How to Help Poor Blood Circulation

Poor blood circulation can be dangerous to your health by putting you at risk for heart attack, stroke and a number of not so pleasant ailments. For this reason, we should try to do whatever we can to keep our blood circulation flowing normally and not take our body for granted.

Instructions

• 1

  Poor blood circulation is something that we can avoid if we make an effort to do so. After all, if we think that our body will be healthy on its own then we're only kidding ourselves. These days many people have hectic busy lifestyles that wreck havoc on their bodies.

  The symptoms of poor blood circulation are discoloration of skin, feet/ hands fall asleep, swelling in extremities, infections heal slowly, burning numb sensations, cramping/aching in legs and feet as well as varicose veins.

• 2

  If you have been having these symptoms it's time to do something about them before you have serious consequences. The first thing you need to assess is weight; being over weight can cause bad circulation. In addition, high cholesterol can be a problem by creating blockage in arteries. Consequently, weight loss and healthy foods would be the solution.

  Additionally, sitting for extend periods of time can cause poor blood circulation. For example, a job where you sit at a computer all day could be a problem. Therefore, you need to get up and move around as much as possible, elevate legs and wear compression hosiery or socks.

• 3

  Exercise is another great way to increase blood circulation. It doesn't have to be strenuous all you need to do is an activity you enjoy such as a team sport, walking, swimming, cycling, or dancing. The goal is to keep moving and not be sedentary.

  After your workout it's good to take a shower and alternate between hot and cold temperatures to increase circulation. However, you don't need to do it quickly just gradually switch back and forth the entire time, then when finished massage the body as massage also increases circulation.

• 4

  Don't underestimate the benefit of massage when it comes to increasing blood circulation. Any time you have the chance to get one then do so. Furthermore, if you have a sauna or hot tub, both of these are excellent ways of helping poor blood circulation.

  It's also a fact that smoking hinders circulation. Granted, most people know smoking causes a number of health risks and this is yet another one. As mentioned above, poor circulation is dangerous and can sneak up on you, so don't blow it off, but instead do something about it.