7 Ways to Take Better Care of Your Feet
April is National Foot Health Awareness Month, and for us at NY Foot Health, it’s a great opportunity to share some tips for improving foot health. Here’s a little secret: it’s not difficult or time consuming!
Establish a daily foot care regimen—start with a clean pair of socks each day. If your feet tend to sweat excessively, dust them with anti-fungal powder. At night apply a moisturizer to your feet before bed. Make sure to wash your feet once a day with soap and water. Simple!
Find a podiatrist—if you don’t already have a regular podiatrist, now’s the time to find one. Use our online directory to locate an experienced foot doctor close to you so when you have a podiatric concern, you will know where to go.
Examine your feet regularly—pain isn’t the only indicator of a foot problem. Look for discoloration of skin, swelling, lumps, rashes, bruises and wounds that seem slow to heal. Report anything suspicious to your podiatrist.
Get your feet measured—even as an adult your foot size can change. It’s natural as you age for the ligaments in your feet to relax a bit, meaning your feet will be larger and your existing shoes will feel tighter. Wearing shoes that are too small for your feet is a major cause of many common foot problems. Your shoe size can also increase due to weight gain or pregnancy.
Choose your footwear wisely—in addition to having shoes that fit properly, it’s important you wear the right shoes for what you’re doing. Having athletic shoes for exercise and sports, sturdy boots for hiking, etc. will protect your feet in all circumstances. Always wear shoes with good arch support. Flat shoes put pressure on your plantar fascia which can lead to heel pain.
Don’t go barefoot—warts, bacterial and fungal infections are all spread by direct contact. Keeping feet covered in public places can greatly lower your risk for these foot problems.
No playing foot doctor—don’t risk injuring yourself or causing an infection by trying to remove warts or shave down corns or calluses. Ditto for attempting to treat conditions like ingrown toenails with old folk remedies like sticking a wad of cotton between the nail and nail bed. Leave the medical care of your feet to the professionals!
To learn more about caring for your feet contact us and subscribe to our free e-newsletter.