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Diet for edema

, medical expert
Last reviewed: 04.07.2025
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Diet plays an important role in edema. Proper nutrition allows you to get rid of unpleasant consequences. Edema leads to general discomfort in the body and complicates human actions. You can get rid of this condition only by eating right.

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What is the diet for edema?

Do you know what diet is most effective for edema? For people suffering from this phenomenon, nutrition plays a special role. The body must receive proteins in the required amount, it is necessary to include eggs, sour cream, milk, fish, cheese in the diet. It is always worth "keeping" products containing potassium on the table. It is its lack that provokes edema.

Melon, watermelon, orange juice and tangerine are what you need. There are a lot of diets, but you need to choose your own, special one. You can even make it yourself. To do this, it is enough to know which products are useful.

So, juices have a diuretic effect, the most beneficial will be: beetroot, pumpkin, carrot and apple. It is worth giving preference to herbal decoctions. Green tea, decoction of caraway and hawthorn have proven themselves well.

Curd and rice days are excellent options for an anti-edematous diet. Often, experts recommend taking a closer look at the kefir diet. It is enough to simply drink 1.5 liters of the drink per day. It is desirable that its fat percentage be minimal. You can diversify your diet with fruits or vegetables.

Fish fasting days are also good. It is worth choosing low-fat varieties of fish. 500 grams of the product are divided into 5 meals. Steamed vegetables can be used as a side dish. Many tips regarding the diet coincide with proper nutrition. Therefore, it is enough to eat healthy food and not worry about the appearance of unpleasant symptoms.

Diet for Quincke's edema

The diet for Quincke's edema is distinguished by its strictness. This phenomenon can be caused by medications, food products, insect bites, heat and cold.

Nutrition for urticaria and Quincke's edema has some peculiarities. So, food in most cases is excluded completely. Therapeutic fasting and cleansing procedures are prescribed, such as enemas, and in the most severe cases - IVs. After some time, one product is introduced, which must be consumed for 2 days. If the body does not react negatively to it, then you can continue and introduce other food. In this way, the diet is replenished with new products. The procedure must be carried out in a hospital under the supervision of a specialist.

The diet for edema in this case is the strictest of all existing ones. It requires a serious approach. In some cases, the disease can lead to death.

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Diet for leg swelling

A diet for leg swelling requires finding out the cause of this phenomenon. It often occurs against the background of varicose veins. This phenomenon can be caused by a heavy load during standing work, prolonged sitting, especially with crossed legs, flat feet, improperly selected shoes and excess weight.

The main diet in this case is a mono-diet. Simply put, a day of one product. It can be any food from the permitted list. But you need to eat only one product per day.

Following a watermelon diet helps remove excess fluid from the body, cleanse the kidneys and genitourinary system. You need to eat 2 kg of berries per day. However, such treatment is relevant only in the summer.

The cucumber diet also copes well with excess fluid in the body. During the day, 20 ripe cucumbers are eaten. It is not recommended to drink additionally.

Apples also have a mild diuretic effect; 2 kg of unsweetened apples will help remove the fluid accumulated in the tissues. And the large amount of vitamin C contained in the fruit will strengthen the walls of blood vessels.

But you should never do fasting days without consulting a specialist, in some cases they can be harmful!

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Diet for facial swelling

Diet for facial edema - when treating edema, a healthy diet of the patient plays an important role, including sufficient amounts of animal proteins: meat, eggs, milk, cheese, cottage cheese, sour cream and fish. It is advisable to include potassium-rich foods in the diet: apricots, melons, orange and tangerine juices, potatoes, parsley, rice. Soy products and natural yoghurts are especially recommended.

The diet for edema should be rich in carbohydrates contained in fruits and have a diuretic effect, with the exception of grapes and bananas. Freshly squeezed juices, herbal teas and other drinks with low caffeine content have a good diuretic effect.

To treat edema, first of all, daily salt intake is limited to 1.0–1.5 g per day, and liquid intake to 600–1500 ml.

