Foot care matters more as you age
By Deborah Jeanne Sergeant
If your feet hurt, not much else matters.
As you grow older, foot pain tends to worsen. Fortunately, you can reduce foot pain. Andrea May, nail technician with advanced education in diabetic and geriatric foot care, owns Andrea’s Foot Care in Rochester, offered a few tips to take better care of your feet.
1. “Examine your feet every day. If you need a mirror, use one. It gives a good advantage. Get a phone and take a picture of the bottom of the feet. As we age, we don’t feel the bottom of our feet as we used to, whether there’s neuropathy or not. Melanoma, slivers or blister: there can be spots you don’t notice. A lot of signs like cancer will show up on the bottom of the foot. Look for discoloration that’s darker. It might be flat against the skin and you won’t feel
a bump.
2. “Wear comfortable shoes. We lose the fat pads that cushion our feet. There are 200,000-plus nerve endings.
3. “Pay attention to injuries. Aging slows the healing processes. There can be circulatory issues. That makes a difference.
4. “Clean and dry your feet. While you’re doing that, you can examine them. One of the most important reasons for cleaning and drying them is our bodies shed dead skin cells constantly. The dead skin will pile up unless we exfoliate it. We’re aware of this on our faces. When we get out of the shower, we towel dry but we often ignore our feet and let them air dry.
5. “Layers of dead skin cells start to accumulate. I’ve seen many people with layers of dry patchy skin that almost act as a scab. People think they have dry skin and apply more moisturizers. The dead skin cells as they layer trap moisturizer in there and it’s a breeding ground for bacteria and germs. It can be between the toes and on top or ankles. People think it’s dry skin and apply more moisturizer but it’s not. It’s dead skin. Cleaning regularly will prevent scaly build-up of dead skin.
6. “Keep it dry between the toes as it’s an area for foot fungus. I will often find clients that have such impacted skin between their toes that’s discolored and dead. I can smell it before I see it. It’s really heartbreaking to find it on people. I find it day after day.
7. “Proper nail care is important. As we age, sometimes the nails get very thick for a variety of reasons. If the nails are very thick, they’ll pinch in the shoes as there’s pressure from the top. If they’re very long, you have the nail length bumping against the toe box. It can cause falls because you’re walking in pain. I’m not covered under insurance but your podiatrist is. They spend less time but I do detailed work. I tell clients, see your podiatrist and see me every other visit.
8. “Wear proper fitting footwear. One thing I tell people is next time you buy shoes, try them that are half a size to a size larger and see if your feet are happy. We usually buy ones that are smaller and they’re tight in the toe box.
9. “Seniors are often inside the house a lot at home so we’re wearing slippers. Regular slippers are floppy covers for the feet and don’t provide the support we need. Get an extra pair of your favorite shoes to wear inside only so you have good arch support and protection at home.
10. “If you feel comfortable barefoot or wearing socks with treads, it’s OK. There’s a lot of good stuff about going barefoot. However, as we’re aging, we need more protection. Possible neuropathy, you can easily step on something and not realize you’ve cut the bottom of your foot.”