Foot care - Why is it that most people only tend to their feet when they have problems with them, like when they ache from standing to long, or their toenails need cutting, or if they have discovered they have toe nail fungus or other. Foot care is important because after all they are limbs you can’t do without if you want get from here to there.   

Problems involving the feet usually stem from neglect. People will squeeze them into ill-fitting shoes and wear tall heels, and don't always wash them and rarely treat them, hence giving cause for complications. People also tend to think out of sight out of mind, this is more the reason to keep on checking the feet to see how they are.

Remember that your feet take the weight of your whole body and in some cases this can be a lot of weight if you are obese. Foot problems are likely from the extra weight which in return will cause discomfort and affect the way you walk. Overweight people due to their heaviness can suffer from knee pain, hip and back pain.

Foot care hints to keep feet healthy 

Wash your feet with soap and warm water before retiring to bed. If dirt remains on the skin’s surface and in between the toes, it can become irritated and infected and cause foot odor.  

Dry your feet thoroughly after washing them and apply moisturizing foot cream massaging the area slowly giving the skin time to absorb the foot treatment. If you don’t do this and rush slipping socks or stockings back over the feet before the cream is absorbed it will take most of the moisturizer with it. This can be an expensive process if the job isn’t done properly 

Gently remove hard skin and calluses with a pumice stone or foot file regular 

Always trim your toenails and keep them short. This makes it easier for every time you come back to trim them, cut toenails straight across, never at an angle or down the edges. This can cause ingrown toenails which may need medical attention.  

If you need a new pair of shoes then shop for footwear in the morning. Feet tend to swell with you standing on them during the day which will make it hard for you to get the shoes to go on as they should. 

If you have always been one to wear high heels then make sure they are comfortable to avoid painful feet. Also, try to vary the heel height between low, medium and high.  It’s like giving the feet a break 

Change your socks daily and never put clean socks on over dirty feet if you don’t want smelly feet.  

Wear flip-flops or open sandals to help prevent catching athlete’s foot and verruccas when you use public places such as the gym, fitness centers, showers, swimming pools or hotel bathrooms while on holiday.   

Don't make it a regular thing to wear flip-flops. Although you may feel comfortable wearing them they can however cause arch pain and heel pain, if you constantly wear them then you may suffer for it later on. 

 As we age the skin thins on most parts of the body, the joints begin to stiffen and the feet become more vulnerable in cold weather conditions. So foot care is essential at this time, or any other time in saying that. 

Facts on Feet 

• Each foot contains 26 bones and over 100 ligaments. So it’s important to eat a healthy diet to keep these bones strong  
• The feet contain over a quarter of the bones in your body.  
• Foot skin has over 7,000 nerve endings.  
• And a staggering amount of 125,000 sweat glands are located on “each” foot which totals more than any other body part.