Posts Tagged ‘Foot Care’

Heading into spring and summer is the perfect time to check and make sure your feet are in great shape. Ensuring your feet, ankles, and lower legs are kept healthy is important for preventing unwanted pain. If you suffer from flat feet, hammertoes, bunions, ingrown nails, fungus, or sports injuries, it is important to follow-up with your doctor or podiatrist. Additionally, there are many tips you can utilize to maintain feet health.

Your feet are strong and flexible, but you have to take care of them. From walking barefoot to wearing shoes without proper arch support, feet are commonly abused or taken for granted. Taking time and effort to care for your feet can help prevent pain or problems later in life.

The best way, in general, to take care of your feet is to realize that feet should not hurt. If they hurt every day, that is a problem. Feet that hurt for more than two to three days probably involve something other than just walking too much. Additionally, some diseases, such as diabetes, can cause complications with the feet, so taking care of yourself often requires more than one component.

Daily Foot Care

• Wash your feet every day and dry them thoroughly.
• Use mild soap and wash between the toes.
• Wear clean, dry socks and change them at least daily.
• Keep your shoes clean and rotate them to avoid wearing the same shoes two days in a row.
• Avoid walking barefoot as this increases pressure on your feet and can make them susceptible to dirt, cuts, and fungus.

Toenail Care

• Trim nails regularly and cut them straight across.
• Avoid cutting nails on a curve and then filing down any sharp edges.
• Use clean clippers and do not attempt to cut your nails if you cannot see or reach them easily. If this is the case, see a foot health professional for assistance.
• Seek medical attention for discolored toenails and do not cover discolored nails with nail polish or lacquer.

Daily Foot Inspection

Look for bumps, blisters, cuts, or bruises on the tops and bottoms of your feet and between your toes. Use a mirror to see bottoms of feet if needed. If your feet hurt, try to identify the source to manage it or see a podiatrist. Pay attention to dry skin and cracking. Apply lotion, if needed, to prevent dry skin from worsening.

Have your feet measured periodically when buying shoes to check and see if your shoe size has changed. Feet can flatten and become wider or longer as the body ages.

It also is important to maintain a healthy weight. Your feet will thank you for not having to carry as much weight every time they hit the ground. Excess weight can put pressure on the feet leading to general foot pain, circulatory problems, and arthritis.

Finally, remember to put sunscreen on your feet this summer. Ensure you cover the tops and in between the toes to prevent burns, dry skin, or cracking that can lead to other complications.

References

Treat Your Feet! April is Foot Health Awareness Month. – Crozer-Keystone Health System. Available at: http://www.crozerkeystone.org/news/press-releases/2013/april/treat-your-feet-april-is-foot-health-awareness-month/. Accessed April 18, 2016.

National Foot Health Awareness Month. ». Available at: http://podiatryassociates.org/national-foot-health-awareness-month/. Accessed April 18, 2016.