Many women complain of mild to severe
water retention during the summer months, during menstrual cycles, and during pregnancy. (Wouldn't it be nice to have it where you
could fill up your bra a little more if you wanted to? Ah well.)
Regardless of gender, standing or sitting for too long can also cause
water retention in the feet. For many
people getting rid of it is the question most heavily on their minds.
I used to experience extreme water
retention in my feet during the summer months.
It was not only an unpleasant sight to see my swollen feet and kankles,
but it hurt my skin. I spent many summer
days indoors with my embarrassing feet propped to relieve some of the
discomfort.
Since I have changed my diet, I no
longer experience that. However, I had a
friend at work complain about having water retention so badly that it prevented
her from breathing correctly as she had it in her chest. Some locations where the water can form are
life threatening when placing pressure on vital organs and restricting blood
flow. She made several trips to the emergency
room and doctor visits which also seem to be exacerbated in the summer
months.
I began doing this research for my
friend, but I also became interested in learning the reasons why my water
retention episodes went away. Did it
have something to do with my dietary changes and how can I keep it away for
good?
If you are reading this and you have
a severe case of water retention that requires medical attention please seek a
doctor. I am not one. I am just curious by nature and hope to
document my amateur findings for my personal use since I tend to forget. Feel free to use this as a means to ask your health
physician or doctor to look into specific areas of your health that he or she
may not have considered or you may not be aware of.
Sometimes water retention is
categorized under the medical term edema (or oedema), which is the swelling of
organs, skin, or other body parts. The
swelling is caused by excess fluid in the extracellular tissues. D.J. Hennager from Kirkwood University explains
the many ways edema can be caused.
Please watch both parts of his videos to understand this completely.
Part 1 of the technical
Part 2 of the technical explanation
Here are the most interesting preventative
measures I found.
Sodium
Lowering salt intake is a common
technique to manage water retention as it also relates to blood pressure. Check the back of the labels of any packaged food
you purchase. You never want to go above
600mg per serving. And depending on your
severity, you might want to lower that number more or just avoid eating
prepackaged food. Resist the urge to
salt your food and use herbs for flavoring instead. Train your taste buds to enjoy foods with
less salt.
Diuretics
Diuretics force water out of the body
through urination. You can buy and over
the counter water pill or get a prescription.
That will depend on how severely you need it. Only a doctor can determine that. Diuretics typically work on the general
population but not for stubborn cases. Diuretics
include caffeine you’d find in coffee or tea, celery, onion, watermelon,
asparagus, hawthorn berries, parsley, tomatoes, juniper berries, buchu leaf, and brussel sprouts. Lemons were also cited for their detoxing
effect. It is important to consume lots
of water while on diuretics. It seems
counter intuitive but it isn't.
Kidneys
Seek a nephrologist or renal
physician to have your kidneys checked if you are uncertain that they could be
the cause of water retention. It’s best
to have an answer from an expert. In the
meantime try not to damage them. They
can be damaged by excessive alcohol, dehydration, medications that are toxic to
the kidneys such as ibuprofen (according to the National Kidney Foundation), and
having chronic high blood pressure. The
kidneys can also be damaged by consuming excess meat and cheese which causes an
acidic reaction. Things reported to be good
for the kidneys are kidney beans, cabbage, apples, berries and herbs like uva
ursi and parsley. For many years cranberries were thought to
help the kidneys, but there is some recent controversy over that.
Blood Pressure (Hypertension)
Once again, I suggest you see a
doctor about any issues you may have with blood pressure. Get a commercial blood pressure device to
measure how you are doing on a daily basis.
Manage your sodium intake. I
personally use grapeseed extract to manage my blood pressure as was tested this
summer to prove it was working for me.
Other rumored things to help regulate blood pressure health is yoga, edemame,
l-taurine, garlic, and hibiscus.
Potassium
Potassium actually helps the body manage
salt intake which in turn helps blood pressure.
You can find potassium in bananas, potatoes, and tomatoes.
Wheat and Rice
Wheat and rice have a way of holding
water in the body. Be mindful of overindulgence
and have a rounded dietary plan
Infection
Often, swelling can be a sign of infection. You'll want to have your doctor inspect any suspicious swelling as soon as you detect it.
Most importantly, if you start to
feel better by doing something that your doctor has recommended or that you
decide to try on your own, don't stop. It
will and can come back. This is
something you'll have to manage on your own.
Good health is a lifelong commitment.
Additional Sources:
o http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Water_retention_(medicine)
o http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Water_retention_(medicine)
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