Grape seeds can reduce varicose vein swelling

A twice-daily helping of grape seed extract soothes pain and reduces swelling in varicose veins, reports the journal Medicine — and could offer an alternative to compression stockings, the standard treatment.

A study at Yonsei University, South Korea, involving 23 patients, found it boosted blood flow in the affected area, easing pain and discomfort. 

The results showed the blood flowed almost 5cm a second faster when the patients consumed grape seed extract. 

This was two to three seconds faster than when patients wore compression stockings.

Proanthocyanidin, an antioxidant in the seeds, is thought to be the key; it makes blood vessels more elastic so blood flows more freely.

A twice-daily helping of grape seed extract soothes pain and reduces swelling in varicose veins, reports the journal Medicine (stock image)

Home remedies

DIY treatments that really work. This week: Slow, deep breathing for hot flushes

Erik Peper, a professor specialising in applied psychophysiology at San Francisco State University, was teaching breathing exercises for stress in the early 2000s when several older female students reported a decline in hot flushes.

DIY treatments that really work. This week: Slow, deep breathing for hot flushes

He then found a study in the American Journal of Obstetrics and Gynaecology in 1992 suggesting that deep breathing could reduce the incidence of flushes by around 50 per cent.

‘Hot flushes and the breath are strongly linked,’ he told Good Health. The theory is it relaxes the body in response to the hot flush creating a ‘biofeedback’ loop, where a relaxed state changes the body’s response.

‘Paced respiration [i.e. slow, deep, full breaths] at six to eight breaths per minute, practised 15 minutes twice per day, and started at the onset of hot flashes can be helpful,’ reported the journal Menopause Matters in 2012.

Try this

Momo Kombucha is fermented tea that’s rich in antioxidants and live cultures (for gut health). 

Available in flavours such as turmeric and elderflower (£3.90 per 330ml bottle, ocado.com; momo-kombucha.com).

Momo Kombucha is fermented tea that’s rich in antioxidants and live cultures (for gut health)

At a recent charity gala, Jennifer, 51, wore an off-the-shoulder white dress that highlighted her toned shoulders and chest

Secrets of an A-list body

This WEEK: Jennifer Garner’s décolletage

At a recent charity gala, Jennifer, 51, wore an off-the-shoulder white dress that highlighted her toned shoulders and chest. The actress is a fan of what she calls ‘hard cardio’, starting her days with 5.30am ‘plyometrics’.

WHAT TO TRY: Plyometrics refers to explosive movements that cause muscles to contract and stretch at a rapid pace. One exercise to target the décolletage is the one-clap push-up.

Get on all fours, then extend your legs so you’re balanced on your hands and toes. Tighten your core and inhale as you slowly bend your elbows, lowering your chest to the floor. Exhale while contracting your chest muscles and push back up through your hands, bringing them together in a quick clap and then back to the floor.

This can be modified: so if you perform push-ups on your knees or against a wall, just add that bouncy clap. Try five reps each morning.