After pregnancy, pregnant women often experience some discomfort such as back pain, nausea and vomiting. In the middle and late stages of pregnancy, pregnant women are also very prone to edema, and the edema will increase significantly after standing or sitting for a long time. So, what causes swollen calves and ankles in pregnant women?

Swelling of the calves and ankles of pregnant women is a common symptom. It is caused by the enlarged uterus and increased pressure in the pelvis after pregnancy, resulting in obstruction of venous blood flow in the lower extremities. This is one of the most common causes of lower extremity swelling in pregnant women. It belongs to pregnancy. physical symptoms. If the swelling during pregnancy is light after rest or sleep, it is physiological and nothing to worry about.

Causes of swollen calves and ankles in pregnant women:

1. After pregnancy, the blood volume of pregnant women will increase with the increase of gestational weeks, reaching a peak at 32-34 weeks of pregnancy, which is about 35% higher than that before pregnancy, with an average increase of 1500 ml. And because of the increase in circulating blood volume, the amount of blood pumped out of the heart also increases.
2. The number of capillary beds throughout the body increases and the diameter of the tubes thickens, with the result that more fluid "crosses" the capillary walls and into the tissue space.
3. After pregnancy, a large amount of blood has to live from the fetus "The uterus flows into the inferior vena cava, which will lead to increased pressure in the inferior vena cava; in addition, after 20 weeks of pregnancy, the enlarged uterus will compress the pelvic veins and inferior vena cava, which will block the return of venous blood, so the venous pressure in the lower extremities It will further increase. Pregnant women will experience swelling of the feet.

Pregnant women have symptoms of lower extremity edema When you go to bed, you should eat light food and reduce the intake of salt, otherwise it will aggravate the symptoms of edema. In addition, you should pay more attention to rest, do not sit and stand for a long time, and you can properly raise your legs when you sleep, which will help relieve lower extremity edema.
Some pregnant women develop edema due to malnutrition. Some women are afraid of losing their body shape after pregnancy, so they dare not eat more, which can easily lead to malnutrition and edema. In this case, pregnant women should pay attention to nutritional supplements, especially to consume enough protein, so they should eat more foods such as eggs, fish and shrimp.