Five Foot-care Tips for Pregnant Women

During pregnancy, a woman’s weight gain causes her centre of gravity to change, which in turn alters her weight-bearing stance and puts additional pressure on her knees and feet. Water retention, overpronation, edema and swelling are some other conditions causing discomfort and pain in the feet. But pregnancy is that time of your life that you should enjoy, not worry incessantly about foot pains, aches, and other conditions causing distress and discomfort. If you are pregnant and your feet are already hurting, these five foot-care tips will help: 

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      1. Getting medical advice for foot swelling/aches:If your foot aches and/or swelling seem to be troublesome (like when they happen all of a sudden, or are restricted to just one foot) or become too much to handle on your own, don’t hesitate to consult your doctor. Apart from prescribing some medications to offer you relief, your doctor can also ensure that these are triggered by your pregnancy and not any other factor.

          2.   Wearing the right shoes with adequate support: Choosing comfortable,shock absorbing shoes with the right fit and arch support is crucial during pregnancy. Due to loosening of your ligaments during pregnancy, your feet seem to be getting bigger (though they aren’t actually growing bigger). Swelling and water retention can also make your feet feel bigger during pregnancy. Going up in your shoe size can help in such cases since you will no longer have the pain and discomfort caused by tight shoes.

          3. Doing daily stretches for the legs and feet:From doing some fundamental leg stretches tostretching your shins and toes out, stick to some simple stretching routinesthroughout the day that will ease your foot pain and offer relief from the overall discomfort that you experience during pregnancy.

          4.  Keeping the foot elevated:Try to keep your feet elevated as much as is possible, and take adequate rest to prevent swelling. Though it’s best to keep them elevated above your hips (thus not allowing the blood to pool and making gravity direct the blood flow out of your feet and to the rest of your body), it’s not possible until you lie back. But even just using a stool to put your feet up while being seated would be helpful.

          5.  Wearing orthotic shoes: As you cope with the additional weight gained during pregnancy, experiencing achy, tired and sore feet is a common phenomenon. Your doctor or podiatrist may suggest you to use customized orthotics for added support and optimal comfort, which will take the pressure and stress off your foot’s relaxed ligaments. However, you should make sure to get your orthotics fitted by a professional.

             

       These nine months of carrying your little bundle of joy inside you need not be a distressing or scary time for your feet.You just need to stick to a foot care routine as advised by your doctor or podiatrist, and seek medical attention at the slightest hint of trouble. Above all, stay away from popping over-the-counter painkillers or other medications and put your complete trust in your doctor – for both, your own health and the health of your unborn child.

Standing on the Job: Foot Care Tips for Women

Standing long hours on the job is an integral part of the life of many women. From nurses and bank tellers to retail salespersons, restaurant servers and mail sorters, standing for long hours every day takes a heavy toll on the health of women.

These women suffer from a variety of foot ailments – from bunions, calluses, corns, varicose veins and painful/swollen legs and feet to low back pain, shoulder/neck stiffness, muscle fatigue and soreness. Their ability to perform well on the job takes a beating and even wrecks the quality of their life.

Tips to prevent foot ailments
 
Quitting jobs isn’t a feasible or desirable option for women: the next best thing they can do is to take the following preventive foot care measures, to avoid health issues due to standing on job for prolonged hours. These steps are simple to follow and they do not interfere with their jobs.

Choosing right shoes

Do not choose fashionable high heels or pointy shoes with minimal or poor support for your feet and toes; choose instead proper shoes that match your foot size and offer adequate space and support to your toes and feet. If you are already suffering from foot pain or other foot ailments, you should consult your foot doctor to check whether you need orthotics or supportive insoles to wear with your shoes.

Wearing socks and compression stockings

If you suffer from heal pain, wear padded socks. You may also wear compression stockings that offer support to the blood vessels and muscles of the lower leg, thus promoting better circulation. This in turn would help reduce swelling/edema.

Reducing weight

Your feet have to bear and carry around your entire body weight all day long. Just imagine the kind of pressure they would suffer if you were overweight. Therefore, it would help to spare your feet the trouble of excessive pressure, if you shed a few kilos and maintain a healthy weight.

