Swollen Ankles - Side effects of Cruising?

[DizzyDallasDi]

The only time I've ever experienced swollen ankles was when I was pregnant. Perhaps a little bundle of joy is in your near future? :)

[secretcastle]

I experienced swollen ankles/feet when we went throught the Panama Canal. It was very hot and humid. I had booked in for a massage on the ship, and I had a treatment that really helped, the masseuse was quite used to working with this type of thing, and I felt so much better.

[mamaofami]

 

I think I will put a lot of your suggestions to the test in a couple of weeks. Support hose, herbal diuretics and NO ALCOLHOL???!!! Oh oh! Maybe just the first 2 suggestions;).

 

What are herbal diuretics?

[flashncrash]

as a podiatrist i see a lot of people with swelling (edema). there are many contributing factors and this posting certainly cannot include all of them. i have never experienced swelling on any of my cruises despite having mild varicose veins in my legs. i do use compression stockings when i wear long pants but when cruising in a warm climate and wearing shorts i do not wear the compression stockings. i rarely consume alcohol. i use the gym regularly on the cruise. i do not use salt at home but on cruises i eat a lot, i mean, a lot. it is not unusual for me to have at least 2 appetizers, at least 2 entrees at dinner and 3 desserts. so what contributes to swelling? the aging process, medical conditions such as high blood pressure, congestive heart failure, varicose veins, gravity, heat, some medications cause the body to retain fluid, diet. each person is different. the only time i have had swelling not caused by an injury is when i traveled to china during a summer and despite doing a lot of walking the food that we ate did have a lot of sodium. i decreased how much i ate and the problem went away. significant swelling in amount and/or duration can be very problematic and does require medical attention. but you do need to enjoy the cruise.

[innlady1]

Now we are leaving for a cruise in the carribean and I am getting a little worried. It was so bad I had to use a wheelchair.

 

I've lost 25lbs and hope it is better this time......but.......who knows.

 

I too am glad to hear I am not the only one with this problem. I haven't had it happen on flights before. I was thinking I may be getting allergic to cruising!!!!!:eek: That could be life threating for me!!! Well, maybe not, but it would certainly put a crimp in my style.

 

I think I will put a lot of your suggestions to the test in a couple of weeks. Support hose, herbal diuretics and NO ALCOLHOL???!!! Oh oh! Maybe just the first 2 suggestions;).

 

I, too, am curious about the herbal diuretics.

[AngeleyezNY]

Everytime i go on a cruise by the time i get off it my legs and ankles an feet are so swollen they hurt and the skin is streched to the max. I think its cause your on your feet almost the whole length of the cruise and your drinking alot more, i gain about 8-10 pounds on a cruise but within a few weeks its off again and the swollen parts of my body go down within a few days. so i think yes it is normal.

[Cruising-along]

as a podiatrist i see a lot of people with swelling (edema). there are many contributing factors and this posting certainly cannot include all of them. i have never experienced swelling on any of my cruises despite having mild varicose veins in my legs. i do use compression stockings when i wear long pants but when cruising in a warm climate and wearing shorts i do not wear the compression stockings. i rarely consume alcohol. i use the gym regularly on the cruise. i do not use salt at home but on cruises i eat a lot, i mean, a lot. it is not unusual for me to have at least 2 appetizers, at least 2 entrees at dinner and 3 desserts. so what contributes to swelling? the aging process, medical conditions such as high blood pressure, congestive heart failure, varicose veins, gravity, heat, some medications cause the body to retain fluid, diet. each person is different. the only time i have had swelling not caused by an injury is when i traveled to china during a summer and despite doing a lot of walking the food that we ate did have a lot of sodium. i decreased how much i ate and the problem went away. significant swelling in amount and/or duration can be very problematic and does require medical attention. but you do need to enjoy the cruise.

