Personal Foot Care: Keeping your feet toetally gorgeous

So what is personal foot care and why is it important? Simply, it is the normal care every person should be carrying out on their feet. This includes:

· Regularly checking your feet

· Foot hygiene

· Nail care

· Skin care

· Picking out appropriate footwear

· Knowing when to seek professional treatment

Personal foot care is for everyone, even diabetics!

Regularly checking your feet

By checking your feet you reduce the risk of having an unnoticed injury like a blister, cut or embedded pet hair. This is especially important for those who have sensory changes to their feet (like diabetics, those who have nerve damage due to trauma or those with neurological conditions) as unnoticed injuries can often be a lot worse and increase the risk of infection.

There are different ways you can check your feet, the safest and most simple is to sit on a chair and lift one foot onto the opposite knee or a foot stool.

If this is difficult for you, another way is to place a mirror on the floor and check that way. You should always take care to check between all toes.

Foot hygiene

You should wash your feet regularly in warm soapy water and wear clean hosiery every day to ensure your foot hygiene is optimal. Always make sure to dry thoroughly between your toes to help prevent odour and fungal infections.

If you find your feet get overtly sweaty during the day washing your feet daily and swapping to natural materials like cotton or bamboo socks to help with ventilation and moisture. Rotating your shoes can also help by allowing your shoes to dry between wears.

Nail care

Gradually cut along the nail with the tip of the nippers or clippers, following the natural shape of the nail.

Try to not cut down the side of the nail and leave some of the free edge visible so that the length comes to just below the end of the toe. File the free edge after cutting to smooth any roughness.

Instead of cutting your nails, you can file them regularly.

File the free edge from one side to the other to take down length, file from base to free edge of the nail for reducing thickness of the nail. Filing the free edge away and down also helps to prevent the nail catching on socks or tights

File down sharp or rough corners to prevent ingrown nails and always check down the side of the nail to make sure you have not left a nail spike that could puncture the skin. If you have some build up of skin debris under or down the side of the nail use a soft bristled nail brush to gentle dislodge this after filing or cutting.

Skin care

Many people forget to moisturise their feet which can lead to dry flaky skin. Applying moisturiser to dry areas can also help prevent cracking of the skin especially around the heels. Always avoid applying moisturiser between the toes as this can lead to excessive moisture which can cause fungal infections and breaks in the skin.

If you have some hard skin on your soles and heels, you can also manage this at home using a foot file or pumice stone. Do this when your skin is dry before bathing your feet and gently file or rub the area in one direction.

Picking out appropriate footwear

Footwear is anything you wear on your foot including slippers and hosiery. You should always wear shoes appropriate to your activity which will allow your foot to function how it is supposed to. Incorrect footwear can cause a multitude of podiatric problems including callus and corn formation, damage to nails, blisters, lesser toe deformities and in some cases wounds. What to look for in a good shoe:

· Sole: should be supportive but flexible. You should not be able to completely fold your shoe in half but it is also important that the sole is not completely rigid. It should allow movement at the level of the toes to allow you to walk normally.

· Heel: no more than 3cm and is as broad or broader than your foot. This is to allow stability as your heel takes a large portion of your weight during initial contact with the ground whilst walking.

· Insole: preferably removeable in case a prescribed insole is required.

· Toe box: deep and wide enough for your foot, you should be able to easily wiggle your toes when standing. This prevents excessive pressure being applied to your toes and joints.

A good tip to help you find the right shoes for your feet is to stand on a sheet of paper and draw around your foot. This shows the natural splaying of your foot when standing. Place the shoes on the paper, if the shoe is narrower than the outline they are not the shoes for you!

This is also very helpful for fitting children's shoes.

· Upper: soft, natural and breathable material (like leather or plant leather) with a seam-free lining.

· Fastenings: laces or Velcro to secure the shoe to prevent your foot sliding around when you walk. An ill-fitting or loosely tied shoe can cause callus and corns to occur on the soles of the feet due to rubbing friction and microtrauma to the nails as they hit off the inside of the shoe. Flip flops, sliders and slip-on shoes also allow the foot to move around but also cause you to claw your toes when walking which alters the way your foot functions.

Wearing socks made from natural materials is recommended; cotton, hemp, bamboo and wool are options you should consider. Ensure your socks are not too tight and the elastic does not leave indents in your skin. If you have sensitive feet you may find it more comfortable to wear your socks inside out so that the seam does not press into your toes.

Knowing when to seek professional treatment

So where do podiatrists come into this equation? Once someone cannot or should not carry out personal foot care for various reasons a podiatrist will then carry out this treatment.

Here are some reasons a podiatrist may be required:

· Moderate to high risk diabetic patient

· Thickened nails that cannot be cut with regular nail clippers

· Involuted or ingrown nails

· Thick callus or corns

· Arthritis affecting the patient’s ability to bend to the feet or use their hands

· Recurrent painful verruca

· Many more...