6 Habits That May Damage Your Veins

Risk factors

These factors increase your risk of developing varicose veins:

• Age. The risk of varicose veins increases with age. Aging causes wear and tear on the valves in your veins that help regulate blood flow. Eventually, that wear causes the valves to allow some blood to flow back into your veins where it collects instead of flowing up to your heart.
• ... Women are more likely to develop the condition. Hormonal changes before your period or during pregnancy or menopause might be a factor because female hormones tend to relax vein walls. Hormone treatments, such as birth control pills, might increase your risk of varicose veins.