Q I'm an office worker in my 30s who sits all day. My face is puffy in the morning and my legs are swollen by evening. I can't tell if it's fat or swelling — why does this happen?
A Swelling isn't fat gain — it's fluid pooling in the tissue between cells. It's common with long sitting, salty food, or poor circulation. But if it suddenly worsens or affects only one side, it needs to be checked.
Detailed Answer
Swelling isn't extra fat; it's fluid that has pooled in the tissue space outside the blood vessels. Sitting or standing for long periods keeps fluid from draining from the legs due to gravity, and salty food makes the body hold on to water. The daily pattern of a puffy face after waking and swollen legs by evening reflects this circulation-and-gravity effect. Most cases are functional swelling tied to lifestyle, but if it keeps getting worse or affects only one side, the cause should be checked.
Our Korean Medicine Clinic's Perspective
Dongjedang views a body that swells easily as one where water and circulation have stalled instead of flowing properly. When stagnant fluid sits too long, it makes the body feel heavy, much like what is described as 'damum' (phlegm-fluid stagnation) in Korean medicine. By clearing the stagnation and reviving circulation, we help the swelling go down — and the puffiness that comes with it — in a lasting way. At Dongjedang in Dong-gu, Incheon, we start by identifying what is blocking your circulation.
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