It is important to exclude salty, fried, spicy foods, all products containing a large amount of salt: canned fish and meat, caviar, ham, brisket, loin, sausages, hot dogs, nuts, sauces and cheeses. Fatty desserts, cream, mayonnaise, wheat flour, alcohol and any products containing artificial additives are prohibited. During the first days of treatment for edema, the patient's protein and fluid intake is limited. For effective therapy, it is worth giving up milk, tea and compote in favor of drinking water.

Uncontrolled and prolonged use of diuretics can lead to dehydration and disruption of water-salt balance.

Abuse of the anti-edematous diet is fraught with the appearance of severe weakness. At risk are patients with liver and kidney failure.

To improve the taste of salt-free food during a therapeutic diet, substitutes for table salt are used. In case of severe edema, fasting days will help to cope with the malaise. But without control, they can aggravate the problem, so it is important to listen to the opinion of the attending physician. Curd-milk and rice fasting days are considered the most physiological.

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Diet for pregnant women with edema

The best diet for pregnant women with edema is salt-free. Edema provokes an increase in pressure, so most doctors, having noticed their presence in a pregnant woman, will advise to sit on such a diet for a couple of weeks.

Usually, a salt-free protein diet for edema during pregnancy comes down to eliminating any salt in the cooking process. It is enough to replace it with powdered garlic or lemon juice, if there is no allergy to these products. You cannot eat soy sauce, ketchup, mayonnaise and other store-bought sauces. All seasonings with additional salt and sodium glutamate in the composition are prohibited. If you have a habit of adding salt to dishes and eating everything listed above, you should not prescribe this diet for yourself.

It is also worth paying attention to the diet according to Dr. Eigoltz. The protein diet during pregnancy is nothing more than an adaptation of the healthy eating rules recommended by WHO to the needs of the body of a woman carrying a child. The menu is based on baked potatoes, whole grain porridges, and bread. These products can be eaten 3-5 times a day, that is, with each meal. A serving is 30 g of bread or 100 g of any porridge or boiled potatoes.

The second necessary component is vegetables, greens and fruits. It is necessary to eat 1 serving of these products with each meal. A serving is 200 g of stewed vegetables or salad with oil, but not mayonnaise, dressing, or 1 medium-sized fruit, or 200 g of berries.

In addition, you are supposed to have 1 serving of lean meat per day - 120 grams, and 1 serving of eggs (2 pieces) or dairy products (200 g of cottage cheese, 100 g of yogurt, 250 ml of milk or kefir). You should exclude sweets, coffee, semi-finished products and all food like chips.

Diet for edema during pregnancy - should be based on proper nutrition. Increased tissue edema of a pregnant woman occurs almost always. The longer the term, the more difficult the situation. An additional amount of fluid in the late stages of pregnancy is physiologically justified. But, despite this, it is worth resorting to proper nutrition.

Metabolism occurs only in a liquid environment, and since it is more intense, more fluid is needed in the tissues.

Secondly, because of the large belly, the woman becomes more clumsy, and the swollen tissues provide greater protection from concussions and minor injuries. Thirdly, the excess fluid stored at the end of pregnancy is used up during labor, since the woman does not drink for almost a day due to contractions and the pushing period. During this period, her water reserves are used up, and dehydration does not occur. The remaining portions of additional fluid replenish the volume of blood lost during labor, and thus replenish the volume of fluid circulating in the vessels.

It is advisable to drink pure or mineral water without gas. After all, carbonated drinks provoke thirst and cause heartburn. It is worth giving preference to green or weak black tea. But this issue should be discussed with a doctor. Because not all pregnant women can use herbs. A diet for edema will help to avoid unpleasant symptoms during pregnancy.

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Diet menu for edema

You can create your own diet menu for edema. But for example, a sample diet will be provided. It is advisable to eat 4-5 times a day. So, per day 6 egg whites, 200 g of cottage cheese 0-5% fat, 150 g of fish or seafood, 150 g of white poultry meat, 120 g of red meat - beef, veal, lamb, lean pork, 250 ml of milk or kefir enriched with calcium and protein.

It is important to remember that kefir and yoghurts usually contain quite a bit of protein – only 3-4 g per 100 g of product, and they should not be considered a complete source of protein. The “rest” of the diet should consist of natural cereals, whole grain bread, vegetables, and fruits. Most doctors advise avoiding juices and other sweet drinks – they increase sugar levels and provoke a feeling of hunger.

