Your usually active lifestyle is apt to come to a screeching halt when swollen feet take over. They not only make it difficult to walk, but their pain can also keep you awake at night. You can gain relief and rest easy using home remedies for swollen feet. In most cases, swollen feet are merely a result of water retention, not getting enough exercise or having a sedentary lifestyle, but they can also be connected to more serious kidney or liver conditions for which you need to consult a healthcare professional
1. Coriander Seeds
An excellent home remedy for gaining control over swollen feet comes from consuming coriander seeds. Often used in Ayurvedic medicine, coriander seeds contain anti-inflammatory properties and also help to improve circulation.
What to do:
- Add 2 or 3 tsp of coriander seed to 1 ½ cups of boiling water
- Boil until the quantity of water is reduced by half, strain out the seeds and allow the tea to cool.
- Drink this tea twice a day until swelling subsides.
2. Apple Cider Vinegar
This is also among the most effective swollen feet home remedies. Apple cider vinegar’s high potassium content helps to reduce fluid retention while also helping to decrease inflammation.
What to do:
- For topical application, mix equal amounts of raw, unfiltered ACV and warm water. Soak a towel in the solution, wring out the excess liquid and wrap the towel around your swollen feet for 10 minutes. Repeat this remedy several times daily.
- For consumption, add 2 Tbsp of raw, unfiltered ACV to a 12 oz. glass of warm water and drink this first thing every morning.
3. Magnesium
Swollen feet can also be treated through the consumption of magnesium. Because magnesium deficiency often leads to edema and inflammation, having a sufficient amount of magnesium in your diet will correct the issue.
What to do:
- Add or increase the amount of dark leafy greens, nuts, seeds, cold-water fish, avocados, bananas and dark chocolate you consume on a regular basis to enhance the level of magnesium in your system.
- Magnesium also comes in supplement form, but it should not be taken without the advice and supervision of a healthcare professional because of its potential side effects and interaction with other medications.
4. Exercise
Because a lack of exercise is often responsible for helping to produce swollen feet, exercise is a logical home remedy to take into consideration. Exercise stimulates circulation and prevents the pooling of blood and fluids in your lower extremities, thus ridding you of the inflammation.
What to do:
- Swimming is one of the best forms of exercise for swollen feet as it not only helps get your blood flowing, but the soaking in water tends to help relieve pain and inflammation.
- Enjoy walking or cycling for 30 minutes 5 days a week.
- Stretching, elliptical machines and other low-impact, lower body workouts are also helpful.
5. Avoid Sitting for Long Periods of Time
A sedentary lifestyle also tends to cause and contribute to continuous and more profound swelling, so another logical home remedy for swollen feet is to avoid sitting for long periods of time. Sitting for long periods of time reduces proper circulation in the lower leg and also causes fluids to pool in your feet.
What to do:
- While working, watching television or other activities in which you are seated for a long period of time, try to get up and walk for a minimum of five minutes every hour.
- You can also place a tennis ball under one foot and roll it around for about five minutes while you’re seated, and then move it to the other foot and repeat the process. Repeat this several times per hour while you’re sitting.
6. Hydration
It would seem that hydration would add fluids to the swelling, but the opposite is actually true. Dehydration allows for the buildup of salt and other toxins in your bloodstream which leads to inflammation, but hydration dilutes the salt content and helps to flush out the toxins, making it an essential swollen feet remedy.
What to do:
- Drink a 12 oz. glass of water first thing in the morning to start your day off right, and then at least 12 oz. of water in every 2 hour period throughout the day.
- Herbal teas and bone broth can also be added to your hydration regimen for some added benefits.
7. Limit Salt and Caffeine Intake
If you are serious about getting rid of swollen feet, then you will probably have to makes some difficult lifestyle changes by limiting your salt and caffeine intake. Both of these substances tend to contribute to increased inflammation.
What to do:
- Replace caffeine-loaded beverages with beverages without caffeine or with significantly reduced amounts of caffeine.
- Opt for other forms of seasoning besides salt when seasoning your food or make use of limited amounts of Himalayan or sea salt, which have lower concentrations of sodium.
8. Dandelion
Though in your yard it is considered a pesky weed, dandelions have some excellent properties which make it a potent remedy for swollen feet. Dandelion helps your body to metabolize excess fluids and reduce water retention. In addition, dandelion is known to help detoxify the liver and kidneys, which hold an essential function related to inflammation. If those characteristics weren’t enough, dandelion also helps to regulate the sodium levels in your body.
