# why do i bruise so easily? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [June 14, 2003, 10:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-i-bruise-so-easily/181906 "2003-06-14T22:10:18Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 12\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![something\_clever](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/3bc359/32.png) [@something\_clever](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/something_clever)\ **Post date:** [June 14, 2003, 10:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-i-bruise-so-easily/181906/1 "2003-06-14T22:10:18Z")
i was noticing… well… not just me, but also my gf and my friends, WTF is wrong with my legs. I just started working at ups and ive been there a week and a half pretty much and my legs are covered in bruises… my friends who work there are not bruised nearly as bad as me… i know it has something to do with me, because im usually more careful than they are… so, are some people just easily bruised? do i need to take vitamins? anyone know? this is kind of weird… ---
**Author:** ![JillGat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/9fc29f/32.png) [@JillGat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JillGat)\ **Post date:** [June 14, 2003, 10:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-i-bruise-so-easily/181906/2 "2003-06-14T22:32:27Z")
You either have sensitive skin or leukemia. I wouldn’t worry about it. ---
**Author:** ![barbitu8](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/839c29/32.png) [@barbitu8](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/barbitu8)\ **Post date:** [June 14, 2003, 10:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-i-bruise-so-easily/181906/3 "2003-06-14T22:34:12Z")
A vitamin C deficiency can cause easy bruising. Try supplementing with a vitamin C tablet or powder and see if that helps. If not, see a doctor. ---
**Author:** ![JillGat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/9fc29f/32.png) [@JillGat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JillGat)\ **Post date:** [June 14, 2003, 10:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-i-bruise-so-easily/181906/4 "2003-06-14T22:37:22Z")
[http://www.cnn.com/HEALTH/library/HQ/00355.html](http://www.cnn.com/HEALTH/library/HQ/00355.html) ---
**Author:** ![jimpatro](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/b9e5f3/32.png) [@jimpatro](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jimpatro)\ **Post date:** [June 15, 2003, 5:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-i-bruise-so-easily/181906/5 "2003-06-15T05:36:25Z")
Ask your doctor about VonWillebrand’s disease. Do you also find that wounds take a while to stop bleeding? Check into it. ---
**Author:** ![Christina25](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/8edcca/32.png) [@Christina25](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Christina25)\ **Post date:** [June 15, 2003, 5:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-i-bruise-so-easily/181906/6 "2003-06-15T05:57:41Z")
I had that happen while I was on a medication… thrombocytapenia (sp?) Once I was off it it went away. Good luck to you and go to a doctor dear. ---
**Author:** ![Ravenman](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ravenman/32/2929_2.png) [@Ravenman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ravenman)\ **Post date:** [June 15, 2003, 4:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-i-bruise-so-easily/181906/7 "2003-06-15T16:15:36Z")
If you notice small pink dots that look like freckles on your shins, or you have trouble with nosebleeds, get it checked out by a doctor. Or it could be that some people are just more clumsy than others! 😉 ---
**Author:** ![norinew](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/eb9ed0/32.png) [@norinew](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/norinew)\ **Post date:** [June 15, 2003, 5:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-i-bruise-so-easily/181906/8 "2003-06-15T17:11:34Z")
Get checked by a doctor. There are many reasons for brusies, some are nothing to worry about, others such as low platelet count, could be a sign of a much more serious problem. Until you are checked, it is all guess work and that is never a good idea where your health is concerned. ---
**Author:** ![barbitu8](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/839c29/32.png) [@barbitu8](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/barbitu8)\ **Post date:** [June 16, 2003, 12:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-i-bruise-so-easily/181906/9 "2003-06-16T00:00:44Z")
With all due respects to CNN, too much fragility is imparted to older persons. Vitamin C is necessary for cellular integrity. If there is a deficiency in C, although not a clinical deficiency, cells more easily lose their integrity and bruising occurs more readily. ---
**Author:** ![Qadgop\_the\_Mercotan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/qadgop_the_mercotan/32/83_2.png) [@Qadgop\_the\_Mercotan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Qadgop_the_Mercotan)\ **Post date:** [June 16, 2003, 12:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-i-bruise-so-easily/181906/10 "2003-06-16T00:27:50Z")
But vitamin C deficiency is really quite uncommon in the US, unless one is on a fad diet, or suffering from lead poisoning. I echo **norinew** ’s advice. The place to start with a concern about whether or not you have a problem is with your doctor. QtM, MD ---
**Author:** ![barbitu8](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/839c29/32.png) [@barbitu8](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/barbitu8)\ **Post date:** [June 16, 2003, 3:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-i-bruise-so-easily/181906/11 "2003-06-16T15:32:20Z")
With all due respects to the great doctor and to the Establishment, I’m in the Pauling camp that a vitamin C deficiency is quite common. Sure, most get the RDA of 65 mg daily, but how many ingest 500 mg? Before I started putting vitamin C powder in my OJ every morning, I used to bruise after trauma, as most people do. Now, I rarely bruise. There will be evidence of the trauma, obviously, but my skin won’t turn black and blue. This is just a testimonial and won’t find any support in the medical literature. But then again I don’t know if this has every been studied. ---
**Author:** ![Spiff](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/spiff/32/9852_2.png) [@Spiff](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spiff)\ **Post date:** [June 16, 2003, 4:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-i-bruise-so-easily/181906/12 "2003-06-16T16:26:53Z")
Maybe if you’d pay your Dominatrix bills on time, she’d not whip you so hard. 😃 Or is that she’d punish you by NOT whipping you as hard … this is so confusing!