MOST of us are on our feet all day long, and while our feet haul us through thousands of steps per day, we don’t often take the time to give our feet the care they need and deserve.
Foot health 101
– Don’t wear too-tight shoes
– Don’t share shoes
– Don’t share pedicure utensils with your friends
– Don’t hide discoloured nails with polish. Let them breathe and treat the underlying issue
– Don’t shave calluses
– Don’t perform ‘DIY surgery’ on an ingrown nail
– Do try the Legs-Up-the-Wall yoga pose after a long day or a hard workout.
– Do give yourself a foot massage or book a reflexology session
– Do roll a tennis ball under your feet
– Do soothe irritation with a vinegar foot soak
What’s the best way to tackle rough skin and calluses?
We brush our teeth and scrub our pits, but we often dismiss the toe part of head-to-toe hygiene. Here are the top three rules:
– Wear proper fitting shoes, wash daily and limit conditions of excessive moisture content in shoes
– Corns and calluses are areas of thickened skin resulting from abnormal pressure or rubbing
– They are not the problem but rather the result of abnormal foot structure or function
Bad shoes will cause
– Corns
– Calluses
– Blisters
– Other sources of irritation
– Ingrown toenails
Pro tip: To prevent ingrown toenails, cut nails straight across. Do not round the edges. If you have a painful ingrown nail, don’t perform ‘DIY surgery’ on it. Leave that to the professionals.
How do you get rid of foot odour?
Bathing daily and taking the time to dry the skin between your toes afterwards will help prevent odour, and bacterial and fungal infections like athlete’s foot.
Pro-tip: If you do end up with the dreaded itch, try a Listerine soak.
