Do Your Veins a Favor, Doctor Warns: Uncross Those Legs

Mama may say it’s the right thing to do, but forget good manners and uncross those legs.

Sitting like a proper lady or gentleman interrupts the flow of blood to the heart and may promote varicose veins, according to one expert.

One in four adults has vein problems, although women are four to 10 times more likely to develop them, said Dr. Luis Navarro, a surgeon who runs the Vein Treatment Center at Beth Israel Medical Center in Manhattan.

Varicose veins are twisted and enlarged veins that are typically close to the surface of the skin but can affect deeper blood vessels.

“Crossing the legs is like second nature for most women and some men too,” Navarro said. “It’s a bad habit and one of the first things you should learn to undo if you suffer from varicose veins.”

Why? Crossing the legs slows the upward flow of blood and increases pressure inside the veins, Navarro explained.

It doesn’t matter if you cross at the knee or the ankles, Navarro said. Both are bad, although he said knee-crossing puts more stress on the venous system.

Melissa Kaplan, 23, who sat reading, cross-legged, recently at Rockefeller Center in Manhattan, said she had “no idea there was any connection” between the way she sat and a possible health risk.

“Truthfully, I wasn’t even aware I was doing it,” she said.

“It’s more comfortable, but a woman who crosses her leg also looks more like a lady,” said Liza Sholl, 29, who munched her lunch nearby, her legs properly crossed.

Navarro said half of women over age 40 suffer from varicose veins or spider veins, which are less serious breaks in smaller, surface veins.

The cause is unknown, but genetics is a key factor. Between 60% and 80% of people who have varicose or spider veins have a history on their mother’s side, Navarro said.

Normally, valves in the blood vessels help prevent blood from flowing backward. But for women, changes during pregnancy and the effects of high-estrogen birth control pills can reduce the valves’ ability to close, allowing blood to pool in the vessels and the veins to become varicose.

Diet, obesity, age and a sedentary lifestyle also can contribute.

Advanced cases are treated with surgery, but for many, simple lifestyle changes can prevent other varicose or spider veins.

“Exercise is the first and most important thing to do,” Navarro said. People who sit eight hours a day with their legs crossed will have a greater chance of developing varicose veins if there is a genetic factor, he said.

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Use Those Legs

Some tips on how to keep leg veins strong and healthy:

* Exercise. Walk, walk, walk.

* Don’t sit for long periods of time. Take small walking breaks.

* Rotate the ankles and flex the toes while sitting.

* Eat a high-fiber diet to avoid constipation.

* Elevate legs six to 12 inches above the heart while sleeping.

* Try to maintain an ideal weight.

* Wear mild compression stockings if your job (as a cashier, for example) requires you to stand in one place with little movement all day.

Dr. Luis Navarro, head of the Vein Treatment Center at Beth Israel Medical Center in New York / Associated Press