Do you often walk around looking like an advertiser for “Barney” the big purple dinosaur? Some people do bruise more readily than others. Maybe you’re clumsy — or perhaps it’s a sign of a severe disorder.
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Please don’t feel the need to panic, though. You can treat many of the underlying causes of bruises holistically, and if you do have a condition, it may not require routine monitoring. Here are 14 reasons for these hematomas of the capillaries, as well as how you can remedy the underlying disorders causing the discoloration.
Gender
If you’re a woman, you’ve probably experienced the joy of spying a particularly colorful contusion on your arm or leg while having zero clues about how it got there. Guess what? You are more likely to bruise than your male counterparts.
Researchers used to blame the excess body fat many women have as the culprit. If you imagine your skin cells like peaches, people with lower levels of fat create a similar situation to transporting these fruits in sturdy crates, versus a more jelly-like packaging. Not all women have higher body fat percentages than all men — but the distinction holds.
The more likely rascal is estrogen because this hormone acts as a vasodilator, meaning it keeps blood vessels open. This hormonal level difference also explains why women are more prone to varicose veins than their male counterparts, and why their blood vessels undergo changes during menopause.