Bulging Veins Female

[Vida]

Hi all,
Recently joined this forum although I have been reading here for a while:) If anyone has any thoughts/constructive feedback on this topic, please help out:)
I wonder if anyone knows what/or if bulging veins on arms and stomach is a sign of something? It seems as if it doesnt matter how much I eat, my veins still keep bulging and I can literally feel the blood pumping in my arms. I think it looks very masculine and not feminine at all
I understand that it can be due to low body fat but my legs are not that skinny for example in proportion to my upper body. I may add that I don't exercise at the moment, haven't done it for about 2 years now since I get really exhausted afterwards.
My body feels so tired, and it has been going on for too long now, it feels as if I'm lacking strenght. Im thinking if this has to do with low cortisol, maybe something with my sex hormones as not producing adequate amounts of progesterone throughout my cycle, too high estrogen, low thyroid or something else. But would bulging veins be a symptom of any of this?! Or maybe its normal, but I feel so exhausted every day. So sick of this and want to get better. I'm 33 years old. My HDL/LDL cholesterol have been low last time I checked a few months ago. My DHEAS are in the low range. My SHBG are in the higher range. Low sodium, normal potassium. My thyroid profile is normal/high TSH, normal/high T4, low T3. Have had a few other tests as well but don't know if they are relevant.

 

[pepsi]

I do have a problem with bulging veins in my hands and have asked about it before. Someone said I have too much estrogen and to apply progesterone. I also remember Peat said a lady would rub progesterone on her hands and in 20 minutes the veins would go down. It never worked for me so I dont think its an estrogen issue. If it was an estrogen issue, I think we would see more ladies with bulging veins. One thing I figured out is that orange juice causes major vein bulging in my hands. I drank a lot of OJ at work and my hands were so embarrassing, I would hide my hands in my pockets or hold something so I could have my hands elevated when around people. When I stopped the OJ at work and drink coffee and milk instead, my hand veins are finally normal. I do drink a lot of OJ at home and have the bulging veins. I just wonder why OJ does this to me and if something bad is going on. Maybe the fructose?
Do you drink a lot of OJ? Are your bulging veins always there or are there certain times of the day when you dont have them?

 

[Catcream]

I might have a similar body type, slim on top and heavier on my thighs. I have observed when I am thinner, I have very prominent veins in my arms and visible on my torso. Also seems to be exacerbated by heat . I have put on some weight and the veins are not so apparent , have observed this in other females so anecdotally would agree it's a symptom of low body fat . But I don't think it looks unpleasant !

 

[squanch]

Just bask in the glory of all the guys admiring that crazy vascularity at the gym.
I don't think it's really a sign of anything bad happening in your body.
It's mainly caused by genetics, low body fat, low water retention, high body temperature (all generally positive things)
Certain foods like red wine will increase vascularity like crazy for me, also very low sodium intake. Apparently nitric oxid can also be involved, so if it's really bothering you, you can look into lowering that.

 

[InChristAlone]

Yours don't look particularly like bulging veins but more so vascularity. I think Peat is referring to when the blood pools in the hands at your side and they bulge out really far. Here is a pic of mine, I have taken progesterone and watched them go to half that size, so there is something about the tone of the vessels not being enough to keep the blood from pooling. But yes it is worse when my hands are very warm.

 

[Lilac]

My mother is in her 80s and was using a lot of Progest-E for other symptoms, but on one occasion we did once notice that the veins in her hands became much less pronounced. Just like Peat described.

 

[natedawggh]

