Fluid retention: causes and how to avoid it in 8 remedies

It is possible that at some time during the summer days you have felt heavy legs, swollen feet and hands and even a little pain. It is about the retention of liquids, that annoyance that affects us for different causes but that fortunately we can avoid.

An important part of our body weight is water that our body needs, but when for some reason the system that regulates it loses its balance, fluid retention and swelling occur, especially in us women. We tell you what it is and the best remedies to remove it.

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Why do we have fluid retention

Fluid retention is the accumulation of water in the tissues of our body, which occurs when there is an imbalance in the regulation of this water and we did not delete it correctly. Although men can present it, fluid retention especially affects women.

Symptoms of fluid retention are weight gain, which is especially noticeable in the legs and abdomen, swelling in the legs, abdomen, hands and feet, pains and even cramps in the legs, which also feel tired and heavy, also causing you to feel a bit weak.

If you have these symptoms, you should pay attention to them, because although fluid retention is not a serious health problem, when it persists it can be a sign of some type of disease.

However, causes of fluid retention include different factors which can include: hormonal changes, especially in pregnancy and the days before having our menstruation, medications such as contraceptive pills, prolonged situations of stress, a sedentary life, the climate and atmospheric pressure, lack of rest, unbalanced diet, excess sodium in the food we eat and insufficient water intake.

How can we avoid fluid retention

Fortunately there are small changes we can make in our day to day and in our diet, which can not only help us avoid fluid retention, but can also improve your well-being in general.

Thus, when factors such as the change in environmental temperature, menstruation or that you get pregnant, these are the only reasons why you can retain fluids, and to a lesser extent measure.

1. Drink your 2 liters of water a day

Sometimes we may think that it is better not to drink a lot of water, so that the water that we have retained comes out, but this is false. In fact, if the body feels dehydrated, it will hold on as much as possible to the water reserves you have.

Our body needs 2 liters of water a day to stay balanced and work well, and you can ingest it in the form of water, infusions, tea and soups, in addition to the water supply that fruits and vegetables give you during the day.

Now, there are some girls who consume a lot of water during the day and still retain fluids. If this is your case, we tell you that sometimes the cause of fluid retention is the excess water that we ingest during day, as the kidney reaches its capacity to process it and what remains inside after this limit is retained in the tissues.

In that case try reduce the amount of water you drink for a few days to the exact 2 liters of water, and see if you find improvement.

2. Decrease the amount of sodium you consume

We get sodium from salt and we also find it in sauces, some cheeses, processed foods, and canned foods. When we have a lot of sodium in the body, this becomes the cause of fluid retention, so it is vital that we control the amount of sodium we consume.

Many times this happens when we consume a lot of light products. We prefer them because they have fewer calories, but many of them have alarming amounts of sodium.

3. Avoid consuming a lot of sugar during the day

The same thing happens with sugar. When we consume it in large quantities we have an excess of glucose that makes us retain fluids, because by osmosis the water is dragging.

In this sense, and if you constantly suffer from fluid retention, it is best to stop taking soda pop, avoid refined sugars and simple carbohydrates, as well as sweets and fast food.

4. Includes more potassium

Potassium helps us to reduce fluid retention because acts on the water balance of our body, counteracting the effect that salt and sodium have on the body. Spinach, avocado, bananas, chard and potatoes are some of the foods that provide you with potassium, so don't forget to include them in your diet to improve.

5. To move the body

Having a sedentary life in which we spend a lot of time sitting and doing little activity is one of the causes, so one way to avoid fluid retention is to be more active.

Simply start by meeting a daily goal of 10,000 steps or take a 30-minute walk at a brisk pace at the same time. return from work, to oxygenate the mind and make your body (especially your legs) move and move the water that there is held. Of course, do not forget to stay hydrated.

6. Rest

Have you noticed that when you sleep for a few hours, for whatever reasons, you wake up bloated, with bags under your eyes and tired? Well, our body really needs its hours of rest so that everything in it works well and the proper processes are done while we sleep.

Lack of rest also dehydrates and causes you to retain fluids, so you need to start by regulating your sleep schedules.

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7. Goodbye to very tight clothes

We are not saying that you can only wear baggy clothes then, but tight jeans are very different from ones that you have to put on pressure. When our clothes are too tight, puts pressure on the body and causes us to have poor circulation, resulting in fluid retention.

8. Includes food and draining plants

If you are having fluid retention, it is best include foods that are naturally draining in your nutrition. For example, choose fruits such as pineapple or melon, drink green tea and include infusions of horsetail or of dandelion between your two liters of water a day, to help you stimulate the elimination of excess Water

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