Pregnancy symptoms reveal what part of a woman’s body that isn’t in optimal health.
Swelling (edema) during pregnancy in the hands, ankles, face, legs, or feet are a good indication that the kidneys aren’t functioning properly.
Other signs that the kidney may be congested are:
- Bags under the eyes
- Weight gain
- Fluid retention
- High blood pressure
- Back pain
- Frequent urination,
- UTI or burning urine.
Is Swelling During Pregnancy Normal?
More than half of pregnant women have swelling in their ankles and feet. Typically during the third trimester. This is due to water retention.
While the little baby grows inside, a woman’s blood volume and body fluid increases by approximately 50 percent. And when we become less active, due to our bodies expanding, the blood slows down and becomes stagnate. This will force the fluid from the veins into the tissues.
When the swelling moves into the hands and face, it warrants closer attention. If the swelling is severe and persists for more than a day, it could be a sign of preeclampsia.
Doctors will check to see if it’s accompanied by high blood pressure and protein in the urine. Without at least one of these two other symptoms, doctors aren’t usually worried.
What Affects Swelling During Pregnancy
When pregnant, the fluid in your body increases. Along with an increase in water volume is an increase in sodium. Sodium affects how your body is able to process and absorb water.
Other issues that tend to exasperate fluid retention are:
- Standing for long periods of time
- Hot weather
- Too much sodium in the diet
- Inadequate amount of potassium
- Caffeine intake
Importance of the Kidneys
Our emotions are connected to our kidneys. Ancient Chinese Medicine says a congested kidney affects the decision-making, and causes stress, anxiety, fear, and worry.
The kidneys are designed to eliminate waste from the body. They’re central to our fluid system. When our bodies become too acidic the kidneys become damaged, and as a result they stop filtering properly.
When the filtration system slows down acid waste begins to accumulate between the bladder and the kidneys. This becomes a breeding ground for bacteria.
Along with a clogged system comes fluid retention. Similar to how bath water pools at our feet when our hair is blocking the pipes. It might be draining very slowly or not at all. Then we end up standing in dirty water.
Gross, but true.
Constant clear urine is a good indication that your kidneys aren’t filtering properly. Urine should have sediment or cloudy particles. It’s a sign that the kidneys are doing their job.
How to Reduce Swelling During Pregnancy
For my first pregnancy I could have checked the box for every one of the symptoms I listed above.
Except high blood pressure. The nurses always marveled at its perfection. Which truthfully baffled me because I despise walking down the plain hallways and waiting in those cold and colorless rooms.
Unfortunately, I didn’t receive help from my hospital midwives for my swelling. I mentioned several times how much weight I gained in a short time and pointed out my severely swollen nose.
However, they didn’t seem to trust my self-evaluations. They told me I looked fine to them.
Here are a few of the basics to begin with when trying to fight swelling.
- Stay hydrated
- Take walks to keep your blood flowing
- Avoid eating junk food
Swelling in Legs and Ankles
Staying active during pregnancy helps keep fluids moving. Rest when you need to, but not for long periods of time.
Elevate your feet to assist with fluid circulating back to the heart.
Compression socks also do wonders for improving circulation. Make sure to wear a pair while traveling. The difference in how your feet feel upon arrival is amazing.
Also, as comfortable as it is, don’t cross your legs or ankles. This not only makes it harder for blood to flow freely, but causes the hips to become misaligned.
It wasn’t until post-labor that my midwife acknowledged the extreme swelling in my ankles. She recommended I soak my feet in an Epsom salt bath.
I put them into the water with swollen toes and stretched, red skin. 20 minutes later I had ankles again, and the swelling in my legs was completely gone. The difference was shocking.
Swelling in Hands
Drink water to flush out extra sodium, and limit the amount of salt ingested. It’s important to avoid table salt all together.
Instead, use pink Himalayan salt or Celtic Sea salt. These natural forms have the minerals needed to properly balance fluids.
Add baking soda, lemon, or apple cider vinegar as a way to alkalize the body as well.
Facial Swelling During Pregnancy
Even when I tried all the methods listed above, I still had issues with facial swelling during pregnancy. What helped the most with my puffy eyes and swollen nose were electrolytes and magnesium baths.
Allowing a majority of the body to come in contact with the magnesium oil drastically helped with all my swelling. As an added bonus, magnesium aides in gentle detoxification and is a powerful stress reliever.
Diuretics for Swelling
8 out of 10 women have clinical edema (swelling). When their condition makes the doctor concerned they will develop preeclampsia, diuretics are prescribed. This forces the body to release the fluid retention.
However, a side effect for diuretics is that they may cause damage to the kidney.
It really doesn’t doesn’t make much logical sense to me. Why prescribe a medication that hurts the organ that is causing the issue in the first place?
Other common side effects of diuretics are disturbed electrolyte balance, dehydration, which produce headaches, nausea, and diarrhea.
More serious side effects dropping potassium levels, which may lead to life-threatening heart issues.
Also, National Library of Medicine reports,
“The (women) prescribed diuretic drugs delivered infants of higher mean birthweight and had significantly higher incidences of induction of labor, stimulation of labor, uterine inertia, and meconium staining. Their (maternal) mortality rates also tended to be higher.” (1)
Get Stress Off the Kidneys Naturally
The best way to reduce swelling during pregnancy is to get stress off the kidneys.
The tips I listed above are a quick and easy fix, but they don’t ease every woman’s pain.
If your kidneys are severely congested extra steps will need to be taken. Try eating only lean meats. These include chicken, turkey, and salmon.
Depending on the severity of congestion, lean meats may need to be eaten only a few times a week.
Dairy is also hard on the kidneys when they aren’t functioning properly. Great replacements are almond and coconut products. Be careful with the ingredients when you choose these products.
The best course of action is to make your own. If time restricts the ability to do this, there are coconut milk in cans. Check for BPA free lining.
Work on gently cleansing the kidneys with fruit. Fruit is a simple sugar and easy to break down. Berries, watermelon, citrus, and grapes are best. For vegetables, radishes and cucumbers are great as well. They work to hydrate and alkalize the kidneys.
Take Away
Swelling is very common for women during pregnancy. But just because something is common, doesn’t mean it’s normal.
We have to stop excepting the constant pains of pregnancy as a standard expectation. Instead, we need to focus on living a healthy and active lifestyle.