One of the best ways to fix your skin is by receiving a laser treatment. At Premiere Center for Health and Wellness in Cincinnati, OH, we can help you address your unwanted veins using the Cutera laser. Laser vein removal is a fast, easy way to get rid of unsightly veins.
What Is Laser Vein Removal?
As you grow older, some of your veins might become visible and twisted. Laser treatments can help reduce the appearance of these unsightly veins.
During laser treatment, light beams will be directed into the unwanted veins. During this process, the blood vessels in your veins heat up, causing damage to the veins and causing them to scar over.
This scar tissue causes your unwanted veins to close up. When these veins close, your blood will start flowing through healthier veins nearby. Eventually, your body will remove the veins entirely.
Advantages of Laser Vein Removal
Treating your unsightly veins with lasers has a number of key benefits. For one thing, the treatment is non-invasive: no skin is broken, no surgery is required, and there is no lengthy or difficult preparation or recovery period. The treatment is quick and effective.
This is also a great way to get rid of veins because it is pain-free, requires no general anesthesia, and allows you to get back to your normal life and schedule quickly. With your veins treated, your skin will look more youthful and uniform as the veins completely fade away. The laser can effectively treat spider veins and even large blue veins anywhere on the body.
Am I a Good Candidate?
The first step is to talk with us about your goals. We’ll help you review your medical history and condition and determine whether laser vein removal is the right step for you. If you have knotty and twisted varicose veins, another treatment will likely be best for you.
In general, you’re a good candidate if you’re reasonably healthy, don’t smoke, have realistic expectations, and don’t have a tendency to form keloid scars.
What Are Spider Veins?
Spider veins appear as small areas of discoloration that resemble small webs. Most commonly, they appear on the lower legs, but they can also appear almost anywhere. These veins are typically blue or purplish in color, though they can also be reddish.
The majority of these veins cause no pain or discomfort, but you may feel embarrassed or self-conscious as a result of them. Spider veins tend to lead to social withdrawal when people try to conceal them from view. This could even lead to you stopping activities you enjoy, such as going to the beach or swimming pool. The majority of spider veins are harmless. However, they may be an indication of a greater risk of developing varicose veins.
Why Have My Veins Changed Over Time?
The veins in your body contain valves that direct blood toward your heart. A healthy vein will allow your blood to flow in the right direction. The valves in your veins will struggle to move your blood toward the heart when they are weak or damaged. Sometimes, life itself and the general aging process are enough to weaken these valves. Other factors are involved too, however.
As your damaged veins accumulate blood, they will take on a blue, red, or purple appearance. In addition to appearing on your legs, these damaged veins can also appear on your face and elsewhere on your body.
When Am I More Likely to Have Vein Issues?
When You Are a Woman
Having weakened blood vessels is more common in women than in men, and the reasons are not entirely understood. Scientists guess that hormones have something to do with it, but that’s only a theory. These issues are also more commonly experienced by women who have experienced certain life events.
Pregnancy, for example, can cause hormonal changes that negatively affect your veins. You will also have more blood in your body during pregnancy. Veins in your legs will grow in size as a result, putting additional strain on your vascular system. Additionally, taking birth control pills can increase your risk of having vein problems.
You Are Aging
Weakened veins are more likely to develop as we age. As veins age, the valves in them wear out. Degrading valves make it more difficult for your blood to move in the correct direction, which can result in blood pooling in your veins.
When Your Family Suffers From Them
Your genes play a huge role in your vein health. It is more likely that you will experience this problem if you have weak veins like your relatives do, though it is not an absolute given that you will have the same issues or at precisely the same time.
For example, if a mother suffered from vein issues at an early age, her two daughters are also likely to experience vein issues at a similar age; yet if one daughter has children and the other does not, the childless daughter may not experience the same vein issues, or those issues may not show up until much later.
When Your Lifestyle Choices Are Hard on Your Veins
There are some lifestyle choices that can adversely affect your veins. Standing or sitting for a long time may cause your blood to have difficulty flowing. The human body was designed to walk, and the more you walk, the healthier your veins are.
You are more likely to develop damaged blood vessels if you spend long periods of time at a desk or standing still. Furthermore, smoking cigarettes increases your risk of vein problems as it puts extra strain on your circulatory system.
How Should I Care for Myself After Treatment?
Since this is not an invasive procedure, there is not much you need to do afterward. A healthy diet and exercise are important factors to lowering your blood pressure and protecting your skin, which will help your body as it sends blood from old, unwanted veins into healthy ones.
Note that these behaviors will also give you the best chance of avoiding more vein issues in the future. Since vein problems are related to genetics, gender, and age, it’s of course impossible to guarantee that any lifestyle changes will allow you to forever avoid developing spider veins in the future. But you can help your body and give it the best chance by doing or avoiding certain things.
Watch Your Blood Pressure
With Exercise
After your treatment, you should avoid activities that can put pressure on your stomach for 48 to 72 hours if your treated spider veins are in your legs or abdomen. Calisthenic exercises, resistance training, as well as cardio exercises, like jogging, spinning, swimming, or rowing, all fall into this category.
While you are recovering, however, you will benefit from some exercise. You should walk at least 30 minutes a day at a moderate pace. Keep this up for the two weeks after your vein treatment, and continue to take walks even when you go back to more robust exercise later. Walking is just good for us, period!
With Smart Food and Beverage Choices
The dangers of salt are overrated if you’re eating a healthy, natural diet. You can’t shake enough salt onto your food to really harm yourself. However, if you eat a lot of processed food, it’s an entirely different story. Processed food is very high in sodium, so cut back and start making your meals from fresh, whole foods.
Coffee and tea contain caffeine, which can temporarily elevate blood pressure. The degree to which it does so is influenced by a lot of things, such as your personal caffeine tolerance, your weight, and whether or not you have an empty stomach when you have it. Your best bet is just to cut back for a while. If you typically have three cups of coffee every morning, try having two and make the third decaf.
Avoid Activities That Can Dilate Small Veins
For a few weeks after your treatment, be sure to avoid too much heat. Don’t take a steaming-hot bath, avoid saunas, and stay out of the hot tub for a while. Talk to us about the best time to go back to these things.
Take Care of Your Skin
Be careful after having any laser treatment. Treat your skin gently! Avoid the sun if you can, and if not, be sure to religiously apply sunscreen to the affected area. Reapply sunscreen every four hours. Overexposure to the sun can cause hyperpigmentation, a discoloration of your skin. We recommend that you wear a broad-spectrum sunscreen of at least SPF 55 after your treatment for two to three weeks.
Is It Time for Laser Vein Removal?
If you want to be rid of the unsightly veins that are causing you to feel self-conscious, we can help. Regain your smooth, even skin through laser treatments: contact us at Premiere Center for Health and Wellness in Cincinnati, OH today and let’s get started!