If you are used to having cold hands and feet and a constant tingling sensation in different extremities, needle-like pricking, numbness, or muscle cramps, it may be that you do not have very good blood circulation.
This means that the cells and tissues in your extremities are not receiving sufficient blood flow, and therefore little oxygen or nutrients. Also, since the blood carries excess waste and toxins, we can have an idea of the problems that might befall us if the problem lasts a prolonged amount of time.
Symptoms of Poor Circulation
As we have already mentioned, our extremities suffering low temperature, feeling pricked as with needles or simply tingling are the most commonly known symptoms, but some others are presented in the following:
- Numbness in the arms and legs.
- Pain and cramps in the hands and feet.
- Swelling in the legs.
- Slow healing of sores on the hands and feet.
- Cracks on the feet and hands.
- Loss of feeling in the extremities.
- Migraines and headaches.
- Blue coloring in the fingers and nails.
- Appearance of varicose veins.
- Itching in the arms and legs.
- Gluteal and leg cramps.
- Loss of strength in the hands and feet.
- Difficulty in walking.
- Dizziness when standing up.
Possible Causes
Causes of poor circulation can be diverse – slipped discs, muscle spasms due to poor posture, inflammation, exposure to low temperatures, and many others. The first thing we should do is to seek medical attention to diagnose the cause, and from there, we can decide which natural alternatives we can put into effect.
Sometimes our bad habits, like alcohol abuse, too much caffeine, taking drugs or strong medications, lack of postural health, nutritional deficiencies or excessive stress, can cause a deficiency in blood circulation in the extremities.
On other occasions the causes can be due to more serious health complications like obstruction of the peripheral arteries, ateriosclerosis, Raynaud’s phenomenon, coronary disease, heart arrhythmia, kidney failure, lung infection, diabetes, hypertension, or obstruction of the blood vessels by blood clots.
