes. Drink three cups a day.
Lie down with feet up: Recline with feet up in the raised position. This will allow the fluid collected in the legs to go to the circulatory systems and from there to the kidneys for excretion.
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