Footwear & Diabetes: Fixing Diabetic Foot Ulcers & Foot Pain

How does diabetes affect the feet?

Diabetic neuropathy is the medical name for damage to the nerves that happens over time caused by diabetes. Fundamentally, if you can’t feel your feet, you may not know that a sock or shoe has caused a blister, and while this blister might seem insignificant, it can cause infection future. Here lies the main problem when we can’t feel our feet due to a neuropathy problem. Diabetes also has the effect of making sores and infections more difficult to heal due to the fact that diabetes can lower the amount of blood flow on our feet.

It’s of vital importance to have healthy feet if you have diabetes since infections lead to gangrene. Problems such as foot ulcers and gangrene that are not addressed swiftly can advance and can lead to amputation of the foot, toe(s) or leg. Rarely does the nerve damage caused by diabetes changes the foot’s shape though in some cases it can cause “Charcot’s foot.” Charcot’s foot is when the bones of the feet get so weak that just by naturally walking, fractures can happen and over time, it can eventually change the look of the foot.

The 10 most common diabetic foot pain problems:

1. 1. Athlete’s Foot– athlete’s foot is an extremely common fungal infection. The best ways to fight athlete’s foot is proper ventilation and to make sure moisture evaporates proper. Fungus loves warm and moist environments so if you can keep your foot dry and ventilated you’re on your way to eliminating athlete’s foot.
   2. Blisters – blisters on the feet are a prevalent problem that happens to almost everybody, the principal issue with diabetics and blisters is that because they might not felt and treated timely, this can cause infection.
   3. Bunions – bunions are about the form on the joint of the total forcing your toes to touch closer to each other, wearing uncomfortable shoes that are too narrow and tight can cause bunions or increase the pain of existing bunions. There is usually swelling and redness associated with bunion pain.
   4. Calluses & Corns – this is the hard skin that can develop on the bottom of the foot, and although there are many causes for calluses, some of the most common reasons are not using correctly fitting shoes and an uneven weight distribution.
   5. Diabetic Neuropathy – as previously explained, because neuropathy damages the nerve endings, it can affect many other foot ailments that might not usually be as problematic, but when you add the additional problem damaged nerves, the problem can escalate exceptionally quickly since untreated infection can lead to amputation.
   6. Dry Skin – dry skin is a very general issue that affects a large percentage of the population, but people with diabetes have to be especially careful since dry skin can cause cards and breaks in the skin and this can allow bacteria and germs to cause infection.
   7. Diabetic Foot Ulcers – foot ulcers are another common problem when diabetes is not correctly managed. The ulcers are most common on the balls of your feet and big toes.
   8. Hammertoes – hammertoes are when the toes are curled up all time and are generally associated and mainly caused by arthritis. Though they are usually just a minute inconvenience, they can affect the health of the foot as a whole. Metatarsal pads and shoes that have additional padding can help treat minor cases of hammertoes while orthotic inserts and toe splints can help more advanced cases of the disease.
   9. Ingrown Toenails & Fungal Nail Infections – ingrown nails can be a nuisance to anybody; they create pressure and swelling since the nail grows into the skin.
   10. Plantar Warts – plantar warts affect millions of people every year they are the cause of a viral infection in the skins outermost layer. They can be usually mistaken for corns and calluses, but warts have small black dots which are actually small blood vessels.

What should you be watching for when looking for the perfect diabetic shoe if you have diabetic foot ulcers?

Finding a perfect pair of diabetic shoes should be on your calendar the day after you are diagnosed as a diabetic patient. A good pair of diabetic shoes is designed to reduce almost all the stress of your feet and shield the feet and toes from external elements which could cause or be complicit in future medical difficulties. When looking for the proper diabetic footwear keep this point in mind:

1. That the toes are generally and perfectly sealed and that the toes also have ample room to wiggle around comfortable. The entire footbed should not be constrained which will help create a comfortable environment while minimizing points of pressure that may cause irritation.
2. Another point to remember is that ventilation and airflow are required to make sure that there are no problems with moisture.
3. It’s also essential that a well-designed diabetic shoe not restrict the foot since that can reduce blood circulation.

Finding the best diabetic shoes are essential since they will help improve your overall health and reduce the chances of complications related to diabetes.

In conclusion

When one is first diagnosed with diabetes, it can be an overwhelming and usually life-changing day and a couple of weeks. That’s why it’s vital that simple things such as finding the proper diabetic footwear and socks for diabetes are researched from the beginning. Since nerves take years and sometimes decades to deteriorate due to diabetic complications, one might ignore these issues thinking that they will not affect us when in reality they very seldom ignore us.