Advice on Foot Care

1. Inspect your feet: Start at the toenails and look for signs of discoloration, white splotches, black streaks or abnormal thickening and shape. Look in between your toes and make sure you don’t see openings or cracks or a buildup of white, scaly tissue (potential signs of fungus). Look at the structure of your feet, look for lumps or bumps and changes in shape. Any growth on the foot should be seen by your podiatrist. Peeling, dry flakey skin and scaling on the bottom of the feet could be athlete’s foot.

2. Wash your feet regularly: It’s important to wash your feet, your toes and in between your toes and dry them thoroughly.

3. Trim toenails straight across: It’s ok to round a little at the edges to remove that sharp point caused by trimming straight across, but do not trim down the sides of the nail. This is important because it can cause ingrown nails. Do not trim too short, you will end up lifting the nail from the nail bed and cause small breaks in the skin area, leaving you more susceptible to fungus. If you are diabetic or have poor circulation you should not cut your own toenails.

4. Wear the right shoe for the right activity: A running shoe should be worn for running, a walking shoe for walking and a hiking boot for hiking.

5. Wear a properly fitting shoe: Pick a shoe that is comfortable, yet supportive. Once shoes have worn out, replace them as soon as possible.

6. Alternate shoes: Alternating between different types of shoes during the week is a healthy practice for your feet. It’s also important to let your shoes air out to minimize chances of developing fungus.

7. Avoid walking barefooted: Walking barefoot puts your feet at risk to injury, puncture wounds, fungus, warts and infections. Always protect your feet with appropriate shoe gear.

8. Don’t ignore foot pain: Foot pain is never normal, see a podiatrist if foot pain develops.

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