The excess sugar in your blood that comes with diabetes wreaks havoc on the lining of your blood vessels. Inflamed, degraded blood vessel walls are prone to plaque buildup, which can lead to atherosclerosis. Narrowed vessels slow your circulation, particularly to your peripheries, such as your hands and feet.
Your feet are particularly at risk if you have diabetes. Slow circulation in your feet means that the nerves there don’t get the nourishment they need, which leads to diabetic neuropathy.
Symptoms of diabetic neuropathy in your feet include chronic pain, tingling, burning, or numbness. Any of these may prevent you from noticing a foot injury. That injury could develop into a potentially dangerous ulcer, also without your noticing — all too common an occurrence among diabetics.
Untreated ulcers can develop gangrene. If you get to that stage, the only remedy is amputation. It sounds extreme, but every year in the United States, 160,000 women and men lose a foot or lower leg to diabetes-related amputation.
At Texas Heart and Vein Multispecialty Group, our expert surgeon, Jon-Cecil Walkes, MD, doesn’t want you to become part of that terrible statistic. April is National Foot Health Awareness Month, so he encourages you to pay extra attention to your feet if you have diabetes and to undergo regular diabetic vein health evaluations at one of our three offices in Houston, Texas.
How can you prevent foot ulcers and keep your feet safe? Follow these 6 strategies.
Especially if you’re overweight or obese, you may not often look at or tend to your feet very often. Or ever. Now is the time to change that habit.
Sit in a comfortable chair every day and take a good look at your feet. Look at the soles, the sides, and between every toe. You’re looking for anything new or unusual, including:
If you see an injury, start treating it right away or see a doctor, even if you don’t feel pain. One of the symptoms of diabetic neuropathy is numbness, so sensation isn’t a good way to evaluate the seriousness of your wound.
If you don’t have one already, get a shower chair so you can sit comfortably and safely in the bath or shower and wash your feet thoroughly. This is also a good opportunity to evaluate your foot health.
Make sure you use soap and warm water. Wash your entire foot, including between the toes. Once you’ve finished bathing or showering, dry your feet completely with a towel. And yes, that means between the toes, too.
Next, apply a moisturizer that helps seal in hydration. Soft, supple skin is less likely to crack and develop small wounds. Powder your feet to keep them dry, especially between the toes.
Always wear socks with your shoes. Socks cut down on friction, so you’re less likely to develop blisters, corns, or calluses on your feet.
Make sure that your shoe heels are low and your toe box is roomy. You don’t want to put extra pressure on the ball of your foot by wearing heels. Similarly, you don’t want to cram your toes together in a narrow, pointy shoe, which can lead to blisters and other injuries.
No, you don't have to go to the spa to pamper your feet. However, feel free to do so, if you wish.
But what you must do is regularly clip your toenails and attend to hangnails so that you don’t develop an ingrown nail or other injury. It’s easiest to clip your nails right after bathing, while they’re still soft.
Cut the nails short (but not too short) and straight across. Curved nails could grow into the nail bed, causing a painful and potentially dangerous (i.e., ulcerous) ingrown toenail.
If you’re overweight or obese, not only can you have a tough time seeing and tending to your feet, but you’re also doing them a disservice by stressing them out with excess weight. Every ounce of your body is felt as stress in your feet as you walk.
If you’ve had difficulty achieving and maintaining a healthy weight, we can refer you for medically supervised weight loss. In addition to helping you make lifestyle changes — such as in the ways you eat and exercise — you may be prescribed drugs that help you lose fat faster.
Along with your feet, your legs offer clues about the health of your peripheral veins. If you notice that your legs are swollen or the skin has changed color, you may have circulation problems that require the attention of a vein expert.
Learn more about diabetic foot care, healthy circulation, and how to prevent foot ulcers by phoning our nearest office or booking an appointment online today. We service Greater Heights, Pearland Market, League City, Lake Jackson, Manvel, Rosharen, Alvin, Fresno, Missouri City, Arcola, Friendswood, South Houston, Kingwood Market, Humble, New Chaney, Atasciacita, and Northeast Houston, Texas.
