Bruising can occur when the blood vessels are damaged and broken from various types of injuries. Blood from the inside of your injured blood vessels then begins to leak out and pool in the tissues under the skin. Because of this, discoloration from the blood being in the tissue begins to show in the skin as the body reacts to injury. After bruising has occurred, as it turns green, brown, or yellow, it indicates the beginning of the healing process. This is caused by the trapped blood being absorbed back into the body. If you are interested in ways to help prevent bruising, then consider some of the following options.
Consider the type of medications that you may be taking. Antidepressants, steroids, anticoagulants, and sometimes even aspirin can help cause easy bruising. Sometimes bruising is listed as a side effect from these medications, so read carefully. If medications are the cause of your bruising, you should not stop them to try to reduce bruising, but instead, consider talking with your doctor to find out if there are other alternatives or ways to prevent it from happening as often.
You can consider taking grape seed extract as a way to prevent bruises. The extract is said to be able to strengthen capillaries in the body, which causes vessels not to break so easily when you are injured. However, the extract has also been said to cause internal bleeding when too much is taken, and can have interactions with medications you may be taking. In any case, if you are taking grape seed extract, you should use it carefully and only after you doctor’s advice.
Arnica cream can be used to reduce existing bruises. Applying it once or twice each day to bruises that you have already can be very useful. The earlier you apply it in the development of a bruise, the quicker the bruise may heal. In addition, there will also be less vivid coloration to the bruise, and it will not hurt as much as it may have before.
Take supplements every day to aid in the prevention of bruises. You should take 1,000 milligrams of citrus bioflavonoids and 500 milligrams of vitamin C every day. This has been proven to help prevent bruising easily, and is an aid in helping bruises you may already have heal more quickly. The results are not instant and you will likely have to take the supplements for a few months before you can expect any changes in your body in relation to bruising.
You should also increase your intake of vegetables and fruits found in your diet. The bioflavonoids that were previously mentioned can be found in many of the fruits and vegetables that we eat. Bioflavonoids are important for the reduction and prevention of bruises on the body. You should consider supplements as a backup to a well balanced diet, but you should first consider adding more fruits and veggies into your diet instead.
How you treat a bruise is also something you should consider. If the bruise is swelling, you should put ice on it, and try to rest the affected area as much as possible. If the swelling is persistent, you can consider elevating the area by laying down. If the bruise is particularly large, consider wrapping it up, or even applying a compress to it to help protect the area.
There are a lot of options for to help reduce bruising. Some of them are preventative measures and some of them are just proper treatment after a bruise has occurred. If you feel that you are experiencing bruises more often than you should be, consider talking with your doctor.
Jan Doan, the “Doctor of Bruiseology” is renowned as the sole author to have written an entire reference book on bruising, teaching people why they bruise, and how they can avoid bruising. You can get for yourself Part I of the new Desktop Reference Book on bruising causes free and learn the best way to get beyond the nightmares of easy bruising and how to prevent bruising