When I woke up, my face became bigger, my legs became thicker, and I struggled to grip my fists. Was it because I drank too much water before I went to bed, which led to swelling? In fact, edema is divided into two types: physiological and pathological. It is not necessarily caused by drinking water. Distinguish what causes can "suit the case"!
Legs, face and abdomen are the most prone to swelling
When it comes to edema, we should first talk about how it comes from. Edema, which is called edema in medicine, refers to edema visible on the body surface. It can be seen that the main cause of edema is "water". Traditional Chinese medicine says "water is called runxia". The word "runxia" clarifies the flow form of "water" in the human body. The skin, muscles and organs of the human body all need the water (blood, lymph, tissue fluid) in the body to supply oxygen and nutrients, so the flow of water in the body is like a river "infiltrating" the land, from a large river to a small tributary, and constantly "infiltrating" the surrounding soil (that is, our tissues and organs) in the process of the river running; The word "down" illustrates the movement trend of "water" in the human body. It is the so-called "water goes down". Under the action of gravity, the water of the human body can easily run to the whole or part of the lower part, and it needs great efforts of the heart "pump" to transport back to the high place.
The more the surrounding soil is loose and the flow rate is slow, the more water seeps into the soil. Similarly, the more slowly the blood flow is, the more easily the surrounding tissue is loose, the more likely it is to edema. Therefore, the common edema in our daily life mainly occurs in the lower limbs, abdomen, cheeks and eyelids, which are all in the whole or local droop and/or loose skin and tissue, where there is tissue gap, and the water in the blood vessels permeates and stays in these spaces, just like the "water bag" hanging on the face, stomach and leg, and it becomes edema when observed from the body surface.
Six common reasons to see if you are "swollen"
There are many reasons for facial eyelid edema in the morning, which can be pathological or physiological. There are several common reasons for physiological edema:
Drinking too much water can indeed lead to edema in the morning. The amount of urine excreted by the human body at night is relatively reduced. The water that is not excreted through the urine is more "infiltrated" through the blood circulation to the place where it is easy to hang the "water bag", which leads to edema.
Drinking alcohol can also lead to edema. When alcohol enters the human body, it will expand blood vessels, increase vascular permeability, make the water in the blood vessels more easily "infiltrate" outside the blood vessels, and increase the possibility of edema. At the same time, the human body will have allergic reactions to alcohol due to different constitutions, which will also be manifested as edema.
Staying up late, insomnia, tiredness, and changes in women's menstrual period are the possible causes of edema, which lead to abnormal water metabolism and vascular permeability.
Swelling may also be the manifestation of these diseases
Pathological edema is common in these diseases in medicine: heart disease, kidney disease, liver disease, vascular disease, endocrine disease, etc.
Generally speaking, major changes in all aspects of the human blood circulation can lead to edema. The big water pump (heart) doesn't work well, the drain (kidney) has problems, water quality changes, pipe deformation, water leakage (liver and kidney, endocrine, vascular reasons), one or more of the above reasons will cause more water in the blood vessels to "infiltrate" outside the blood vessels, and eventually become "water bags" hanging on the body surface or body.
In short, when you find that there is obvious edema in your body, which still exists after improving the physiological reasons mentioned above, please go to a doctor as soon as possible to determine whether there is a rational reason for the disease, and make timely diagnosis and treatment to avoid delaying the disease.
Edema is mostly a disease of the internal medicine system, which can be preferentially seen in the comprehensive internal medicine department. After complete examination, it can be transferred to the heart, kidney, liver and gallbladder, and endocrine specialty if necessary. Partial asymmetric edema, especially limb edema, may indicate vascular disease, which can be treated by vascular surgery under the guidance of the first doctor.
Can I drink water well before going to bed?
What should I do to avoid swelling? No matter physiological or pathological edema, prevention is nothing more than to reduce the causes. In principle, an appropriate amount of drinking water before bedtime is not necessary, but if it is found that mild edema is likely to occur after drinking water before bedtime, the amount of drinking water can be reduced appropriately, or the time of drinking water can be advanced. Reducing alcohol intake before bedtime, avoiding tiredness and staying up late, and paying attention to rest when menstruation changes can reduce physiological edema.
If it is pathological edema, it is necessary to reduce the occurrence of "three high" and actively control chronic disease and primary disease. If it is found that it cannot be improved through physiological adjustment, go to the doctor as soon as possible. It is important to note that in the face of pathological edema, edema is only a manifestation. The primary disease and other complications that cause edema may cause greater harm to human body and cannot be ignored.