If a person is concerned about weight, it is better to consult a professional nutritionist to create a diet for this period of life. He will not only help create a menu, but also correctly determine whether it is possible to stick to such a diet or not.

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Diet recipes for edema

Diet recipes for edema are not complicated. It is important to make a menu based on the list of prohibited and permitted products. It is worth giving preference to cranberry and lingonberry juice. You can make it yourself. To do this, take the berries and grind them together with sugar. But you should add very little sweets.

You can use lingonberry or cranberry juice. Everything is done in a similar way. The juices taste quite sour, so it is advisable to dilute them with water.

For breakfast, you can eat cottage cheese and kefir. Vegetables and fruits are not prohibited. For lunch, you can steam fish without spices. Raw or steamed vegetables are suitable as a side dish. There are no specific recipes, a person creates masterpieces in the kitchen on his own. A diet for edema is easy to create, it is enough to simply start from the permitted and prohibited products.

Protein diet for edema

A protein diet for edema has nothing in common with a similar plan for athletes. You just need to increase your pure protein intake to 2-2.5 g per day per 1 kg of your own body weight. Before you start changing your diet, undergo a medical examination - a protein diet for pregnant women is contraindicated in some liver and kidney diseases.

In practice, you will have to eat 4-5 times a day, and consume one serving of protein food with each meal. For example, you can eat 6 egg whites, 200 g of cottage cheese 0-5% fat, 150 g of fish or seafood, 150 g of white poultry meat, 120 g of red meat - beef, veal, lamb, lean pork, 250 ml of milk or kefir enriched with calcium and protein.

Kefir and yoghurts usually contain quite a bit of protein – only 3-4 g per 100 g of product, and they should not be considered a complete source of protein. Another diet should consist of natural cereals, whole grain bread, vegetables, and fruits. Most doctors advise avoiding juices and other sweet drinks – they increase sugar levels and provoke a feeling of hunger.

What can you eat if you have swelling?

Not many people know what you can eat when you have edema? There are a number of products that have a positive effect. First of all, these are soy milk and yogurts. As for the latter, they should not necessarily contain any additives. It is advisable to diversify your diet with fruits. But you should avoid grapes and bananas. On the contrary, they retain moisture in the body.

Vegetables are perfectly digestible and do no harm, everything except potatoes. Preference should be given to seeds, nuts, oatmeal, legumes, brown rice, lean meat and poultry. Herbal teas, freshly squeezed juices and other drinks, which are characterized by a low caffeine content, have a beneficial effect on the body. All these products should be in the diet of every person.

You shouldn't ignore fasting days. They can be kefir, fish and vegetable. This will allow you to remove all unnecessary things from your body. A diet for edema can be made both independently and with the help of a specialist.

What shouldn't you eat if you have swelling?

Do you know what you can't eat if you have edema? The list of contraindications is actually long. You should give up sweet, salty, fatty and starchy foods. Salt retains fluid in the body and leads to its excessive accumulation. The result of this action is edema.

Sugar, honey, syrup and other products should be excluded. Dairy treats are prohibited. Only low-fat kefir is allowed, eggs, yeast, salt and all salty products are prohibited. Any red meat is prohibited, including ham and bacon.

You will have to give up smoked fish (boiled fish is allowed), cheese, cakes, pastries, chocolate, butter, potato chips, margarine, wheat flour, cream, mayonnaise. Fatty desserts, sauces, gravies and alcohol are strictly prohibited. You should also give up products that contain artificial additives.

Reviews of diet for edema

Reviews of the diet for edema are purely positive. After all, proper nutrition allows not only to remove accumulated fluid from the body, but also leads to a better well-being of a person. Each diet for edema is good in its own way. Naturally, when choosing, it is worth starting from personal preferences and tolerance of products.

Usually, proper nutrition immediately leads to a positive result. You can choose a diet both with a doctor and independently. The only thing is that pregnant girls should definitely discuss this issue with a specialist.

Choosing a diet, according to reviews, is not a very good idea. After all, each organism is individual. Moreover, food preferences are also varied. Therefore, it is impossible to single out the best diet from everything that exists. You just need to start eating right. In this case, good health and the absence of any problems are guaranteed.

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