 

I was hoping someone in the medical profession would post. It seems that everyone's experiences have been different, as your post would suggest. For me, it didn't happen until our cruise to the Panama Canal. We'd had a couple cruises to the Med where it didn't happen, so I can only think for me it was the heat and humidity (when we were in the Med it was more of a dry heat). It also didn't happen to me on our Hawaii cruise (it was unseasonably cool when we went)

 

I don't drink much, hadn't changed meds, and exercise on cruises -- so I think (for me anyway) it's a combination of heat, humidity, and extra salt in the food.

[Joy2Day]

I have (well-controlled) heart failure, so I am well-versed in edema, swollen feet and ankles, eating low-sodium on a cruise ,...

 

After learning to manage this in "real-life", I have found that I simply need to bring these lessons onboard with me for my own health and safety.

 

Due to my health, I arrange for a low-sodium diet. This limts my choices onboard and requires pre-ordering my meals, but it is necessary for me. On my last cruise, I attempted to eat from the main menu and make 'safe' choices (no soups, all sauces on the side, steamed veggies for every dinner, ...), but not pre-order a specially-prepared meal. I gained 12# and it was gone within 3 days once I returned home to my regular routine.

 

In addition, I walk a lot, use the gym on sea days, wear my compression stockings whenever possible, get plenty of sleep, limit alcohol, and drink a lot of water (tap, not bottled). When I faithfully do these things, my water retention is minimal.

[buckirj1]

The ankle rash can be caused by the sun's reflection off the surface of the deck/pavement/etc. I often get it when I walk on concrete sidewalks in the summer.

 

My ankles didn't swell on the last cruise: I chalk it up to staying out of the MDR, exercising a lot, drinking lots of water and tea, NO bottled water, having only a few sodas per day, and eating lots of fresh food and veg at the buffet. It was also cooler weather, which probably helped more than anything...hot weather is pure evil.

[LAFFNVEGAS]

I will admit I could stand to lose some weight :o at least 20 to 30 pounds. The hot weather is not a contributing factor because my ankles swelled this past April on our Pacific Coastal which was far from hot.

The minute I get home the swelling totally goes away overnight.

While others talk about gaining weight on a cruise because I am already a bit heavy the odd part is I actually lose weight during the cruise despite my ankles swelling. I can always tell it in my clothes but sure enough when I get home I have lost a pound or two my problem is about 7 days later I suddenly gain about 5 pounds :eek: I contribute the slight weight loss during the week to being far more active during the week and walking so much more although for the last couple of weeks I have been walking a mile every day on my treadmill with hopes that in 3 weeks that will make a difference on our next cruise.

In conclusion for me in reading all these comments I am chalking it up to the food and having so much more sodium. Although I do drink more water on the ship than at home. Oddly we do eat out quite a bit at home I never have this problem. I guess I just cannot figure out why it has only occured on every cruise the last 2 years other than guessing it is caused by my weight I know there are some posting that do not have weight issues. So what is different on the ships than restaurants at home :confused:

[peaches from georgia]

our next cruise.

........So what is different on the ships than restaurants at home :confused: [/size]

I think it is simply that most of us day in and day out are eating a lot more on a cruise than we do at home, even if we go to a restaurant often. Hence, a lot more salt than normal. More cruise food = more salt.

[localady]

I am on heart meds and have been the entire time I have cruised. To begin with, I did have a problem with swelling on the cruises despite the fact that I was already on mild diurectics. This happened again and again, although I varied my diet and drinking habits on the ship.

Then I decided I just wasn't getting enough water, not ship water mind you, but the bottled water. So now you will see me with a huge bottle of water which comes with me almost everywhere. I figure it's a small price to pay for not feeling like my legs just became tree trunks. As long as I keep really well hydrated my ankles are pretty good.

Lisa- You might give it a try with me and we can compare ankles!!!! ;) :D

[LAFFNVEGAS]

Yes, Sher as long as we can stop in the bathroom every 15 minutes :D

Glad we have those $50.00 PP beverage cards, I believe we can use them toward bottled water. :)

Edited February 25, 2011 by LAFFNVEGAS

[MrsMuir]

Great thread. I have the swollen-ankle affliction, too, but I know the cause. As soon as I THINK about putting on a dress or skirt or a pair of ankle-length pants, my already-chubby legs and ankles begin to swell.

