The New Year is all about the opportunity to start over or even start something new. The most popular New Year’s Resolutions are health and beauty related. Year after year, one thing that makes the top of many people’s list is a healthy, beautiful body.
According to Jacksonville’s Dr. James St. George, founder of the St. Johns Vein Center, while you can’t always prevent varicose veins or spider veins, there are lifestyle changes you can make to help reduce your chances of getting them or, if you already have them, to help alleviate discomfort. If you want healthy, beautiful legs in 2016, here are a few New Year’s Resolutions you will want to add to your list.
New Year’s Resolutions for Beautiful Healthy Legs
Resolution 1. Eat for Leg Health Just like good nutrition is important for maintaining a healthy heart, it is also important for maintaining a healthy body including your legs and leg veins.
Resolution 2. 
Exercise Choose exercises or activities that strengthen your legs and veins and improve circulation. Walking, running, dancing and rock climbing are great choices, especially if you’d rather skip the gym.
Resolution 3. Healthy BMI Obtaining or maintaining a healthy weight helps you avoid putting too much pressure on your legs. Not only does it help avoid spider and varicose veins, but it also will help avoid other joint related injuries.
Resolution 4. Protect Your Skin Sunscreen will help protect your skin from the sun’s harmful rays and limit spider veins caused by sun damage on your face. It is recommended to use a quality sunscreen regularly. Look for one with Broad-Spectrum SPF value of 15 or higher, such as Day Moisturizer & Broad Spectrum Sunscreen SPF 30ml.
For your body, ensure you are incorporating important sun protection measures including: limiting time in the sun, especially when the sun is strongest, from 10am – 2pm, cover up with long-sleeved shirts, pants, hats, and complete UVA/UVB Protection sunglasses.
Resolution 5. Breathe Clean Whether you are a smoker or not, it is important to review how smoking can affect leg health. Smoking or being around secondhand smoke damages the body’s vascular system. Smokers are at risk for all vascular diseases including peripheral arterial disease, stroke, heart attack, abdominal aortic aneurysm. For more information on how to quit smoking or to get information to give someone who wants to quit, visit smokefree.gov.
