Addressing the rising prevalence of leg and foot problems in modern society through awareness and preventive measures for better overall well-being
In olden days, people who used to sit every day for long hours were generally shopkeepers. Government employees were also supposed to sit in office chairs. Most of them would suffer from one or the other leg problem. Now the time has changed. As new professions and jobs are emerging in the private and corporate world, our young generation is gradually becoming a victim of various types of foot and leg problems due to long hours of sitting every day in the office.
Surprisingly, in our country, people are adopting a lifestyle where, sooner or later, they are bound to suffer from problems of the leg or feet. People sit for long hours in front of television sets. Housewives spend at least 4 to 5 hours every day watching various types of TV serials. More than housewives, even working women, after office hours, watch at home for at least 3 to 4 hours every day. In our country, video games and other attractive content available on computers and mobiles hold back children and youths from going to playfields for physical games and exercise. In a nutshell, watching television and excessive use of computers in our country are detrimental to the health of feet and legs. In our country, jobs in call centers and BPO are also playing havoc with the health of feet.
How does your lifestyle affect your feet?
If you have accustomed yourself to a sedentary and exercise-free lifestyle, due to your economic prosperity, or if you happen to be in a job where you are required to sit for long hours, believe me, sooner or later you will suffer from problems of the legs and feet. Prolonged sitting for hours disturbs the drainage system of the legs and feet because the muscular pump of the leg and foot stops functioning properly. This change in functioning damages the feet in two ways. Firstly, deoxygenated used-up blood pools in large quantities in leg veins for a longer time than the optimum duration. This leads to mild pain, fatigue, itching, and gradually increasing pain. Secondly, blood naturally gets clotted in leg veins due to prolonged staying in the feet. That’s why prolonged sitting produces several problems in the legs. For example:
Pain and Swelling in the Leg Can Appear Suddenly
Sitting for long hours in front of a computer without any exercise can threaten your feet and life as well. Blood clots will deposit in the veins of your legs. This is called, in medical language, D.V.T. (Deep Vein Thrombosis). If prompt treatment is not initiated in time, your life may be endangered. Lack of early and prompt treatment will lead to a life-threatening complication called “Pulmonary Embolism.” In this dangerous condition, blood clots staying in the leg veins slip upwards from the legs and reach the lungs via heart chambers, and thereafter these blood clots choke the main blood vessels of the lung. If timely treatment is not done, death is inevitable sooner or later. Therefore, consult a vascular surgeon immediately if your leg develops sudden swelling along with pain.
Leg Swelling May Become a Permanent Feature
If you have been sitting every day for a long time, the drainage system of the leg gets disrupted and deoxygenated blood starts pooling in the lower part of the leg and foot as it fails to reach upwards toward the heart. It harms in two ways; firstly, leg swelling gradually develops due to pooling and stays back. Secondly, the incomplete return of venous blood to the heart leads to more forceful pumping of the heart, thus increasing the possibility of raised blood pressure in the individual.
Black Spots Start Appearing on Feet
Daily sitting for long hours results in leg pain and the appearance of black spots or round black-colored skin patches near and above the ankle. Such people frequently complain of almost no swelling in the morning, but as the day progresses, swelling starts appearing in their feet. This problem is predominantly present in those people who are either overweight or sit for hours in shops or spend a large amount of time in the office sitting in front of computers. This condition is called, in medical terms, C.V.I. (Chronic Venous Insufficiency). Therefore, whenever black spots start appearing on the feet, consult a vascular surgeon promptly, not a skin specialist.
Appearance of Blue-colored Veins
Whenever any person does not walk every day or is not in the habit of a daily morning walk, and besides sits for long hours every day, the drainage system gets disturbed and the valves situated at regular intervals inside the vein stop functioning. Thus, lifting of the blood upwards fails, and pooling of blood in leg veins starts. When accumulated deoxygenated blood crosses the normal limit, veins situated underneath the skin swell with blood, and small blue-colored veins start appearing on the skin of the leg. If an affected person does not change their daily routine and does not promptly consult a vascular surgeon, these spider-like varicose veins enlarge in size and become a cause of bleeding.
If You Do Not Change Your Daily Routine
You can face two problems: firstly, blue-colored veins start enlarging in size and eventually burst open, leading to excessive and sometimes torrential uncontrollable bleeding, even necessitating hospitalization. Secondly, a sufferer of varicose veins suffers from severe incessant itching and pain in the lower leg and feet. If itching continues, oozing of yellow-colored fluid from that area of itching begins. This yellow-colored fluid spreads over a surrounding nearby area, leading to an eczema-like condition, and finally, it results in an infected and non-healing ulcer. People out of ignorance go to a skin specialist. Therefore, people should take leg swelling seriously and consult an experienced vascular surgeon.
Remedial Measures
- If your daily routine, either at home or office, requires sitting for long hours, take a break after one hour of sitting and walk for 5 to 10 minutes inside the house or office and then sit and start your work again. This process of taking a break from sitting should be repeated every hour. Homemakers who sit for long hours in front of the TV or females who sit for long hours working on computers in the office or in other organizations should strictly follow this practice of taking a break every hour.
- Those people who sit for long hours in shops or due to job compulsions must walk every day, especially in the morning after getting up and in the evening after dinner. If they do not develop the habit of regular walking, they will eventually suffer from one leg problem or another. Therefore, walk daily for 5 to 6 kilometers.
- People who have sitting jobs in the office or workplace must control their weight. Avoid fatty and oily food items.
- Do ankle exercises (up & down) for 5 minutes every hour while sitting in the office.
- While sitting, keep your feet a little elevated. Put a small stool underneath your feet in place of work.
Dr. K.K. Pandey is a Senior Vascular & Cardio-Thoracic Surgeon at Indraprastha Apollo Hospitals, Sarita Vihar, New Delhi.
Dr K.K. Pandey
dr********@***il.com