Varicose veins occur in millions of adults each year, with recent estimates suggesting one-third of the population around the world experiences them. When varicose veins take place, they present as bulging, twisted veins that are visible beneath the skin’s surface. For many, varicose veins appear as a dark blue or purple thread throughout the lower or upper leg. Although many think varicose veins are cosmetic issues, they can lead to other challenges over time.

When varicose veins are left untreated, individuals may start to feel uncomfortable symptoms. Pain, swelling, itchiness, and overall heaviness of the legs can and frequently does occur. These issues can make it more difficult to complete everyday tasks or continue a routine of physical activity at the same level as before the vein issues were present. For these reasons, many people want to know what they can do to prevent varicose veins from happening in the first place. The reality is there is no surefire way to stop varicose veins from occurring, due to the wide range of causes detailed below. However, specific steps can reduce the potential for varicose veins in certain people.

Understanding the Causes

According to specialists at a varicose veins clinic in the UK, when veins are working correctly, the blood flows throughout the body and back to the heart without any interruption or slow down. However, over time, vein walls can weaken, leading to blood flowing in the wrong direction as it is intended. When this happens, veins are larger than average, and this leads to varicose veins.

The causes that create vein issues and weaknesses are not entirely known, but there are a handful of risk factors that lead to varicose veins over time. These include:

Although not everyone who faces these challenges will develop varicose veins, the risk factors can make it far more likely that vein weakening will take place over the course of one’s lifetime. Fortunately, simple activities can help with the prevention of vein issues, even when risks are high.

Tips for Prevention

Preventing varicose veins often starts with lifestyle choices and changes. The most notable of these shifts involve the following tips:

Focus on diet – improving blood flow to help prevent varicose veins can be done by the foods we eat. Swapping out white flour bread for whole wheat can make a difference, as can reducing sugar intake over time. Some experts also suggest including foods with flavonoids from rutin, such as apples, grapes, buckwheat, and apricots, can help with inflammation that can lead to varicose veins.

Physical activity – getting the blood pumping with at least 30 minutes of physical activity is incredibly beneficial to keeping varicose veins at bay. This may involve walking each morning or evening, or taking a low-impact aerobics class. No matter the source of physical activity, experts agree that this helps promote healthy circulation throughout the veins as well as keeps weight down to a healthy level.

Compression stockings – for those who are at higher risk of developing varicose veins or individuals with poor circulation, wearing compression stockings may be helpful in the fight against vein weakening. Compression allows for a greater flowof blood throughout the body, helping reduce the potential for vein issues down the road.

Treatment Options for Varicose Veins

Although there is no singular method for preventing varicose veins among adults, the tips provided can be the first line of defense against developing painful, frustrating vein issues. However, if varicose veins do form, there is hope for managing the discomfort and treating broken veins effectively. The treatments available for varicose veins range widely, from at-home remedies like compression therapy and leg elevation to non-invasive surgeries like endovenous laser treatment, or EVLT. A vein specialist can provide the best-fit treatment for individuals with varicose veins after an examination of the veins in question.

Once the veins have been evaluated for severity and potential treatment plans, treating varicose veins is a straightforward process. If surgery is required, most individuals are home the same day as the procedure, and without much downtime for recovery. Before getting to this point, though, taking the simple steps above to heart can help keep varicose veins away.

Modern life is stressful. Everything happens at a thousand miles per hour, workloads feel higher than ever, and we always feel like we’re ‘switched on’. The rapid progress of technology hasn’t helped either; now we can receive work emails at any time of the day, and some of us feel like we’re obliged to reply to them. The gap between our personal lives and our professional lives has never felt smaller. We take our work home, and we take our home life into work too. Sometimes, it all feels like it’s getting a little bit too much.

Ten years ago, if you complained about stress becoming an issue, you’d have been told to take up yoga or meditation, but who has time for that? Taking time away isn’t always an option either; especially if the stress is actually coming from home. What you need is a ‘quick hit’ solution that drops stress levels there and then, and allows you to cool down and think about things rationally. That’s exactly what we’re going to give you right now. Here are five days to dial back stress when it’s becoming overwhelming.

1. Try The 4-7-8 Breathing Strategy

You don’t have time to meditate, and you probably couldn’t do so in the office anyway, but you do have time to take a second and breathe properly. Becoming conscious of your breathing, and breathing in a structured manner, is like a meditation shortcut. You get most of the benefits without having to spend time sat in the lotus position.

