6 Ways to Love Your Feet
- Stretch your calf muscles daily. When your calf muscles are tight your foot has to compensate by making movements that can lead to common foot conditions. The compensating movement is pronation which is the root of many evils in the foot. Plantar Fasciitis is the most common foot condition linked to tight calf muscles. When your feet aren’t functioning right there can be consequences to the knees, hips and backs. Having your stride be as normal as possible makes for a solid foundation the rest of your body can rely on.
- Avoid topical medicated products for corns and calluses, especially if you have Diabetes. Medicated pads have an acid in them that can breakdown your skin leading to an infection. It may be easy to turn to an over-the-counter remedy and yet the risks out way the benefits. Diabetic amputations have resulted from using store bought medicated products.
- Don’t ignore foot or ankle pain that has lasted more than 2 weeks. It may seem like a shameless plug to see a Podiatrist after just 2 weeks of foot pain but our experience indicates most conditions don’t resolve themselves. Much money and frustration have been wasted by waiting or trying “Google-recommended” remedies. One of the most common phrases we’ve heard is “I wish I wouldn’t have waited so long to see you.”
- Inspect the bottom of your feet for discolorations and feel for lumps. The bottom of our feet is a common place to ignore especially when we become less limber. Although most discolorations or lumps here aren’t serious or painful, why take the chance. If all you get is piece-of-mind knowing the concern isn’t serious, it’s worth having it looked at.
- Take toenail polish off periodically to inspect the color of the nails. It is rather unfortunate but toenail fungus can invade even the healthiest of nails. Since most people can’t feel it, seeing that your nails look normal is important. We’ve had many patients come to us mortified that their nails became discolored without knowing it. We aren’t against polish but taking it off periodically is a good practice.
- Don’t invest in high-priced inserts that aren’t custom made to your feet. Trying an inexpensive pair of inserts is one thing; spending hundreds of dollars for inserts off the shelf isn’t wise. We all have feet that are unique and deserve the very best care available. Having custom inserts made, when indicated, increases your chances of not only resolving a foot concern but also preventing recurrences. We’ve had many patients share their frustration of dropping a wad of cash on store-bought inserts that didn’t work. Loving your feet means giving them the best.
