h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

I've suffered from water retention a lot this year, basically from around April to late July. It was very uncomfortable in the hot weather, like something thick and warm had been wrapped around my feet and ankles. I asked my GP about causes and he said that the heat and my lack of mobility weren't helping. For people with mobility problems, even sedentary exercise can help. Not just the foot exercises listed; anything will do. Drinking a lot of water is also important and made a huge difference to me, although I ended up sick of the taste of water. (Stuff like squash is often too sweet for my taste.)

One interesting point, though. When I was at my worst, I checked up 'water retention' on the internet. One site advised not drinking tea or coffee because 'they are diuretics'. When I went to my GP in April, what did he do? Prescribed some diuretics. So just what is the difference between tea or coffee and the drugs prescribed by my GP?

I have high blood pressure (hypertension) and after much trial and error my GP prescribed Amlodipine tablets (10mg daily). These control my blood pressure very well but have a common side-effect in causing ankle swelling. By each evening my ankles have both swollen up to about 1.5 times their normal size. By the following morning they have gone back down to normal again. So every day my ankles go up and down like balloons.

Does anyone know the mechanism by which this happens? Obviously it is fluid accumulating at a low point in the body, but why should this be - after all my heart is still pumping just as well as before, but now against less resistance than it was previously, so the fluid should still clear.

and

I was advised to avoid diuretics as well, but drink lots of water (I am sick of it too) - try adding a slice of lime and/or lemon.


Try raising your feet to above the height of your heart, dear h5ringer, I have a large pillow/cushion at the end of my bed so I can raise my feet when reclining.

My ankles aren't so bad in the cooler weather. Last month they were like balloons and felt like they were going to burst

GB

I've been having some severe oedema in my ankles, since heart surgery 4 months ago. I was on a diuretic several years ago, for blood pressure and oedema, and it helped with the swelling then, pre heart attack.

I think the reason that they are sometimes not advised is that they also lower the volume of the blood, which may affect the clotting factor. I notice in my pill reference guide that some diuretics *do* cause swelling in the feet and ankles.

SC