Foot Swelling During Air Travel

QUESTION: Why do my feet swell when I travel by air? This scares me. I am
66, in good health otherwise. Will I get an embolism--or something awful?
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ANSWER: Let me make a few assumptions. One, that this only occurs when you
fly, and that for two hours or more, and two, that you are truly in good
health. By doing so I won't have to consider all the possibilities for
swollen ankles and feet and thus provide you with a simple and easy to
understand answer to your question. Air travel is not much fun anymore. It
seems as though those cabins get more crowded all the time, and that we can
barely find an opportunity to take a stroll, however brief, up and down the
aisle. Too bad, for it would most certainly help solve your problem. But
once you get settled in your seat, you are "planted" for the duration. Your
feet hang down, the seat places pressure on under your upper legs, and without
some muscle movements to aid the circulation in your legs, the blood can't
flow back up the veins in your legs as it should, and swollen feet and ankles
develop as a result. There are several strategies you can try. The best is
to always obtain an aisle seat, and take a brief walk up and down the aisle
once or twice each flight, when the flight attendants will allow you to.
Second, keep your legs as elevated as possible. If you have placed some carry
on luggage under the seat in front of you, slide it back a bit and perch your
tootsies on that for a while. And third, while you have your feet up, wiggle
your feet back and forth, so that you can feel your calve muscles tighten.
This will really help your circulation and prevent the swelling. An embolism
or something awful? I really don't think so. Now you can fly at least
without that anxiety. Getting there on time? Well, that's something else
again.