Diabetes And How It Affects Our Feet

Diabetes related foot problems

Having Diabetes can be dangerous to your Feet, even a small cut could have serious consequences. Diabetes may cause nerve damage that takes away the feeling in your feet.

Diabetes may also reduce blood flow to the feet, making it harder to heal an injury or resist infection. An example of this would be not noticing a pebble in your shoe, so you develop a blister, then a sore, then a stubborn infection that might eventually lead to the amputation of your foot or leg.

Avoid Foot issues from diabetes.

To avoid serious foot problems that could result in losing a toe, foot, or leg:
• Inspect your feet daily. Check for cuts, blisters, redness, swelling, or nail problems. Use a magnifying hand mirror to look at the bottom of your feet. (If your eyesight is poor, have someone else do it for you.) Call your doctor if you notice anything.
• Moisturize your feet, but not between your toes. Use a moisturizer daily to keep dry skin from itching or cracking. But do not moisturize between the toes, as this could encourage a fungal infection.
• Cut nails carefully and straight across; file the edges. Don’t cut them too short, this could lead to ingrown toe nails.
• Wear clean, dry white socks and change them daily. Wearing white socks allows you to see at a glance if your feet might be bleeding.

Additionally

• Shake out your shoes and inspect the inside before wearing. Remember, you may not feel a pebble, so always shake out your shoes before putting them on.
• Never walk barefoot – not even at home! You could step on something and get a scratch or cut.
• Take care of your diabetes. Keep your blood sugar levels under control. Keeping your blood sugar below 140 could decrease your chances of numbness and tingling in your feet.
• Never trim corns or calluses. No “bathroom surgery” – let your podiatrist do their job.
Get periodic foot exams. See your podiatrist on a regular basis for an examination to help prevent the foot complications of diabetes.

For more info on Diabetes itself CLICK HERE.

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