Unless you’re standing or walking for a major part of your day, you likely aren’t thinking about your feet too much as you go through your normal routine. However, as soon as there’s a problem with your feet, you won’t be able to stop thinking about how you should have taken better care of this crucial part of your body. While it’s important to always keep your feet clean and well maintained, there are other, less well known ways you can ensure that your feet are protected from pain or harmful damage. To show you how, here are three ways to better take care of your feet during the day.
Switch Up Your Shoes
To best protect your feet, you should be wearing shoes that help support your feet and ankles against uncomfortable positions and stepping on sharp objects. However, wearing the same pair of shoes each and every day isn’t the best way to go about wearing your shoes. According to HealthyWomen.org, it’s vital that your shoes be given time to breathe so as to avoid being a breeding ground for unpleasant odors or infections. This may mean purchasing two pairs of your favorite pair of shoes so you can give the other pair a break every other day.
Moisturize The Right Way
There are plenty of things that will dry out your skin regardless of what season of the year it is, and the skin on your feet is no exception. While you can use regular lotions or creams that you already have to help moisturize the skin on your feet and toes, if the dryness is particularly bad, you might want to bring out the big guns. To do this, Rodney Cutler, a contributor to Esquire.com, recommends putting a thin layer of petroleum jelly on your feet before you go to bed. Use just enough that you don’t feel like you should put socks over your feet in order to protect your bed sheets. Because petroleum jelly isn’t water-based, it will hydrate your skin much more effectively than most lotions.
Steer Clear Of Fungus
Because your feet can easily get sweaty, it’s no wonder that they can be pretty susceptible to growing fungus or other infections. Jay Sheehan, a contributor to EverydayHealth.com, shares that some of the scariest places for growing fungus on your feet are at the gym, public pools, and unfamiliar shoes. Knowing this, you should try to always wear shower shoes when showering at the gym or in a locker room environment. Also, try to avoid sharing shoes with someone if at all possible. By steering clear of these situations, you’ll be keeping a lot of harmful fungus away from your feet.
If you’re concerned about how to best care for your feet, use the tips mentioned above to ensure this part of your body is well protected.
Originally posted on September 15, 2017 @ 10:54 pm