Doing foot exercises

Do some simple stretches and walk around a little from time to time to avoid standing in the same position for long hours. If you have a gym or an empty room in the office, you may even do spot jogging or a few bends and stretches on the floor. This will improve your blood circulation and ward off muscle fatigue.

Pampering your feet at home

At home, you can soak your tired feet in footbath, or give them a foot massage/pedicure, as it will decrease the pain in your overworked joints and muscles.

Following some other steps

Stand on anti-fatigue mats with a cushioned surface that reduce the stress on your feet and legs. When standing for long hours, shift your wait periodically from one foot to another. At lunch breaks or other time offs, try to sit down and rest your legs. If possible, use sit-stand stools to give your feet and legs some respite during work.

Employers must provide a healthy and comfortable workplace for everyone. Unfortunately, women’s health is ignored in general, especially where they are at a high risk of developing several foot ailments due to long hours of standing.

If you belong to such an unfortunate workforce, make use of the simple tips given above to avoid work-related foot health problems. Should you develop any, seek prompt medical advice from a reputed foot doctor with considerable expertise and experience. Make your job painless and stress-free!

Foot Care Tips for the Elderly

Due to several reasons as you age, you start developing a number of foot problems – from wear and tear of joints to the skin losing its elasticity and becoming more fragile, dry and thin than before. Since foot ailments can cause a lot of pain and discomfort and even restrict mobility, elders need to take special care of their feet. Here are a few tips on geriatric foot care:

General foot care and protection

Foot health attested by regular foot examination is very important for elders. You need to keep your feet clean and dry, and clip the nails. However, since aging makes the nails brittle, you should not nick your skin while clipping nails. If dry skin is a problem (as your skin starts losing its natural oils due to aging), you can apply moisturizer on your feet but not between the toes.

You should conduct daily foot inspection to notice small/unusual cuts, bruises, bumps, nail distortions or color changes; should you find any of these symptoms, consult your podiatrist for prompt examination.

Choosing the right footwear and socks    

With age, you start losing the fatty pads cushioning the base of your foot; it is important therefore to choose shoes with the right support and fit. If you select shoes that are too tight, narrow or not supportive, you will suffer from foot pain and discomfort soon.

Ideally, you should opt for shoes with adequate arch support, roomy toe boxes and sufficient sole cushioning to absorb sudden shock. You should pair your shoes with fitting moisture-wicking socks to keep your feet comfortable and dry. If you have problems with your lower limbs, your podiatrist may suggest using orthotics to offer support and stability.

Elders often end up wearing socks and stockings that are too tight to keep their feet warm. However, by doing so, they restrict the blood flow in their feet and suffer from cramp in toes. Thus, whether you are using bed socks or stockings, make sure you choose a comfortable fitting pair.

Consulting a podiatrist on time

Arthritis, diabetes and circulatory problems are common in older people, which may often cause foot pain, discomfort or delayed healing of nicks and cuts. Foot problems that restrict or threaten your mobility need immediate medical attention.

At times, ill-fitting footwear can cause calluses, corns and ingrown toenails, for relief from which a podiatrist can suggest the right footwear. As your immune system takes a beating with age, fungal nails or athlete’s foot too may trouble you as your body finds it tough to manage the pathogens causing the symptoms.

The elderly face an increased risk of bunions and hammertoes (due to excessive pressure on their lower limbs) as well as neuroma and metatarsalgia (due to loss of fatty pads at the base of the foot, depleting the protective layer between the bones and the sole).

Geriatric foot problems can vary thus from small aggravations to serious issues. Minor or major, they all need prompt medical attention to avoid small discomforts from snowballing into more serious, debilitating issues.

You do not need to stop enjoying your golden years of wisdom and rich experiences due to geriatric foot irritants. Make your everyday life full of vigor and vitality by simply adhering to the following: regular foot care routine, right footwear, daily exercise (for better blood circulation and strengthening of muscles) and periodic visit to your podiatrist especially when you notice unusual foot occurrences (like a color or texture change and pain or discomfort).