1 week Ago By Ariane Sohrabi-Shiraz, Samantha Ibrahim
Today, November 14, marks King Charles III's 76th birthday and he is celebrating by launching the first two Coronation Food hubs—a legacy project he initiated on his 75th birthday in 2023 to help those needing food support and reduce food waste. The monarch will be proudly inaugurating one hub in person and another with a digital presence. Despite sharing news of his cancer diagnosis back in February, King Charles remains actively involved in numerous royal duties.
But at each public event, watchers invariably zoom in on his distinctively swollen hands, often referred to as "sausage fingers." This unique physical feature became a topic of humor for the then-Prince himself when he quipped about it in 2012 following a lengthy flight to Australia . His comment sparked widespread curiosity over what might cause such swelling.
King Charles attends Gladiator 2 premiere without sick Queen Camilla King Charles worries reuniting with Prince Harry could create 'legal jeopardy' The buzz around his hands escalated after an appearance where he was photographed pouring a pint during a royal duty in 2021. A concerned fan quickly posted on X, previously known as Twitter, asking: "I've never noticed the hands of Prince Charles until this photo. Is he okay? They are so swollen.
" More recent sightings during his six-day Australian tour with Queen Camilla have kept internet users busy, turning to Google Trends which shows a continuous spike in searches for Charles sausage fingers, reports the Mirror . As the year 2023 wrapped up, a light-hearted exchange between Charles and his son Prince William during the BBC documentary "Charles III: The Coronation Year" highlighted the monarch's sense of humor about his "sausage fingers." During the documentary, Prince William struggled to fasten a clasp around his father, remarking, "On the day, that's not going to go in," prompting Charles to quip, "No, you haven't got sausage fingers like mine.
" Dr. Chun Tang, Medical Director at Pall Mall Medical in Manchester, weighed in on what might cause such swelling, telling the Daily Mail: "Often puffy fingers are a symptom of water retention which can be caused by numerous health conditions. This condition arises due to inflammation and can be a result of arthritis, multiple bacterial infections or even TB.
" Dr. Tang also mentioned other factors that could lead to swollen digits including high salt intake, allergic reactions, side effects from medications, injuries, and autoimmune diseases. Dactylitis is the technical term for the severe swelling seen in fingers and toes that King Charles referenced.
Despite any concerns over the health implications of the swelling, King Charles appears to maintain a cheerful demeanor when it comes to his hand condition. He demonstrated his light-hearted approach in a letter to a friend following the birth of Prince William, where he wrote with self-deprecating humor. The Queen herself had observed the notable size of Charles' hands shortly after his birth, penning a message to her music teacher that read: "They are rather large, but with fine long fingers quite unlike mine and certainly unlike his father's.
It will be interesting to see what they become." The NHS points out that swelling in the arms and hands, known as oedema, can be due to various reasons such as fluid accumulation because of being stationary for too long, high salt intake, certain medications, temperature fluctuations, infections or conditions like psoriatic arthritis. If swelling in your arm or hand doesn’t get better with treatment or worsens, it’s advisable to consult your GP.
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