Hi all,
Recently joined this forum although I have been reading here for a while:) If anyone has any thoughts/constructive feedback on this topic, please help out:)
I wonder if anyone knows what/or if bulging veins on arms and stomach is a sign of something? It seems as if it doesnt matter how much I eat, my veins still keep bulging and I can literally feel the blood pumping in my arms. I think it looks very masculine and not feminine at all
I understand that it can be due to low body fat but my legs are not that skinny for example in proportion to my upper body. I may add that I don't exercise at the moment, haven't done it for about 2 years now since I get really exhausted afterwards.
My body feels so tired, and it has been going on for too long now, it feels as if I'm lacking strenght. Im thinking if this has to do with low cortisol, maybe something with my sex hormones as not producing adequate amounts of progesterone throughout my cycle, too high estrogen, low thyroid or something else. But would bulging veins be a symptom of any of this?! Or maybe its normal, but I feel so exhausted every day. So sick of this and want to get better. I'm 33 years old. My HDL/LDL cholesterol have been low last time I checked a few months ago. My DHEAS are in the low range. My SHBG are in the higher range. Low sodium, normal potassium. My thyroid profile is normal/high TSH, normal/high T4, low T3. Have had a few other tests as well but don't know if they are relevant.

Yours don't look particularly like bulging veins but more so vascularity. I think Peat is referring to when the blood pools in the hands at your side and they bulge out really far. Here is a pic of mine, I have taken progesterone and watched them go to half that size, so there is something about the tone of the vessels not being enough to keep the blood from pooling. But yes it is worse when my hands are very warm.
View attachment 3407

This Peat article adresses this exactly
"In the circulatory system, [progesterone] prevents bulging veins by increasing the tone of blood vessels, and improves the efficiency of the heart."
Progesterone Pregnenolone & DHEA - Three Youth-Associated Hormones

 

[Blossom]

My arms looked like yours @Vida when I was doing paleo. After I started Progest-e and put on a couple pounds the veins disappeared.

 

[Hasen]

What's your body fat percentage? Looks incredibly low to me, maybe too low for a woman.

 

[tara]

Vida

My HDL/LDL cholesterol have been low last time I checked a few months ago.

Low sodium, normal potassium. My thyroid profile is normal/high TSH, normal/high T4, low T3.

I'm no expert, but my initial thoughts ...

If I'm understanding right, low cholesterol and low blood sodium, highish TSH, low T3, low body fat.

I'm wondering if there could be some simple things going on like too little carbs and salt, and too much water?

Low sodium can mess with you. If it's extremely low - outside the standard safe range - it needs to be raised slowly and carefully (maybe with medical help). If it's just a bit below average but still in the normal range, you may be able to solve this yourself by just adding bit more salt to your food and avoiding drinking beyond thirst.

Low energy metabolism (low T3/high TSH, and easy exhaustion suggest this) has consequences throughout the body, including the tone of the vascular system.

Could be that progesterone would be relevant, but I'd be considering diet first. Wanna tell?

 

[Vida]

I do have a problem with bulging veins in my hands and have asked about it before. Someone said I have too much estrogen and to apply progesterone. I also remember Peat said a lady would rub progesterone on her hands and in 20 minutes the veins would go down. It never worked for me so I dont think its an estrogen issue. If it was an estrogen issue, I think we would see more ladies with bulging veins. One thing I figured out is that orange juice causes major vein bulging in my hands. I drank a lot of OJ at work and my hands were so embarrassing, I would hide my hands in my pockets or hold something so I could have my hands elevated when around people. When I stopped the OJ at work and drink coffee and milk instead, my hand veins are finally normal. I do drink a lot of OJ at home and have the bulging veins. I just wonder why OJ does this to me and if something bad is going on. Maybe the fructose?
Do you drink a lot of OJ? Are your bulging veins always there or are there certain times of the day when you dont have them?

I drink around 1/2 L OJ/day, would say that the bulging usually is worse later during the day..

 

[Vida]

This Peat article adresses this exactly
"In the circulatory system, [progesterone] prevents bulging veins by increasing the tone of blood vessels, and improves the efficiency of the heart."
Progesterone Pregnenolone & DHEA - Three Youth-Associated Hormones

Yes thank you, and Janelle525, vascularity is the right word for what I'm experiencing!

 

[Vida]

Vida



I'm no expert, but my initial thoughts ...

If I'm understanding right, low cholesterol and low blood sodium, highish TSH, low T3, low body fat.

I'm wondering if there could be some simple things going on like too little carbs and salt, and too much water?

Low sodium can mess with you. If it's extremely low - outside the standard safe range - it needs to be raised slowly and carefully (maybe with medical help). If it's just a bit below average but still in the normal range, you may be able to solve this yourself by just adding bit more salt to your food and avoiding drinking beyond thirst.

