Microcirculation is crucial to the functioning not only of the cardiovascular system, but of the body as a whole, yet many people are unaware of its importance.
In this article, we'll tell you everything you need to know about microcirculation: what it is, microcirculation problems, how to detect them and how to improve blood circulation.
What exactly is microcirculation ?
There are two forms of circulation in your body: microcirculation and macrocirculation. In the case of microcirculation, this occurs in the smallest blood vessels, i.e. the metarterioles, capillaries, venules and terminal arterioles.
Metarterioles are the microvessels that connect capillaries to arterioles. In the case of arterioles, they are simply branches of the main arteries. Finally, capillaries link arterioles to venules, and venules in turn integrate the system with the main veins.
The function of microcirculation is to filter carbon dioxide and deliver oxygen and other nutrients to the body's cells and tissues. It is also responsible for regulating body temperature and blood pressure via the blood vessels. Arterioles are one of the main players in this process.
Macrocirculation is the process of transporting oxygen and nutrients to the organs.
What are the microcirculation microcirculation?
With this in mind, microcirculation is a key component of health, as it takes care of tissues throughout the body and, if severely impaired, can cause damage to almost any organ. However, problems with microcirculation are usually signs of major diseases rather than a condition in their own right.
Thus, numerous studies have established that microcirculation problems can be indicative of hypertension, metabolic syndrome, diabetes, obesity and various diseases of the cardiovascular and metabolic systems. In severe cases, it can be a sign of coronary or myocardial disease.
Even if you don't suffer from any obvious afflictions in the microcirculation process , taking care of it is an excellent way of preventing more serious conditions such as those mentioned above. Here are a few tips for taking care of both your microcirculation and your macrocirculation.
How to check the health of the microcirculation?
Because microcirculation is such an important system in the body, various methods have been developed to check its condition. Here, we look at the most common.
First of all, there's confocal microscopy. It uses contrast enhancement and light elimination to see the image clearly. Secondly, there is capillaroscopy, which focuses on the study of capillary blood vessels through the use of a microscope in the patient's hands, this microscope must have the ability to magnify the image up to twenty times.
CT scans, contrast-enhanced ultrasound and laser Doppler are also common. All are used to check that the microcirculation is functioning properly, and to detect other conditions such as inflammation and cardiovascular problems.
How to improve blood circulation?
In principle, it's easy to identify that your circulation is not at its best. Signs of poor circulation are if you frequently feel cold in your limbs or numbness in your extremities. In addition, your skin may look pale and even have a blue tint. Your nails may also show lines and look weak, and your skin may become dry.
If you notice these signs, there are simple ways toimprove blood circulation . It's even possible to find a natural treatment for poor circulation.
First of all, you can improve circulation through physical activity. Especially if it focuses on cardio, such as jogging or aerobics.
As far as your diet is concerned, it is advisable to increase your intake of omega-3s. Omega-3 is essential for a healthy cardiovascular and immune system. It is mainly found in fish, but is also contained, to a lesser extent, in nuts and vegetable oils such as soybean and canola oil.
On the other hand, you can give up your bad habits. If you want to improve both your microcirculation and your macrocirculation, but you smoke a lot, one of the best solutions is to stop smoking.
Blood microcirculation treatments
In addition to the general advice given above, one of the most popular and effective blood microcirculation treatments today is BEMER. BEMER stands for Bio-Electro-Magnetic-Energy-Regulation and is a vascular therapy derived from physiotherapy.
This blood microcirculation treatment uses an electromagnetic field to improve circulation by over 20%. Not only is BEMER effective in improving your cardiovascular health, it also stimulates muscle growth.
BEMER uses low-level electromagnetic fields to stimulate circulation and oxygenation of capillary blood vessels. As capillary blood vessels are a crucial part of microcirculation, it is said to be a therapy focused on microcirculation.
In addition, it has proved effective in the treatment and improvement of metabolic diseases. This is not surprising since, as mentioned above, microcirculation is directly linked to the functioning of the metabolic system and its afflictions.
You don't have to have a problem to benefit from this microcirculation treatment . With age, blood circulation diminishes. So BEMER can be beneficial even if you don't yet have a condition, and are instead using this treatment to prevent disease later in life.
We hope you find this information useful in understanding and caring for your microcirculation. We invite you to read our blog for more content on health and physiotherapy.