Recliners and Blood Flow – Are They Bad for Leg Circulation?

Of all the things created in the world for convenience, recliners are an absolute blessing, especially if we take a glance at the level of comfort that electrical recliner provides.

Not that there is any issue with a regular recliner, but an electrical recliner, is truly a work of art considering the fact they come with not just appropriate lumbar support and adjustable footrest but they also go over and beyond and provide therapeutic body massages with multiple heating spots to keep you cozy and warm.

However, as flavorsome as its multitude of features may sound, there is quite a whole host of controversy revolving around it, especially in the medical community that “are recliners bad for leg circulation.”

Nonetheless, being an expert on such a discussion, I feel obliged to shed some light on it rather than completely shunning it, which would inadvertently give rise to more doubt and further stigmatize it.

How does Leg Circulation work?

You might think the legs would be the least complex part of the circulatory system, given their distance from the heart.

However, it’s the exact opposite. Leg circulation is a dynamic system that constantly adapts to the body’s needs and involves an intricate interplay of arteries, veins, valves, and muscles. 

This ensures that blood is efficiently delivered to and from the extremities, even against the force of gravity, and recliners, when designed with proper support and elevation, can enhance leg circulation by reducing pressure on veins and facilitating blood flow back to the heart.

On the flip side, it also has some negative aspects, particularly if they are not designed or used appropriately. Nevertheless, both of these aspects are discussed below. 

Are Recliners Bad For Leg Circulation: The Good, Bad & Ugly

Theoretically speaking, there is no straightforward way to answer the question; henceforth, I have to break your query down into three different sections in order to answer it briefly.

The Great Side

Recliners are a great replacement in scenarios where your ordinary furniture or homeware is nearly rendered useless, to the point that it causes you to develop issues such as edema in your legs.

In such circumstances, feet, ankles, and knees tend to swell because of fluid retention in tissues, which causes numbness and inflammation.

To remedy these issues, doctors tend to prescribe Recliners with footrests as they jumpstart leg circulation from the torso to the lower limbs and provide effective movement of blood from your heart to your legs.

This nullifies fluid retention in a matter of weeks or even days, especially if you have your footrest set to a position higher than your heart while sitting on the recliner for at least 20 minutes a day.

In such scenarios, both manual and electric recliners are seen as a holy grail, and there is virtually no better replacement for them because they drastically improve ideal blood circulation.

The Frowned Upon

Not all the glitters are gold here; while some of the most renowned therapists around the world may prescribe you flagship-grade recliners with optimal footrest support and mind-boggling massaging mechanisms, they fail to mention that during therapy at home, self-service plays a great role.

In other words, if you aren’t positioning yourself correctly in recliner, you are basically committing more harm than good because the Great Saphenous Vein In our thighs and legs, which is responsible for major blood circulation is usually congested especially if you are laying your feet on the footrest for a longer duration of time.

Since excess of everything is terrible, relaxing too much in awkward or abnormal positions can cause a great deal of pain and even issues like Varicose veins to pop up.

Varicose Vein is a disorder in which the valves of the vein are stretched or crooked to the point it no longer pushes blood back to the heart which causes sudden reflux to the point it gets clogged.

And if not addressed in due time, it can lead to a range of complications, from cosmetic concerns like spider veins and skin discoloration to more serious health issues such as leg ulcers, bleeding, and even blood clots.

Speaking of veins getting clogged, your lower torso and thighs are also susceptible to Deep Vein Thrombosis, which is a disorder that causes blood clots, resulting in serious life-threatening fiasco.

Henceforth, if you are using a recliner for blood circulation, make sure you consult with your physician or doctor beforehand, as they will provide ample support and let you know how to correctly position yourself on a recliner and steer clear of self-diagnosing.

The Ugly Side

Call it an elaborate ruse, myth, or however you term it, there are certainly some ugly aspects of using a recliner that aren’t discussed much because they may hinder sales.

For starters, factors like using lumbar and thigh massages, as well as heating in winter, give rise to lethargy, which drastically reduces productivity, making you prone to become stationary for a longer duration of time.

It’s best that you avoid sitting for a longer duration of time, especially if you want to stay active and prevent your body from succumbing to lethargy.

In other words, you are less likely to have the energy to exercise and perform core strengthening sessions, which is the last thing you would want for ideal leg circulation.

Bottom Line

From my standpoint, it’s all about the use case and the duration of a recliner being used by a person; while they are undoubtedly one of the best choices to relieve stress and unwind after a long day of work, there are certain scenarios such as the ones I discussed above you want to look out for.

Nonetheless, as gruesome as some of these negative aspects may sound, you can easily avoid them by following my guidelines on this website.

In that case, if you found my article “Are Recliners Bad For Leg Circulation” helpful, feel free to bookmark it because I will be curating more articles like these in the future.