Natural Healing: Prevent Varicose Veins

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Herbally Healthy Veins

Before you try these more extreme treatments, you might want to give herbs a chance. A general step is to consume plenty of foods rich in flavonoids, the water-soluble pigments that give plants their color. These compounds tone veins and protect them from inflammation and oxidative damage. Food sources are numerous and include berries, citrus fruits, parsley, red grapes, green tea, red wine and red cabbage. Several studies have shown a mixture of citrus bioflavonoids called rutosides to be helpful in treating varicose veins. Bilberry extract (Vaccinum myrtillus), which is rich in flavonoids called anthocyanosides, can also be helpful.

Horse chestnut (Aesculus hippocastanum) is the most popular herbal treatment for varicose veins in Germany. The herb’s active component is thought to be aescin. Extracts of the seed of this tree counter inflammation, tone and protect veins, scavenge tissue-damaging free radicals and block enzymes that break down supporting tissue. Horse chestnut extract (containing 50 mg per day of aescin) works as effectively as physician-prescribed compression stockings. An analysis of 13 studies judged horse chestnut extract a safe and effective treatment for varicose veins.

According to the German Commission E (the regulatory body overseeing medicinal herbs), the initial dosage is usually 250 mg twice daily of an extract standardized to contain 20 percent aescin, or 313 mg twice daily of a 16 percent extract. Either way, you take about 100 mg of aescin daily. Once symptom relief is noticed in a week or two, the dose can be halved. Controlled-release, enteric-coated forms of the supplement minimize stomach discomfort.

Horse chestnut is not recommended for people with liver or kidney disease. You shouldn’t take this herb in combination with blood thinners such as warfarin (Coumadin). Safety during pregnancy and nursing has not been established.

Gotu kola (Centella asiatica) is a tropical plant that enhances the integrity of blood vessels and speeds wound healing. It keeps small vessels from “leaking,” thereby decreasing swelling. One study compared two different doses (120 mg per day and 60 mg per day) of gotu kola extract and a placebo over a two-month period. Another study compared placebo treatment to 90 mg per day (30 mg three times daily) and 180 mg per day (60 mg three times daily) of gotu kola extract. In both studies, the herb was more effective than the placebo and the higher dose outperformed the lower dose. Thrice-daily topical application of gotu kola extract is also helpful.

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