Living With Diabetes Blog! | Living-With-Diabetes.us

We diabetics have to take special care of our feet, or we can find them troubled in two ways: reduced blood circulation and nerve damage.

Here’s what to look for and some prevention ideas.

Symptom:

If your feet are constantly cold, your legs are sore when you walk, or your feet hurt in bed at night, you may be suffering from poor blood circulation. This, in turn, can slow down the process of healing when you have cuts or other damage to your feet.

Prevention:

Staying physically active is one way to help improve your circulation. You also need to control your blood fat and sugar levels, as well as your blood pressure. And of course, don’t smoke.

Symptom:

If your feet are numb, you have a burning sensation on the soles of your feet or pins and needles in your feet, you have signs of possible nerve damage.

Foot nerves are the longest in our bodies and are therefore susceptible to damage by diabetes. If these nerves are damaged, the feelings are lessened, so we could have the cuts or blisters that can lead to ulcers, and we wouldn’t even know about

If you have diabetes information about how to manage your condition is vital to your well being.

If you don’t look after your feet you run the risk of developing sores or infections that could, in the worst case scenario, lead to amputations. As happened to my father-in-law.  Reduce your risk of infection or amputation by incorporating these 7 foot care tips…

1)  Check your feet daily – especially if you have low sensitivity or no feeling in your feet. Sores, cuts and grazes could go unnoticed and you could develop problems leading to amputations.

2)  Don’t go around barefoot, even indoors. It’s easy to tread on something or stub your toes and cut yourself. Protect your feet with socks/stockings and
shoes/slippers.

3)  Be careful if you have corns or calluses. Check with your doctor or podiatrist the best way to care for them.

4)  Wash your feet daily in warm, NOT HOT water. And don’t soak your feet (even if you’ve been standing all day) because it could dry your skin and form cracks or sores.