5 Tips for Healthy Feet

5 tips for healthy feet by Megan our friendly Podiatrist 

Our feet endure a lot of external pressure from force caused by weight-bearing activities such as walking, standing and running but also from being enclosed in footwear. Here are five actions you can take to keep your feet healthy:

1) Choosing suitable footwear for our foot shape:

Size:

You want to ensure when purchasing new footwear or assessing pre-existing pairs that firstly they are long enough for you. You want to ensure a finger width amount of space from your longest toe when standing to the end of the shoe.

Width:

You want to make sure that the shoe is wide enough from the joint just below your big toe across to the big joint of your fifth toe (these are called your metatarsophalangeal joints).

Tip: A simple way to do this is to trace around your foot on a piece of A4 paper and place the footwear inside this trace, if the footwear fits inside the trace and you can see your foot outline outside of the shoe it shows you would be squeezing your foot inside it and it is not wide enough for you.

Depth:

You want to make sure that the shoe is roomy around the toes and that there is adequate space on top of the toes to avoid rubbing which will cause things such as corns/callus/blisters and bursa formation.

A good shock absorbing sole:

When we walk the forces involved in the walking process are transmitted through our feet, so it is very important that we choose a strong, shock absorbing sole to try to deflect some of this force.

Tip: A general rule of thumb, if you are putting external pressure on the shoe from your hands from the front and back of the shoe there should be little bend of the sole baring a little flexibility of the toe area, if the sole is easily malleable it will not be absorbing much if any of that force.

Fastenings:

To ensure the foot is held securely inside the shoe, having an effective fastening such as a lace or Velcro strap will hold the shoe in place by stabilising the ankle joint. This reduces shearing stresses on the foot from the inside of the shoe but will also make the foot and ankle more stable reducing risk of injury.

tip: If you choose a shoe with laces, it is important to unlace them when removing and lace back up when putting on each time so that the shoe is anchored to the foot correctly but to also avoid damaging the shoe. 

Insole:

It is important that the shoe has a good cushioned supportive insole built in to provide comfort and support.

2) Feet hygiene and drying thoroughly in-between your toes

It is important to clean your feet with soap and water regularly and when you are having a shower or bath that you are being thorough with drying in between your toes afterwards. This will reduce the risk of developing a fungal infection as fungus thrive in moist environments. 

3) Keeping your feet well hydrated

To help reduce the risk of dry skin and callus build-up, I recommend using a daily foot cream that contains urea. If your feet are quite dry with some hard skin developing, a cream with around 25% urea can be effective. If your feet are only mildly dry, a 10% urea cream should be sufficient.

Tip: You want to apply the cream to the sole of your feet but avoid it between your toes! As discussed above excess moisture could lead to a fungal infection but also a soft corn. With the residual remaining cream in your hands, you can apply a thin layer on top of your feet.

Allow the cream 15 minutes to soak into your feet without walking around/putting socks on or going straight to bed.

4) Maintaining your toenails

I would recommend maintaining your toenails to a reasonable length, so this may mean depending on your individual nail growth patterns quite regularly. You do not want to leave your nail to start curving over the end of your toes as this can cause a corn or a wound which can be very sore.

Tip: When cutting your toenails ensure to cut straight across, gently round the edges off so they are not sharp with a nail file to avoid digging into the skin or the neighbouring toe. The part of your nail you would cut is the white tip of the nail called the ‘free edge’ anymore than this could leave your nail bed quite sore and free from protection.

If you struggle with cutting your own toenails as they are thickened or find it hard to get to them a Podiatrist can support, you with this.

5) Reducing hard skin build up

If you notice you are developing hard skin build up on pressure points of your feet, I recommend filing this a little bit at a time but often.

Tip: A pumice stone works best on wet feet, while for dry feet a file — such as an emery board or metal file — is more effective.

Aim for 1-2x weekly.

A podiatrist can also assist with the removal of hard skin and corns in the clinic.