Low energy metabolism (low T3/high TSH, and easy exhaustion suggest this) has consequences throughout the body, including the tone of the vascular system.

Could be that progesterone would be relevant, but I'd be considering diet first. Wanna tell?

Thank you Tara:)
My diet right now is pretty simple; OJ, ripe fruits (mostly mango, oranges, grapes) wellcooked potatoes + coconut oil, occasionally basmati rice for extra carbs, shrimps, cod, gelatin, some greens, dates + dried apricots, pecorino cheese..

 

[Vida]

I had some new bloodtests taken and I'm at a loss what to do about my superhigh SHBG and if its affecting my health in a very bad way..I know that it has to do with the liver but what can I do to lower it in a way that actually works? I thought I was doing good but now it is higher than ever before! If anyone has any suggestions please feel free.
SHBG: 229 nmol/L (32-128)
Iron: 6 mikromol/L (9-34)
Ferritin: 98 mikrog/L (10-150)
Triglycerids: 0,33 mmol/L (0,45-2,6)
TPO-ab: 163 kE/L (<34)
TSH: 1,8 mE/L (0,3-4,2)
T4 free: 15 pmol/L (12-22)
T3 free: 3,8 pmol/L (3,1-6,8)
Cobalamin: 200 pmol/L (150-650)
Cortisol at 10 am: 308 nmol/L (135-540)
Estrogen: 614 pmol (luteal phase 300-1000)
Progesterone: 63 nmol/L (luteal phase 5,8-76)
DHEAS: 3,2 micromol/L (2,7-9,2)
Testosterone: 0,5 nmol/L (0,3-1,7)

Also does anyone know how to calculate the ratio between estrogen and progesterone?
(Edit; found it. 614 pmol/L = 0,614 nmol/L. That means my progesterone, 63 nmol/L, is near 100 times higher than my estrogen?)

 

[Giraffe]

superhigh SHBG

Sex hormone binding globulin in women with anorexia nervosa. - PubMed - NCBI

In 14 patients, when a weight gain of at least 5% was obtained, the binding capacity of SHBG fell into the normal range (25.6-62.9 nmol/l) while T3 levels rose to normal (0.85-2.30 nmol/l). These findings suggested that variations of calorie intake and/or body weight may influence the binding capacity of SHBG in the human.

 

[Blossom]

I had high SHBG when my weight was too low.

 

[Vida]

Sex hormone binding globulin in women with anorexia nervosa. - PubMed - NCBI

Read it, but I'm not anorexic! My SHBG have always been in the higher range regardless of my weight, although never this high before.

 

[Vida]

I had high SHBG when my weight was too low.

Ok, did you do anything intentionally to lower it or was it just by gaining weight it became normal? Did you experience any side effects of having it high? As I said previous, I'm not sure how it's affecting my health. My biggest concern is if it would be bad for fertility, also I feel so exhausted, as lacking strength in my arms for example. Maybe all this is because of something else though, dunno just wish to turn things around to the better:)

 

[Blossom]

Ok, did you do anything intentionally to lower it or was it just by gaining weight it became normal? Did you experience any side effects of having it high? As I said previous, I'm not sure how it's affecting my health. My biggest concern is if it would be bad for fertility, also I feel so exhausted, as lacking strength in my arms for example. Maybe all this is because of something else though, dunno just wish to turn things around to the better:)

Just gaining helped for me but I was doing lots of things to raise my metabolism so that might have helped too.

 

[thegiantess]

I have pronounced vascularity as well.. Hands, feet, arms, neck, etc. On multiple occasions when giving blood or getting blood drawn the tech would comment about how I have "good veins like a man." I had an anesthesiologist tell me that my veins were beautiful and easy for a woman. Sexist I know. So I have a hard time with the estrogen connection. If veins on women are typically less pronounced and more difficult to wrangle then there just couldn't be an estrogen connection. Anecdotal, I know, but thought I would throw it out there. In your case though it looks like you're just extremely lean and that's why the vascularity. Fatten up a bit and it might go away.