What Does Swelling Indicate? Here Is What Your Body Is Telling You

28 Ekim 2025

3 dk okuma

Sometimes, when looking at the mirror in the morning, we see swelling under the eyes, more commonly known as “bags”. In summer, we see marks from shoes on our feet or have difficulties removing rings from our fingers. These symptoms shouldn’t be taken lightly since they are the first signs of edema. Why does swelling occur?

Temel çıkarımlar

Sometimes, when looking at the mirror in the morning, we see swelling under the eyes, more commonly known as “bags”.
Varicose Veins in Lower Extremities
Kidney Diseases

Kimin için

Kidney konusunu hormones, allergy üzerinden keşfedenler.

Neden önemli

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Makale yazarı

Dr. Asya

Scientific Advisor

As a biochemist, she has expertise in developing and implementing new methods of assessing fatty acids in the blood. She also studies the processes occurring in the human body, and works to help people stay healthy and defeat old age.

Sağlık uzmanı

Varicose Veins in Lower Extremities

This shows up in the form of purple spider veins in the calves and feet, accompanied by the feeling of tightness in your legs. It often shows up in the evening. Another sign is sock and shoe marks on one or both feet and legs, which can last for several hours.

If you have noticed these symptoms, you should seek the medical advice of a vascular surgeon and change your lifestyle habits:

Stop wearing tight shoes, high heels, or shoes with many elements that create additional pressure on your legs — for example, decorative bands. Opt for comfortable sneakers and 1 1/2” low-heel shoes.
If you lead a sedentary lifestyle, you should add some physical activity and exercises to improve the bloodstream in your legs.
Take a contrast shower, focusing on calves and feet.
Put your legs in an elevated position at 45 or 90 degrees for 5-15 minutes.

These simple steps will help keep your veins healthy and avoid further development of varicose veins.

Kidney Diseases

In this situation, the swellings occur primarily on the face around the eyelids. In more severe cases, swellings can occur on the neck, arms, and legs. Swellings caused by kidneys can be accompanied by increased blood pressure, back pains, increased temperature, and problems with urination. If there is the slightest chance that swellings are being caused by kidney issues, it is advisable to see a physician and have a urine test.

Heart Disorders

Over time, various cardiovascular disorders — for example, coronary heart disease, arterial hypertension, and heart defects — can lead to congestive heart failure. This happens when the heart muscle becomes too weak to pump the necessary amount of blood. A part of the blood called plasma saturates the tissues, which leads to swellings.

Typically, this happens in the calves and feet. As a rule, swellings caused by the heart are bilateral. In addition to swellings, heart disorder symptoms can include shortness of breath, chest pain, cough, heaviness in the right hypochondria, pallor, and cyanosis of the skin.

If you suspect you have a heart disorder, you should consult a cardiologist, do ECG, Echo-CG, and take doctor-recommended tests.

Hormonal Imbalances

Swellings often occur due to adrenal gland malfunction, which is known as hypothyroidism. In such cases, swellings may localize in different parts of the body. Cases of severe hypothyroidism are associated with swelling of the tongue, difficulty talking, and respiratory disorders.

In addition to swellings, other signs of hypothyroidism are weakness, apathy, depression, hair loss, constipation, and low heart rate. Hypothyroidism is diagnosed through TSH (thyroid-stimulating hormone) test and free T4 (thyroxin) test. It is also advisable to consult with an endocrinologist.

Other endocrine conditions associated with swellings are caused by pituitary disorders, which include acromegaly, adrenal diseases, Itsenko-Cushing’s syndrome, and many others. Because these disorders are relatively rare, the most common endocrinal cause of swellings is hypothyroidism.

Allergic Reactions

Swelling occurs within seconds or minutes after contact with an allergen, localizing in the area of the face and accompanied by respiratory failure. This is a life-threatening condition that requires urgent treatment. If you know you have an allergy to certain substances, you should always have an emergency kit with you.

Although this article has discussed the most common causes of swelling, there are other causes too. These medical conditions are all unique and show other symptoms in addition to swelling. For these reasons, if you have noticed swelling, you should consult a physician.

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