Have you ever felt numbness on your feet or legs? Are your legs showing a bluish tinge color? Do your wounds take a long time to heal? If you answer “Yes” to all these questions, you may be suffering from poor blood circulation. Switching to a healthier lifestyle and nutrition are supposed to help you resolve this health issue. But wearing compression socks will greatly improve circulation of blood within your feet and legs.
1. Problem With Blood Circulation
Did you know that 90% of leg problems are caused by blood getting stuck within the veins of your legs and feet? Poor blood circulation in your feet and legs can lead to a number of severe medical conditions including varicose veins and deep vein thrombosis (DVT). DVT is caused by blood clot from the leg’s veins travels to the lungs and blocks blood flow. This medical condition is the cause of up to 100,000 deaths in America each year.
2. How do Compression Socks Increase Circulation?
From the word itself compress, compression socks add pressure on your legs and feet. Their primary purpose is to increase the pressure within the tissues under your skin. This pressure helps facilitate the smooth flow of blood through your veins and arteries. As veins push deoxygenated blood from the organs back to your heart, the arteries get oxygen-rich blood from your heart and distribute them to the different organs of your body.
As blood circulates, it often slows down when it reaches your legs and feet because they are farthest from your heart. As part of the process, the veins in your legs have valves that will prevent deoxygenated blood from flowing back because of the force of gravity. However, when abnormal alterations have caused your veins to expand, the valves will not work correctly, and blood may collect and clot within your legs. This will weaken the valves and will cause the blood flow to be disrupted.
So how will blood circulations increase with compression socks? Compression socks put pressure on the tissue muscles and vein walls, restoring them to their natural diameters, which will then cause vein valves to shut correctly. Contracting the veins to their proper diameters will ensure increased circulation of blood within your legs.
3. Why do Compression Socks help Circulation?
There are many different reasons why people use compression socks. People diagnosed with varicose veins and deep vein thrombosis will have significant improvement of their blood flow by wearing compression socks throughout the day. Furthermore, pregnant women, people with diabetes, and people recovering from surgery may also find wearing compression socks beneficial to their medical conditions.
Athletes who wear compression socks will have increased circulation in their legs which means that their muscles will get the necessary oxygen needed during physical activities. Likewise, the proper circulation within the legs will ensure that the leg muscles will recover quicker after a workout.
4. Choosing Compression Socks
While wearing compression socks will help increase blood circulation, purchasing one without a diagnosis may lead to problems instead of solutions. Therefore, it is best to consult with a doctor first to determine how much compression you will need, especially if you are diagnosed with conditions caused by poor blood circulation.
What should you consider when choosing compression socks?
- Purpose. This will guide you in choosing the correct compression ratings according to your needs. If you are wearing compression socks to treat a medical condition, then you should buy a pair prescribed by your doctor. However, wearing a 15 – 20 mmHg compression sock is safe for daily activities and won’t need doctor’s prescription.
- Measurement. Reaping the benefits of wearing compression socks is all about getting the correct size. It’s very important to take note that getting the correct size should not only be based on your shoe size but you should also consider getting your calf circumference. This ensures the correct size that corresponds to your legs and feet.
Unisex
8-15 mmHg