Your veins have the important job of carrying blood from all areas of your body back to your heart. The veins furthest from your heart, typically in your lower legs, have the toughest job because they must fight gravity and your own weight to move blood to the heart. When you’re overweight or obese, it adds even more pressure on the veins in your lower legs.

It is estimated that one in every 3 adults in the United States is obese or overweight. Obesity contributes to major diseases including diabetes, heart disease, and high blood pressure. Excess body fat is also a leading factor in developing varicose veins. Obesity puts extra pressure on the leg veins and their valves. This makes it harder to pump blood against gravity back to the heart. Effective valves in the leg veins are important because they prevent blood from flowing backwards and pooling in the legs. Over time the added stress of extra body weight can cause the valves to fail. The resulting back pressure can cause the vein branches to expand and become varicose veins.

At Vascular Care Specialists of Los Angeles, Dr. Mathew Cheung and Dr. Peter Lin discuss how weight gain or obesity can cause vein problems especially varicose veins. In this article, you will learn the connection between obesity and varicose veins.

Your veins are an important part of your body’s circulatory system. They carry blood back to your heart after your arteries carry it out. Veins have one-way valves that open and close to move blood toward your heart.

If the valves become damaged, they no longer work effectively. Blood flow decreases if a valve doesn’t open all the way. As a result, your blood may pool in the veins, putting pressure on the vein walls. If the valves in your veins aren’t opening and closing as they should, the blood can flow backward. The condition is called chronic venous insufficiency (CVI).

CVI can occur in both superficial veins close to your skin and deep leg veins embedded inside your leg. CVI most often occurs when you’ve had a leg injury which led to a blood clot, or if you have varicose veins.

Varicose veins are part and parcel of CVI. When the valves in your veins are damaged, the veins grow larger and can protrude from your skin in a long, twisted, raised ridge down your leg. These are varicose. Any vein close to the surface of your skin, called a superficial vein can become varicose, and cause CVI. The superficial veins in the legs are most commonly affected because standing increases pressure on those veins.

If you’re overweight, you’re more likely to develop varicose veins.  Along with standing for long periods, excess weight puts stress on your veins. Just as the extra pounds put tremendous pressure on your knee joints, they also put pressure on the valves in your veins. Eventually, the valves may fail.

Excess fat on the legs may hide varicose veins. Obesity can also cause CVI in veins deep inside your legs, causing painful ulcers which take months to heal.

All of the following are symptoms of CVI:

• Pain in your legs, feet, or ankles
• Swelling of your legs, feet, or ankles
• Leg cramps
• Varicose veins
• Numbness in your legs
• Itching on the legs
• Restless legs
• Legs that feel weak and heavy
• Ulcers on your legs

Chronic venous insufficiency is often painful and may become disabling. If untreated, the chronic venous disease may lead to two dangerous conditions: (1) a blood clot in a vein in your leg which can eventually travel to your heart, or (2) a pulmonary embolism, which is a blood clot in the lung. Both of these conditions are life-threatening.

When your veins visibly swell, you develop a condition known as varicose veins. Continued pressure on your veins can slow your blood flow and cause additional symptoms such as:

• Leg cramping
• Restless leg syndrome
• Itching and burning of veins
• Swelling in your legs, feet, and ankles
• Persistent aches and heaviness in your legs

Symptoms tend to be more severe in the evenings, especially if you’ve been on your feet all day. In addition to the discomfort of varicose veins in men and women, fluid can build up in your legs, causing damage to the tissue. Being overweight can worsen these symptoms, making it difficult to walk and perform other activities.

The added pressure on your leg veins is only part of the problem when it comes to your weight’s effect on your veins. As fat continues to build up around your waist and behind your knees, it starts to squeeze your organs, placing stress on the surrounding blood vessels and limiting blood flow to your heart.

When weight goes unchecked, the pain and swelling caused by varicose veins make it difficult for you to be physically active. In turn, this makes weight loss more problematic. If you can’t be active, you’re likely to gain even more weight.

To temporarily relieve the pain and other symptoms of varicose veins, you can simply sit with your legs elevated when possible. This helps to move blood to your heart more efficiently.

For the long-term, it’s best to undergo weight management techniques to reduce excess fat and achieve healthy body weight. Exercising and eating a healthy diet are two key habits that you should incorporate into your life as soon as possible. Losing any amount of weight will increase the efficiency of blood flow in your veins and take off some of the pressure.

If varicose veins make it too difficult for you to achieve your weight loss goals, you can ask your physician to provide treatment to alleviate symptoms and treat unhealthy veins. In some cases, treatment is as simple as wearing compression stockings to facilitate blood flow to your heart.

1. What Happens To Blood Vessels When You Lose Weight?

Losing weight can improve the health of blood vessels by reducing inflammation and oxidative stress. It can also lower blood pressure and improve blood sugar control, which can reduce the risk of developing conditions that damage blood vessels, such as diabetes and hypertension.

2. Does Losing Weight Increase Blood Flow?

Losing weight can improve blood flow by reducing inflammation and oxidative stress, lowering blood pressure, and improving blood vessel health. This can lead to improved circulation, a reduced risk of blood clots, and improved overall cardiovascular health.

3. Does Weight Loss Cause Veins To Show?

Weight loss can cause veins to appear more prominent or visible in some individuals, particularly in the arms, hands, legs, and feet. This is because there is less subcutaneous fat and more muscle tone, which can accentuate vein visibility.

At Vascular Care Specialists of Los Angeles, we strive to provide the best service, care, and results possible. If you are interested in varicose vein treatment, give us a call at 626-275-9566 to schedule an appointment. You can also visit us at www.vcsla.com for more information.