The Truth About Spider Veins
As you age, you may develop small blue, red, or purple veins on the surface of the skin, dubbed Spider Veins. These can show up on the legs or face. While these are not as prominent as varicose veins, they may still be an unwanted area of focus. What causes spider veins to form, how can you prevent them, and how can cosmetic medicine help you to diminish their appearance?
What Are Spider Veins?
Let’s start at the beginning with a simple question – what exactly are spider veins?
Spider veins are caused by excess blood pooling in a vein. This sounds scarier than it truly is. If veins have difficulty passing blood through them, they simply reroute by way of other vein branches. However, blood can pool in these veins and cause them to bulge. These small, visible vein lines under the surface of the skin are called spider veins.
Spider veins are not the same as varicose veins! Varicose veins are typically larger, deeper, lumpier, and more noticeable than smaller, finer spider veins.
Spider veins can result from a number of different catalysts:
- Pregnancy
- Genetics
- Hormones
- Spending long amounts of time on your feet
- Carrying excess body weight
- Sun damage
Spider veins are most frequently seen in women, especially as they age, and it is very often a trait passed down through the family line. Spider veins are seen with time or with aging. These veins are no reason for a medical concern, but there are still ways to prevent or diminish these veins from making unwanted appearances.
How Can You Prevent Them?
There are several simple practices you can put in place to help prevent spider veins from forming. Consider wearing compression garments like tights or compression socks to provide extra pressure and blood flow in the legs. Pay attention to your dietary intake, as well. Limiting extra weight on your legs can help to prevent negative pressure.
Stretching, deep tissue massage and other techniques to move circulation in the legs might help. For those of you able to do them, the inversions of yoga (eg: shoulder stand) can help as well.
To prevent facial veins, make sure to wear sunblock daily, even when you are not getting direct sun exposure! This helps to protect your skin from damage that can lead to broken blood vessels and spider veins.
Historically, spider veins in the face caused by excessive alcohol consumption have been called ‘gin blossoms.’ Avoid chronic excessive intake of large amounts of alcohol to prevent these.
Should you require cosmetic medical treatments, there are a few options to choose from.
Laser therapy in the face and legs utilizes a small beam of focused light that targets the vein, and causes it to clot and dry up.
This is a simplification of the science behind chromophores and light therapy. This is a fairly aggressive form of treatment.
Sclerotherapy is another option.
Your specialist will inject a saline solution into the vein, causing it to close, shrink, and ultimately vanish. While this is invasive, it is a very effective and accurate way to diminish these signs of aging.
Talk with your aesthetic and wellness specialist to find the best method of treatment for your spider veins!
Erase Your Spider Veins At Smooth By Sarah
If you need help erasing your spider veins, our specialists at Smooth By Sarah are here to help! Contact us today to schedule an appointment for sclerotherapy or laser vein therapy to smooth and soften the appearance of veins in the face or legs.
Meet Sarah Balladares
Sarah Balladares is your expert in aesthetic medicine. She is trained in minimally-invasive anti-aging treatments and modern cosmetic medicine and is prepared to help you find your solutions for facial rejuvenation, spider vein therapy, IV therapy, and more.
Contact Sarah today to schedule a consultation and begin your own aesthetic journey.