Simply sit back in your chair (or even on the floor if you’d prefer), and straighten your back. For the next four seconds, breathe in slowly. Once you get to four, hold your breath for seven seconds. At seven seconds, breathe out as slowly as you can, and try to keep breathing out for eight seconds. You’re breathing out for longer than you’re breathing in, and if you do it right, you’ll physically feel the tension leaving your body. It might take a couple of attempts to get it right, but you’ll be glad of it when you do.

3. Focus On One Thing

When you’re really stressed, what your mind really needs is a distraction from whatever’s pushed you to that level. It’s like you’re in a car, driving towards a wall, and you need to reach across and pull the steering wheel round to get back onto the road. You can force your brain to change course by telling it to focus on one thing, and one thing only.

It can be anything you like; whatever is easy to dial in on at the time. Become aware of your heartbeat, and start counting it. If you’re walking somewhere, focus on how each footstep feels. Notice the wind or the air moving across your face? Really be aware of it. Feel it. If it’s an option, take a bite of some food and put all your effort into noticing how it tastes. None of this solves the problem of whatever is stressing you out; it just cools your brain back down to a level where it can think about dealing with it.

4. Get It All Written Down

Quite often, stressful thoughts build up and spin around our head, going nowhere, but feeling like they’re getting faster each time. You need to get them out of your head so the process stops. Writing them down is the easiest way to do it. It might seem like you’re doing nothing but transferring the problem onto paper, but you’d be surprised at how much better it makes you feel. It’s almost like your brain treats writing the problem down as the first step in solving it, and relaxes to let you think more clearly.

Some people call this process a “brain dump”. It takes the emotion out of a problem or a frustration, and turns it into a simple fact written on paper. Because the emotion isn’t there, the issue looks easier to solve, and you may find that writing it down even helps you to start coming up with solutions. Nothing can be solved when it’s all locked up inside your head. Release it, and reduce the burden on yourself.

5. Stroke An Animal

We realize straight away that this isn’t a solution that’s open to everyone, especially in a work environment (although more and more businesses are bringing in official office pets for this exact reason). If you have a pet at home, go and spend fifteen minutes with them. If you don’t have a pet, and you find yourself becoming stressed often, then a pet might be exactly what you need.

Stroking furry animals actually releases both serotonin and dopamine into your brain. These are the chemicals that make you feel good. The more contact you have with a friendly animal that lets you stroke it, the better you’ll feel. The worst problem in the world can feel like nothing after fifteen minutes with a helpful dog or cat. It won’t make the stressful feelings go away forever, but it will reduce their impact for now, and when stress hits you hard that’s exactly what you need.

Disabled people have been forced to rely on a member of their family, friend or caregiver  to do things that they can no longer do but thanks to the recent advancements in technology the welfare of the disabled is changing for the better. They can do things that we’re once impossible and can use these skills to express themselves. A new exciting range of technologies has given the disabled the opportunity to control mouse movement with just their eyes. It’s not just about advances in technology though. The disabled are now able to sell and purchase approved Used Mobility Scooters which can save them up to 3,000.

Some of the technology we see and use on a daily basis can be used in different ways to help the lives of the disabled, such as using tablets to speak or using voice control to navigate mobile phones. The expense of these devices has worked in favor for both language and speech therapists. Apps including ‘Speak for Yourself’ allow therapists to work alongside disabled individuals to help then gain access to over 10,000 at the press of a screen. This has helped improve communication skills among people with autism. Parents and teachers have begun turning to tablets and other portable devices to help their children communicate effectively and practice their eye contact whilst learning new vocabulary. Apples assistive touch has also made room for those that suffer from a disability to use devices in a different way.

For those that are unable to type or use a touch screen, voice command technology gives them the opportunity to control their device with the use of their voice. Now, voice command technology is being used across an array of products, including cars and e-readers. Eventually, visually impaired individuals will be able to use devices equipped with GPS to guide themselves safely. In the future, they will be able to get themselves from A to B in cars that don’t require a driver.

This provides the disabled with self-confidence. Those that struggle on a daily basic with simple tasks we do without realizing start to lose self-confidence. They get frustrated with the fact that they are unable to do these things, whatever they might be, without assistance. This can result in the feeling of failure and even encourage depression. New technology brings that additional needed hope back into the lives of those that continue to feel disadvantaged and isolated from others. By helping them feel more independent rather than dependent; they can build a sense of achievement and be proud of what they have accomplished on their own.

More than 19% of the working population suffer from a disability and more than 10million of those live in Britain but thanks to technology, the world is changing for the better. The things we take for granted everyday are a step into the light for others. Mobile devices are no longer designed to make phone calls and to search the web; they provide disadvantaged people with the opportunity to communicate and feel as sense of freedom.