Does exercising cause varicose veins?

USA Today (Society for the Advancement of Education), Feb, 1996

While you may like the way your legs look due to weight lifting or long-distance running, a strenuous exercise program might result in legs that are aching, throbbing, or restless after the exercise period stops, cautions D. Brian McDonagh, Vein Clinics of America, Schaumburg, Ill. Based on treatment of patients, he believes certain types of exercise exacerbate varicose veins.

Varicose veins occur when valves that push blood up toward the heart malfunction and blood flows backwards, enlarging the vein. Through the use of duplex ultrasound to study the diseased vein, physicians have observed that, when individuals with varicose veins hold their breath and bear down or undertake strenuous exercise which elevates abdominal pressure, backward flow of blood results. "If someone with varicose veins is doing situps or weight lifting, the additional pressure causes backwards flow of blood which, in time, will worsen the condition of the varicose veins."

It is not necessary to stop working out, though. Compression stockings worn during exercise temporarily can prevent blood from pooling in the veins. Walking and low-impact aerobics are good options that even provide temporary relief, because these activities help pump the standing blood out of the vein.