With swelling legs and feet that fluctuate in size throughout the day. How best to manage this in a 90 year old. She is now taking a Ural cranberry tablet to ensure clean bladder movements. Can the fluid in the legs be lessened by drinking more water regularly?
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We aren't doctors and the wrong advice here would be/could be catastrophic.
Whether or not to increase fluids in ANY senior is dependent on the overall condition of his/her heart. If there is fluid accumulating in the periphery (out extremities) and abdomen this could be from either a weakening heart (congestive heart failure or CHF) OR from dependent edema (failure of the vascular system). In either case, forcing in fluids that cannot be eliminated naturally by the body will put the body in a state of fluid overload and will increase edema.
Please speak with the doctor, and should there be any lung distress and shortness of breath, inability to lay back and breathe comfortably, know that that is an emergency situation that may indicate fluid overload in the lungs due to left sided heart failure, and is time to call EMS.
But because edema can also signal something urgent (like a blood clot or worsening heart failure), evaluation by a healthcare provider is important, especially if it’s new, rapidly worsening, painful, or only on one side."
Source: ChatGPT5
Please take her to an actual doctor.
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