What makes feet swell

Hormonal shifts also get some of the blame. During pregnancy, your body produces the hormone relaxin , which causes pelvic and foot joints and ligaments to relax and enlarge. Foot swelling tends to get worse as pregnancy progresses, especially toward the end of the day and when the temperature outside is high. Usually the swelling is nothing to worry about. But if it comes on rapidly, especially in your hands and face, call the doctor. This could be a sign of a potentially life-threatening condition called preeclampsia, which leads to rapid-onset high blood pressure that can be dangerous to mother and baby.

Compression stockings can help too, as can exercise, putting cold compresses on your feet, and sleeping on your side. Add swollen feet to the list of health-related side effects of being overweight or obese.

For weight-related swelling, see your doctor to rule out other causes, then consider making changes to your eating and exercise habits so some of the extra weight comes off. Maybe you sprained your ankle during a gym workout, or you overextended yourself while running or playing with your kids and ended up with a stress fracture of the leg or toe.

Injuries like these will cause swelling in and around your feet. But in the meantime, it can make your foot seem extra-large. Surgery on your leg, ankle, or foot also causes swelling. Your doctor will likely recommend that after the procedure, you control the swelling by elevating your feet, icing the area, and refraining from putting any weight on the limb or foot.

You know how bloated you can feel the week before your period? That waterlogged feeling is the normal result of hormone fluctuations after ovulation, when premenstrual syndrome sets in. PMS can also be to blame for swollen feet, if it happens at this point in your cycle. Hormonal changes triggered by hormonal contraception or hormone replacement therapy can also contribute to swelling in various parts of the body, including your feet. Hormonal contraception and hormone replacement therapy aren't the only meds that can cause foot swelling.

So can many other drugs, and usually for different reasons. Pills to control blood sugar in people who have diabetes —like Avandia rosiglitazone or Actos pioglitazone —make it harder to get sodium out of the body, which leads to swelling. The heart drugs known as direct vasodilators can also cause it. Examples are Loniten minoxidil and Apresoline hydralazine. Calcium channel blockers widen blood vessels by relaxing the muscles in vessel walls. This can also cause foot swelling, as can angiotensin receptor blockers, which prevent sodium from being flushed out of your body.

Those drugs are available only by prescription, but over-the-counter meds are to blame for swelling too. Nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs like ibuprofen Advil, Motrin can make swelling worse in people who already have heart or liver failure because they cause the body to hold on to sodium. Other drugs can cause your feet to swell without any obvious explanation.

Foot swelling that hurts could be caused by a skin infection. Having the bacterial infection cellulitis on the feet and legs could be behind it. If you have diabetic neuropathy, a common complication of diabetes that affects nerve function, an infection might be hard to notice. Certain diseases, among them lupus and rheumatoid arthritis , also increase the risk of a foot infection. Common causes of swollen ankles, feet and legs Swelling in the ankles, feet and legs is often caused by a build-up of fluid in these areas, called oedema.

Oedema is usually caused by: standing or sitting in the same position for too long eating too much salty food being overweight being pregnant — read about swollen ankles, feet and fingers in pregnancy taking certain medicines — such as some blood pressure medicines, contraceptive pills, antidepressants or steroids Oedema can also be caused by: an injury — such as a strain or sprain an insect bite or sting problems with your kidneys, liver or heart a blood clot an infection Check if you have oedema Symptoms of oedema include: Swollen or puffy ankles, feet or legs.

Do lie down and use pillows to raise the swollen area when you can get some gentle exercise, like walking, to improve your blood flow wear wide, comfortable shoes with a low heel and soft sole wash, dry and moisturise your feet to avoid infections. Non-urgent advice: See a GP if your ankle, foot or leg is swollen and:. Urgent advice: Get advice from now if:. Other ways to get help A GP may be able to treat you. Although swelling of the feet and ankles can be a minor problem, it can also be an indication of more serious illnesses such as heart failure, renal failure, or liver failure.

Painless swelling may affect both legs and may include the calves or even the thighs. The effect of gravity makes the swelling most noticeable in the lower part of the body. Injury or surgery involving the leg, ankle, or foot can also cause swelling. Swelling may also occur after pelvic surgery, especially for cancer. Long airplane flights or car rides, as well as standing for long periods of time, often lead to some swelling in the feet and ankles.

Swelling may occur in women who take estrogen, or during parts of the menstrual cycle. Most women have some swelling during pregnancy. More severe swelling during pregnancy may be a sign of preeclampsia , a serious condition that includes high blood pressure and significant swelling.

Swollen legs may be a sign of heart failure , kidney failure , or liver failure. In these conditions, there is too much fluid in the body, and it collects in the legs.

Never stop taking any medicines you think may be causing swelling without first talking to your health care provider. Your provider will take a medical history and do a thorough physical examination, paying special attention to your heart, lungs, abdomen, lymph nodes, legs, and feet.

Your treatment will focus on the cause of the swelling. Your provider may prescribe diuretics to reduce the swelling, but these can have side effects. Home treatment for leg swelling that is not related to a serious medical condition should be tried before drug therapy.

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