I’m sure you have all heard of or seen what varicose veins look like. They are those unsightly blue veins that pop up usually on the leg. Some people are more prone to them because they run in their families, or get them when they are pregnant, but another main cause of these painful, enlarged veins are- you guessed it, not enough fibre! What happens is when you have a low fibre diet, it is harder to release bowel movements. This extra effort and strain increases the pressure in the abdomen, with slows down the blood flow into the lower part of your body. This increased pressure can over time weaken the walls of the veins, leading to varicose veins and even hemorrhoids! The take away message here is make sure you eat a diet rich in vegetables, fruits, legumes and whole grains to promote a healthy gut!
From the Condensed Encyclopedia of Healing Foods, pg: 914
Here is a high fibre meal idea that will keep you going! I make it all the time, try it, I’m sure you’ll enjoy it!
Lentil salad
-one can lentils ( be sure to rinse thoroughly before use)
-one can of corn
-one tomato diced
- one half of a cucumber diced
- one diced pepper ( any colour of your choice)
-1 tbsp lemon or lime juice
-1 tsp cumin
-2 tbsp balsamic or red wine vinager
-2 tbsp unsalted, dry roasted sunflower seeds
-1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
- pinch of salt… lots of pepper
Preparation:
Make certain that all of your vegetables are cut up to around the same size.
Mix all ingredients together in a large bowl and chill before serving. Try substituting a bowl of this for lunch one day! To complete the protein, add cheese cubes or serve with a glass of low-fat milk.
Sick of lentils? Substitute chickpeas or a chickpea-fava bean mixture!
A nice addition to this salad, especially in the summer is halved grapes and a little goat milk feta cheese . Refreshing! Or maybe you want a little kick, if so try a pinch of red pepper flakes or tabasco.
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Hey Gillian,
Thanks for posting about varicose veins. They do run in my family, so knowing that increasing my fibre intake could help limit how bad they get, or maybe prevent them all together, is very helpful! I wouldn’t have guessed the fibre could help decrease the risk of varicose veins!
Hey Isabel!
Last holiday season, when I wasn’t eating as well as I usually do, I started getting these really bad pains on the side of my legs. This pain was like a “knocking” pain, I couldn’t figure it out. So I started doing some research and came across an article about low fibre diets and varicose veins. It made perfect sense, because I wasn’t eating my regular high fibre diet, because I was doing a lot of holiday baking (and eating).
I found this so interesting, and I just wanted to share this with everyone!
thanks,
Gillian
who would have thought that fibre could help with varicose veins. varicose veins is very common during pregnancy so being recently pregnant its great to know that eating fibre may help to prevent these. Cant wait to try out the recipe, sounds delicious:)
Hi Gillian,
That Lentil salad looks like a very tasty recipe. I haven’t tried it yet, but I love lentils, so I am going to give it a shot.
Do you recommend any additional dressing, or are the two tablespoons of balsamic vinegar and 1 tablespoon of extra virgin olive oil enough?
Thanks again for the recipe, and you have an amazing blog/website!
Ali Zaki
Hello Ali,
Yes you can really put any dressing you would like. Another favorite of mine is:
Dijon vinegarette
1 tsbp Dijon Mustard
1 Tbsp Lemon juice,
2 tsp olive oil
1 tsp white wine vinegar
1 tsp sugar or any sweeting agent of your choice
1/2 tsp salt
Pepper to taste.
Preparation:
1- Blend all ingredients well and fold into salad.
Hello Shira
I know! Fibre never ceases to amaze me… so many benefits. I hope the recipes turn out!
Thanks,
Gillian
Hi Gillian,
Very intersting. Never knew that about varicose veins.
The recipe sounds delicious – I’ll definitely have to try it.
Varicose veins and fibre are not something that I ever would have thought went together! You learn something new everyday! Very interesting post.