|
Edema and
Vitamins
By Frank Will
Edema and vitamins, is there any possible
connection? Could a mineral deficiency also be the cause; and
why is it considered a symptom and not a disease or a
disorder?
If you suffer from it there is a very
good chance that you do not view it as a symptom as it
actually hurts and concerns you. To you it is a disorder. This
condition can be a lot more serious than most people realize
as it could have several underlying and potentially very
dangerous causes. But it can also be a deficiency of both
vitamins and well as some minerals.
Also known as dropsy or fluid retention,
this condition is often overlooked by many people as simply
standing, driving for too long, or eating too much salt or
sodium. But your body should be able to maintain a normal
balance of fluid if every thing is functioning properly.
What is Edema?
Edema is a swelling that is caused by
excessively large amounts of water that has been caught in the
spaces between the body's cells or in the circulatory system.
Under normal circumstances the body is able to maintain a
natural balance in the tissues and it adjusts the flows so
that the same amount of water that enters your body also
leaves the body.
This is done literally every second as
the circularity system transfers fluid throughout your system
through blood vessels. This fluid is made up of both oxygen
and nutrients that are vital to these cells to keep them
operating properly. Their normal function is to move fluid
from the walls of the blood vessels and into tissues.
After the nutrients have been completely
used up, the fluid than moves back into the blood vessels and
return the pump, which is the heart. This system is often
referred to as the lymphatic system as it carries a fluid that
contains white blood cells that fights infection and is called
lymph. Lymph is also as system of vessels that works in thin
capillaries in almost every major organ in your body except
the brain and the bones.
When this retention of fluid occurs, one
of two things have happened; either too much fluid has been
moved into the tissues, or not enough has been moved. As a
result it causes swelling that can range from mild to severe
and can affect one part or several parts of the body.
There are several underlying potential
causes as well for this condition, but way to overlooked is
the role that nutrients play in the process. If severe, it
could also be caused by the vessels leaking fluid.
This leakage often occurs by damage to
the capillaries because of the pressure of the fluid itself.
When your body senses this damage, it sends a signal to your
kidneys to retain more sodium and water than it normally would
to offset the loss of the fluid in the blood vessels.
With leakage, the excess fluid puts even
more pressure on the capillaries which cause them to leak and
the result are swelling in places other than the limbs.
Symptoms:
The most common symptom with Edema will
be swelling that occurs in your feet, ankles, or the legs. If
the swelling is severe enough it could painful and actually
have a burning sensation. But it is not always just the legs
that are affected.
In some cases where there may be leakage,
it can also affect the face causing puffiness as well as
abdominal bloating. This can lead to muscle aches and pains
and if very severe, it may lead to difficulty in breathing.
What are the causes?
In the majority of cases Edema is caused
by either sitting, driving, flying, or standing for too long
without moving. Eating too much salt may also be the culprit.
However, in more severe cases in could
move out of the symptom stage into an underlying stage that
could be caused by a reaction to medication, an injury,
allergies to certain foods, high or low blood pressure; or
something more serious such as kidney, heart, liver, or a
thyroid disease.
Treatments:
In mild cases salt restriction will be
recommended, as well as walking more often, elevating your
legs, or even placing pressure sleeves directly above the
swollen limbs to try to get the body fluids back to a normal
state.
In the more severe cases, medications
will be used as well as diuretics such as loop diuretics or
potassium-sparing diuretics. However, these treatments do
reduce the fluid retention, but they also deplete several
critical vitamins and minerals that may ultimately harm the
bone mass in your body, but could also be the real cause of
the condition.
If you go back to the originating factor
in what causes Edema, it is the loss of nutrients in the body
in the attempt to balance the water. Could it be possible that
the reason the entire process malfunctions to start with is
that you may have a vitamin or mineral deficiency?
Vitamins A and C help the body with
maintaining the structural and functioning processes of the
capillaries and in doing so helps keep the fluid balanced.
Vitamin E has also been well established on its critical
functions with the circulatory system. These vitamins become
even more effective when combined with Bioflavonoids.
Bioflavonoids are natural plant
substances that help to both stabilize as well as strengthen
the cell walls and improving the blood flow which allows the
lymph system to balance the fluids as well as maintaining the
proper drainage. If the fluids drain properly, it reduces the
chances of leakage occurring.
The minerals potassium, calcium, and
magnesium also play a critical role in fluid retention as they
work in conjunction with these vitamins and increase your
body's ability to move the fluid in and out of cells and than
back in again; and this is the key to keeping the lymphatic
system balanced.
Summery:
Most all of us will experience Edema at
some time in our lives. Understanding how your system works in
this delicate water balancing process as well as some very
simple and inexpensive nutrients can help the process; as the
entire problem starts with the loss of these nutrients.
Several of these nutrients can be found
daily in the food that we eat, but if you suffer from this
condition that is referred to as a symptom and not a disease,
are you getting enough of these nutrients. Supplements are
very easy and very inexpensive, as well as a lot safer than
other treatments.
I am an avid lover of pets and my wife
and I have had several pets throughout our years. We are
especially fond of dogs, and we have a 12 year old Dalmatian
(our 3rd) and a "mutt" that we rescued when someone threw him
away to die in a vacant field. He found us, nearly starved to
death, and weighed about 2 pounds. After severe bouts of mange
and severe dehydration, and over 1,000.00 in veterinarian
bills, we saved the little guys life, and he is one of the
best, if not the best, dogs we have ever had and today is a
muscular, fit, and firm 70 pound best friend.
After finishing my MBA, which at middle
age was not easy, I decided to keep the research work ethics
that I acquired, and devote about two hours each night in
understanding the health benefits of supplementation for both
humans and pets and how they might strengthen our, as well as
our pets, immune system in a pre-emptive approach to health
rather than a reactionary approach. Both of my daughters are
avid cat lovers, and asked me to help them with health
concerns and challenges with their cats. I am not a
veterinarian nor claim to be, just a lover of pets that loves
to research and pass on some knowledge that might be helpful,
or at least stimulating to the thought process. Several of the
articles that I have written can be found on my website:
Liquid Vitamins & Minerals for Humans & Pets
http://www.liquid-vitamins-minerals-humans-pets.com/ |