When picking out what to wear for the day, we don’t think anyone ever says, “I’d really like to show off my varicose veins today.” The truth is that you shouldn’t have to worry about varicose veins, even though many people feel self-conscious about them. If you feel embarrassed about varicose or spider veins, we have stumbled on a natural remedy that can provide safe relief.
Roughly 50% of American adults have varicose veins, which are veins that become enlarged, dilated, and overfilled with blood. Generally blue or dark purple, varicose veins mostly occur in the legs and feet. Because veins only carry blood to the heart, they only have one-way valves, which means that blood cannot flow backwards. If the valves fail, blood can build up in the vein(s) and doesn’t flow back to the heart like it should.
Risk Factors For Developing Varicose Veins
- Poor circulation
- Obesity
- Genetics
- Constipation
- Standing for long periods
- Sedentary lifestyle
How Do Horse Chestnuts Provide Relief?
Aescin helps to strengthen venous walls, capillaries, and valves. People with varicose veins typically have a higher count of enzymes that weaken capillary walls. The aescin in horse chestnuts help to block these enzymes from multiplying. Horse chestnuts also help to improve circulation, working to prevent pooling in veins, because they contain Coumadin, which helps to thin the blood.
How To Make Horse Chestnut Oil
Horse chestnut oil is a great topical remedy for varicose veins. When you consistently use the oil, you should notice that your varicose veins shrink in size. As with any remedy be sure to check with your health care provider and make sure that you aren’t allergic to the ingredients.
Ingredients:
- Horse chestnuts
- Olive oil
- Measuring utensils
- Unbleached cotton cloth or unbleached paper coffee filters
Instructions:
- Grind the horse chestnuts to a fine crumble, or as fine as you can. You can use a coffee grinder or high-speed blender to do this step. You can also go the old-fashioned way and put the nuts in a bag and pound them with a hammer or meat tenderizer.
- Once you finish grinding the chestnuts, separate ½ cup of powder. Then measure out 2 cups of olive oil. Pour the ground chestnuts into the oil and stir well.
- Pour the oil in a saucepan over very low heat. You want to maintain an oil temperature of about 110 degrees Fahrenheit for about 2 hours to let the properties of the chestnuts infuse.
- Let the oil cool once the heating process is complete. Then use the cotton cloth or paper coffee filters to filter strain the oil into a glass jar.
- Now you have a remedy that you can apply 2 times a day. Massage the oil on your varicose veins for natural relief.
Vincent Stevens is the senior content writer at Dherbs. As a fitness and health and wellness enthusiast, he enjoys covering a variety of topics, including the latest health, fitness, beauty, and lifestyle trends. His goal is to inform people of different ways they can improve their overall health, which aligns with Dherbs’ core values. He received his bachelor’s degree in creative writing from the University of Redlands, graduating summa cum laude. He lives in Los Angeles, CA.