What to do:
- Add 1 Tbsp of fresh or dried dandelion leaves to 1 cup of boiling water in a mug.
- Cover the mug and allow the tea to steep before straining out the leaves and drinking the tea.
- Another remedy makes use of 1 Tbsp of finely chopped dandelion roots, which you will simmer in 1 ½ cups of water before straining and drinking.
- You can repeat either of these remedies 2 to 3 times daily.
9. Lemon Water
Swollen feet can also be treated through the consumption of lemon water. Lemon water helps to bind toxins and free radicals and flush them out of the body. The reduction of toxins helps to reduce inflammation and regulate fluid retention.
What to do:
- Extract 2 Tbsp of juice from a fresh lemon and add it to 12 oz. of warm water.
- You can sweeten it with a little bit of raw honey if necessary.
- Drink this lemon water several times a day.
- You can also add 1 Tbsp of lemon to a quart of your daily drinking water to enhance its flavor and encourage yourself to sip on it all day.
10. Ginger
Among the best herbal home remedies for the treatment of swollen feet includes ginger. Ginger has natural anti-inflammatory properties and also helps to regulate sodium levels in your blood system.
What to do:
- You can massage your swollen feet with 2 to 3 drops of ginger essential oil in 1 Tbsp of olive or coconut oil.
- As an alternative, you can drink 2 to 3 cups of ginger tea daily or chew on peeled, raw slices of ginger between meals.
11. Epsom Salt
Soaking your feet in warm water with Epsom salt is a traditional swollen feet remedy which really works. Magnesium sulfate, which is the true chemical compound of Epsom salt, is easily absorbed through the skin and delivers the anti-inflammatory qualities of magnesium directly to the affected area. In addition, soaking in Epsom salt helps to increase circulation in your feet.
What to do:
- Dissolve ½ cup of Epsom salt in a foot tub filled with warm water.
- Soak your feet in the tub for 15 to 20 minutes daily.
12. Massage
A home remedy for swollen feet, which everyone can enjoy, is a foot massage. Massage creates pressure over the affected area in order to relax the muscle pain, improve circulation and encourage the drainage of excess fluids that have pooled there.
What to do:
- After soaking your feet in warm water or a warm bath, use warm mustard oil, olive oil or coconut oil and add a few drops of ginger oil or grapefruit essential oil if you like.
- Gently massage the affected area for 5 minutes on each foot in an upward direction. Avoid applying too much pressure.
- Repeat this remedy a couple of times daily.
13. Contrast Hydrotherapy
A treatment for swollen feet, which is simple, but effective is contrast hydrotherapy. Alternating between warm and cold water helps to reduce swelling (cold water) and stimulate circulation (warm water), which will work at reducing inflammation in the affected area.
What to do:
- Fill 1 foot tub with warm water and another with cold water.
- First, soak your feet in the warm water tub for 3 to 4 minutes, and then immediately move them to the cold water tub where you will soak them for a minute.
- Continue alternating between the tubs in this manner for 15 to 20 minutes.
- Repeat this remedy a few times per day.
14. Grapefruit Essential Oil
An essential oil which is quite effective as a swollen feet home remedy is grapefruit oil. Grapefruit essential oil not only helps to cool and soothe the pain, but also has anti-inflammatory properties to get rid of the swelling.
What to do:
- Make use of 3 to 4 drops of grapefruit essential oil added to olive, mustard, coconut or sweet almond oil as a massage oil blend for the massage remedy discussed earlier.
- You can also add 6 to 8 drops of this oil to your warm water soak to enhance the potency of the contrast hydrotherapy remedy.
15. Barley Water
Though many have been using barley water as a weight reduction aid, it is also quite effective as a home remedy for swollen feet. Barley water is an excellent diuretic which helps to flush out toxins and regulate sodium levels in your bloodstream, thus reducing inflammation.
What to do:
- Make barley water and consume it 2 to 3 times daily.
Conclusion
If you are suffering from the discomfort of swollen feet at night or not getting around quite like you used to, then it is time to take control of the problem and gain some relief. Fortunately, by making use of one or several of the 15 home remedies for swollen feet, which we have discussed above, you can when the battle over swollen feet and be right back into the swing of things in no time. Please don’t forget to add your questions, comments, additional remedies and success stories in the section provided below.
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