 

The Statuesque Mrs M (NOT)

[LindaM]

I haven't gotten swollen ankles on a cruise, but get them when we take land tours. Especially when there are days with long bus rides. I bought a pair of suppresion socks for our next trip.

 

My mother's ankles/feet used to swell when she was my age while flying.

 

Our tour guide was so alarmed at my ankles, she insisted I buy something over the counter while in Germany.

[Boomer47]

I'm surprised no one has mentioned Gatorade. IT WORKS! Athletes don't drink it for fun. Find a flavor you like, bring it with you, and drink at least a bottle (not the big one--the 12 oz. size) a day. It balances your electrolytes (I know, you're thinking "this lady's crazy")--we discovered this while my DH was going through radiation and had so many problems (successful, thank God). It worked so well we both still drink a bottle a day. I don't own any stock, nor will I profit from this advice! Just a suggestion, do give it a try.

[Cruising-along]

I'm surprised no one has mentioned Gatorade. IT WORKS! Athletes don't drink it for fun. Find a flavor you like, bring it with you, and drink at least a bottle (not the big one--the 12 oz. size) a day. It balances your electrolytes (I know, you're thinking "this lady's crazy")--we discovered this while my DH was going through radiation and had so many problems (successful, thank God). It worked so well we both still drink a bottle a day. I don't own any stock, nor will I profit from this advice! Just a suggestion, do give it a try.

 

Does it come in sugar free? I'm diabetic, and I think Gatorade is full of sugar......:confused:

[Joy2Day]

Gatorade has some sodium, so not good for those of us trying to limit salt. G2 is a low-sugar version with 5g of sugar per 8 oz serving.

[Juanita462]

I found that cutting out the hot soups made a huge difference in the

swollen ankles - also not using their salad dressings - just oil and vinegar.

 

Next cruise I am going to try the bottled water and see if that does away with it altogether. Never have any trouble at home.

[innlady1]

I'm surprised no one has mentioned Gatorade. IT WORKS! Athletes don't drink it for fun. Find a flavor you like, bring it with you, and drink at least a bottle (not the big one--the 12 oz. size) a day. It balances your electrolytes (I know, you're thinking "this lady's crazy")--we discovered this while my DH was going through radiation and had so many problems (successful, thank God). It worked so well we both still drink a bottle a day. I don't own any stock, nor will I profit from this advice! Just a suggestion, do give it a try.

 

Boomer, thanks for the tip on Gatorade! I will try it next time I have the problem! :D

[Candy]

I have given up trying to avoid the foods I love onboard, so I just pack two sizes of shoes. During the day sandals work well, and at night I'll sometimes change shoes after dinner.

[innlady1]

That's part of my problem! Wearing sandals all the time, one doesn't realize how swollen the ankles are until getting home and getting back to "regular" shoes!

[capecodder2]

For those of you drinking bottled water, have you checked the ingredients and made sure that it is "sodium free"? Many of those bottled waters have sodium in them and as soon as I kept to "sodium free" I didn't have the swollen ankle problem. Yes, I bring my bottles to the dining venue as well. I alsos gave up the lovely pots of tea I enjoyed.

[Randyk47]

Amazingly we somehow escaped the dreaded swollen ankle syndrome (SAS) on our last cruise. :) Wish I could tell you how but we actually talked about it during and after the cruise and we can't point to any change in behavior from food to drink to exercise that was any different than any other cruise. Actually kind of frustrating because it would be nice to know what we did or didn't do so we'd know to repeat the same behavior for our next cruise. That's not to complain, we're totally pleased, just curious. :)

[mamaofami]

For those of you drinking bottled water, have you checked the ingredients and made sure that it is "sodium free"? Many of those bottled waters have sodium in them and as soon as I kept to "sodium free" I didn't have the swollen ankle problem. Yes, I bring my bottles to the dining venue as well. I alsos gave up the lovely pots of tea I enjoyed.

 

Why the tea? What's in them?