There are many ways to take care of your feet, from keeping them moisturized to avoiding hand-me-downs. But what if you’re already a little old? Here are a few things you can do to take care of your feet as you get older. Start with a little prevention! Moisturize your feet every day, and you’ll keep your feet healthy for years to come. By following these steps, you can protect yourself from common foot problems.
Preventive Foot Care
There are many benefits to proper preventive foot care, especially for the elderly and diabetic patients. Not only is foot health important for your overall health, but your feet also affect other parts of your body. In some cases, a foot problem can affect other parts of your body, such as your joints and bones. It is essential to get your feet checked regularly and wear the right footwear. Below are some of the top benefits of preventive foot care:
First, a patient with diabetes should seek treatment for any pre-ulcerative foot signs. Preventive foot care for diabetics includes treating ingrown nails, removing abundant callus, and protecting the blister. If these symptoms persist, an antifungal medication should be prescribed. These treatments should be repeated frequently until the pre-ulcerative sign has disappeared. Ultimately, you should seek medical treatment from a qualified foot care professional specializing in treating diabetes.
Moisturize Your Feet
The best time to moisturize your feet is right after you get out of the shower or wash them using a loofah or pumice stone. You can also do it before bed. If your feet are particularly dry, you should try to choose a thick moisturizer rather than a thin one. You can even try using petroleum jelly, as it helps to lock in moisture. You can repeat the process overnight if needed.
Another way to moisturize your feet is with Vaseline, which is a bathroom cabinet staple. It works to heal minor wounds and moisturize the whole body. The product is non-greasy, hypoallergenic, and absorbed quickly. Its ingredients include lanolin to soften skin and petrolatum to moisturize. It also contains essential oils and epsom salt to soothe irritation. You can also try a foot cream containing lavender essential oils.
Avoiding Hand me Downs
Buying hand-me-downs for your children can save you money and make life easier. Kids outgrow most items quickly, so it makes sense to reuse things as much as possible. But shoes are a different matter. They’re a tempting environment for microorganisms, and they can cause a range of unpleasant consequences. Foot infections, warts, and foul odor are just a few of the problems that can arise from wearing hand-me-down shoes.
Second-hand shoes are often too worn to provide adequate support, so they can cause problems from blisters to ingrown toenails. Furthermore, sharing shoes increases the risk of foot infections and plantar’s warts. Another common foot problem associated with hand-me-down shoes is inconsistency in size. The soles of shoes should accommodate your foot size, and the heels should be wide enough to allow the toes to move.
Taking Care of Your feet You Get Older
Taking care of your feet as you get old is crucial, as your health is linked to your shoes. Poorly fitting shoes can cause back problems, joint pain, and impaired balance. Taking care of your feet as you get older requires more than just wearing the right size shoes. Older adults should avoid shoes with excessively high heels or tight fitting soles. People with wide feet should also regularly change their footwear.
Your feet are made of more than 30 joints, and any one of them can degenerate. Arthritis often strikes the big toe and midfoot joints. Arthritis tends to increase stiffness, which worsens at night. Luckily, there are some easy ways to reduce this pain, such as using shoe inserts, performing exercises to increase range of motion, and losing excess weight.
Treating Athlete’s Foot
If you have athlete’s foot, you may be looking for the best treatment methods. While this condition is relatively common, it can spread to other parts of the body, such as the groin. If left untreated, athlete’s foot may lead to a more serious bacterial skin infection, including cellulitis. Additionally, this condition can make your feet and groin dry, causing you to become susceptible to skin infections.
There are three main types of athlete’s foot. Moccasin-type athlete’s foot occurs on the sides, edges, and bottoms of the feet. The skin thickens and cracks. Infection may even spread to the toenails. Most over-the-counter products do not work against nail fungus, but oral antifungal medications can help. Topical preparations can be expensive and are only available with a prescription.
