Good Health Starts From The Feet up

“Healthy feet are vital for mobility. In their lifetime, the average person walks approximately 100,000 miles.”

-The Pharmaceutical Journal

If you’ve ever broken a toe – even the little one – or sprained an ankle, you suddenly become aware of how important your feet are. Even the tiniest break can have you in tears and swearing with every step you take. It’s not even just injuries that can play havoc with your feet, infections, illnesses, and even hereditary conditions can all cause discomfort, pain and even be the cause of disability in severe cases. So looking after your feet is vitally important from the way you walk to selecting the correct size and type of footwear for your lifestyle and situation.

Your gait – your posture when walking – affects your whole body and, if it’s off, can lead to hip and back problems. That’s why it’s vital to take care of your feet with as much attention as you spend on the rest of your body.

Prevention is better than cure is a time-honored saying and with good reason. If you can make sure a problem never occurs then it will save you time, discomfort and pain and even potentially a lot of money as treatment can be expensive, if private, and even if not a foot injury can prevent you from working in certain professions and if over a prolonged time period could be giving you a financial loss into the tens of thousands!

So when any issue arises you need to know what to do and with any injury, illness or health problem the first port of call should usually be your doctor as not only are they in a better position than yourself to have seen many of these issues before (even though they are not feet experts as such) they are trained to know the basics and, especially if they are well-established and experienced then they will know exactly what kind of service and which people, in particular, to refer you to or recommend. This will ensure you are being looked after by qualified and reputable professionals in their field. This is not to say that you can’t look at the possibility of complementary treatments and extra private medical practitioners but always be sure to let them know what your condition is if you have been diagnosed by a doctor as any therapy or massage could be detrimental to your condition if done without disclosing your injuries fully.

Fortunately, there are several solutions and therapies that promote healthy feet and overall well-being:

• Reflexology is a non-intrusive system of massage that focuses on the extremities. This therapy is a complement to traditional treatments and stimulates pressure points that correspond with various areas of your body. The theory behind it is that it helps to naturally restore your balance and, after a session, you may find yourself less stressed, sleeping better and with an elevated mood and sense of wellbeing.
• Podiatry treatments are more mainstream and are delivered by specially trained These people concentrate solely on the feet due to that member’s vulnerability. They are experts in conditions of the feet and other underlying causes of foot distress such as diabetes, stress fractures and arthritis. If you’re suffering from painful, swollen or discolored feet, it may be time to visit a podiatrist. (And, as a career, this is a growth industry with numerous podiatry jobs.)
• Rest your feet. If you notice swelling or reddening, you may have trouble with your water retention or circulation. Get your feet up on a cushion and stretch out – ideally with your feet raised above heart level. It’s really amazing how much just getting off your feet and giving them a rest can do for you, it’s not always the fanciest or most complicated solution that works best.
• Footwear is one of the most common issues that many of us forget to check when we have an issue with our feet. Do you know that a huge amount of us are not even wearing the correct shoe size! It was reported recently by Nike that 27% of their footwear was being worn in the wrong size. You can get cramps and swelling from the wrong size or even worse cause actual injury and long-term damage if done for a significant period of time. Most of us have worn a certain size as we had on our feet when we were teenagers and do we ever think of checking it’s correct? No, we don’t! It’s also very important to make sure you use the correct type of shoe for what you are doing, for example, safety shoes on a work-site to prevent injury or walking boots when hiking to promote the correct posture and offer good ankle support, minimizing the possibility of injury.
• Massage them or train a willing partner to do it for you. Your feet experience stress just like any other body part and gentle massage can aid in reducing this stress and making you feel good all over. There are a huge variety of massage styles and treatments if you are looking to get this done by a professional there are so many different styles of massage out there that you have so many options available to you.
• Soak Many of us suffer from overheated feet and there’s nothing like bathing them in cool water to lower our all-over temperature. Combine this with massage and your feet will love you for it. If you have had an impact injury and there is a lot of bruising and swelling then it may be a good idea to use an ice pack or a soak in an ice foot bath to reduce swelling, it’s important that you do this early to make it as effective as possible and if it is a serious injury be sure to get to the hospital and have it properly medically examined.
• Pedicure Over time, nails thicken and discolor, calluses (areas of hard skin) form and can make it painful to walk. Treat yourself to regular pedicures and pamper your feet and although this is clearly not a solution to more serious foot conditions to look after yourself and feel nice is always money well spent. Also, it’s not uncommon for a pedicurist to notice something like a nail infection since they see so many feet on a regular occurrence and this should allow you to get the appropriate treatment arranged.
• Hygiene Think about your foot hygiene. Do you change socks every day or even more than once a day if particularly active. If not this can be the source of bacteria and infection which is easily avoided by this simple measure.

When you consider that 25% of all our bones are contained in the feet, as well as numerous muscles, ligaments and joints, it’s no surprise that so many of us suffer from foot ailments. And, these disorders can affect your general health and mood. Don’t let poor foot health care bring you down. If you discover lumps, rashes or even bad smells, do something about it. These conditions could be symptoms of more serious disorders and the sooner you get help, the less likely it will be that you suffer.