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Peripheral vascular disease (PVD), which is also referred to as peripheral artery disease (PAD), is a growing problem in the United States and around the world. On a global scale, about 200 million people have PAD, including 12 million Americans.
PVD can not only lead to considerable discomfort in your legs, but it can also set the stage for more serious health problems, so it’s a good idea to understand and better manage your risks for this common condition.
To that end, board-certified cardiologist Dr. Satjit Bhusri and the team at The Upper East Side Vein Institute pulled together a few great strategies to lower your risk for peripheral vascular disease. Bear in mind, we also recommend these steps for people who are already diagnosed with PVD.
Why we’re concerned with peripheral vascular disease
There are a few reasons why we’re concerned about a PVD diagnosis. In most cases of PVD, the arteries that deliver blood to your legs are narrowing, which is preventing a good flow of blood to your legs. Called atherosclerosis, this condition can, over time, lead to pain in your legs, making walking quite difficult.
Another serious complication of PVD is amputation. If the blood flow is compromised in your legs, you’re more vulnerable to venous ulcers. And due to the poor blood flow, these ulcers may not heal properly, which leaves you open to infection, gangrene, and eventual amputation.
Lastly, people with PVD are three times more at risk of stroke.
Key practices for managing your PVD risks
Now, let’s look at this from a more proactive angle to determine how to offset your risk of PVD. Since atherosclerosis is the primary driver of PVD, we want to look at the risk factors for this condition and work toward improving them whenever applicable with these steps:
1. Avoid tobacco use
One of the biggest risk factors for PVD is smoking, which applies to about 10% of adults in the US. So, quitting smoking should be at the top of any PVD prevention list.
2. Manage pre-existing health conditions
Several health conditions can make you more vulnerable to PVD, such as:
- Diabetes, which affects more than 40 million adults in the US
- High blood pressure
- Kidney disease
- Having obesity, which affects about 40% of adults in the US
- High cholesterol, which can lead to plaques in your arteries
So, if you can check any of those boxes, it’s important to manage these health conditions well to avoid PVD as a potential complication.
3. Exercise more
A sedentary lifestyle can lead to high blood pressure and other cardiovascular issues, including PVD, so it’s important to move daily for at least 30 minutes.
4. Improve your diet
To prevent PVD and a host of other cardiovascular issues, it’s important to eat a heart-healthy diet. This diet should move away from fast and processed foods that are full of sugar and unhealthy fats and toward a diet that favors:
- Fruits and vegetables
- Lean proteins, such as fish and chicken
- Nuts
- Healthy oils, like olive oil
- Eggs
- Greek yogurt
When you improve your diet, we assure you that you’re improving your health on every other level at the same time.
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Weight loss
If you're overweight or have obesity, it’s important to lose those unhealthy pounds and improve your vascular health enormously. The good news is that some of the suggestions we’ve already outlined will go a long way toward this goal, and we can help you close the distance with weight loss services.
A great place to begin is to come in for a vein evaluation, so we have a good starting point. From there, we can devise a more personalized PVD prevention plan for you.
To get started, we invite you to call our New York City office on the Upper East Side of Manhattan at 212-752-3464. You can also schedule an appointment online by clicking here.