Long distance flying: foot pain/discomfort?

Have you had this problem and what solutions are there for it?
The last two long distance flights(over 13 hours in 2 segments), toward the end of the flight my feet, paticularly the bottom and outside) started aching and cramping. After arrival it started to be even more painful and cramped several times. After abput two days it subsided.
I had two different comments from fiends:
1-it sounded like gout symptoms-but this does not sound right because of only lasting for couple of days.
2-lack of water consumption.

Sounds like DVT (Deep Vein Thrombosis) to me. This is a VERY serious disorder that kills many people each year:
http://www.dvt.net

There was another thread on this subject recently.

http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/showthread.php?t=406047


You should check with your doctor but this is much more likely to be fluid retention than DVT.

Everybody is different, of course, but I had the same symptoms on different flights.

I am notorious for not drinking. I seldom manage more than one glass of water a day but I drink at least twenty to thirty coffees....

The cramps might be a result of drinking little but also of not moving sufficiently during the flight. No matter what the FA's tell you, walk about on long flights.

If the cramps persist, just take a magnesium tablet or two. Cramps are often the result of lack of magnesium. But this would be the case only if you were having the cramps from time to time at home, like when stretching or after a night's sleep.

Everybody's feet swell on long flights... Did I tell you my story about a flight from SYD to ATL where I was not able to get into my shoes upon landing in ATL? I had to walk all the way from the plane into the parking lot in my socks

I would say you need to drink more water and you may want to look at purchasing compression socks for long flights. They will help keep your feet from swelling. Try this site www.jobst.com

Be careful with magnesium. It is a laxative! Actually, I think potassium helps avoid muscle cramps even more than magnesium. Eat bananas! Drink water. Don't drink alcohol or consume caffeine, and try not to take any decongestants. And especially, keep your salt (i.e. sodium) consumption as low as possible before and duiring your flight.

Add tonic water to the list. It helps alleviate foot and leg cramps.

But really the best advice is to drink plenty of water and get up and stroll the aisles as often as possible. If you drink plenty of water, you will be getting up frequently anyway to go to the lav.

I use a "footsie roller" for the bottoms of my feet. A wooden rolling-pin looking device, 8 inches long. Roll my feet over it. Gets rid of tiredness, cramps, for circulation.
Sold at college town health food and body lotion stores.
Do you take your shoes off ? I do.
Another DVT site: http://www.bugbog.com/travel_health/...hrombosis.html

That happened to me coming back from London once! Fortunately I had a pair of sneakers in my checked bag, but I would've had to go through immigration and customs before I could get to it. Told the Virgin Atlantic FA as they departed the plane, and asked for maybe UC slippers but instead sent a wheelchair! So I was wheeled through immigration and customs even though I could walk fine, just shoeless.