Foot problems common among diabetes

Foot problems common among diabetics

Complications from diabetes can lead to neuropathy of the feet, a decrease in nerve sensation which can lead to greater problems. But diabetic foot problems can be prevented. Unfortunately, foot problems are very common with individuals that have diabetes. One of the contributing factors for folks to develop problems when they have diabetes is a loss of protective sensation, and that is, in essence, the ability to detect pain, to detect that something ominous is occurring in the feet. We know that, unfortunately, about 60 to 70 percent of all patients that develop diabetes in their lifetime will have some form of neuropathy, which is the loss of protective sensation. And therefore, increase their risk of having a foot problem.

Foot problems common among diabetics

Once you have the inability to detect pain, that increases the likelihood of you seeking help early. Therefore, you may have the problem longer. Some important tips for checking your feet on a regular basis would be: to number one, make sure that you visualize the top, the bottom, and in between the toes. If you're unable to visualize it yourself, having a family member help you with that. The other is making sure, that on a daily basis, you're washing and drying the feet well, being sure to dry in between the toes. Also, using a moisturizer on the feet, being sure that you're applying that well, but avoiding applying a moisturizer in between the toes. The other thing is that if you notice that there is a cut or a scrape or something that's new that wasn't there yesterday, you want to make sure that you document that, and you let your doctor know right away. Another important tip is to make sure that you have shoes that are well-fitting. You want to make sure that when you purchase a pair of shoes, there's no such thing as a break-in period. So you want to be sure that those shoes fit you well, and that they're not causing any skin irritation.