Diabetic Foot Care
By Ronald M. Freeling, DPM, FACFAS

Because diabetes can cause poor blood circulation, even minor infections can be hazardous to someone with the disease. Proper foot care and regular visits to a podiatrist are important to help guard against foot conditions that can pose serious medical problems to people living with diabetes.

This list of do’s and don’ts can help you avoid many of the complications of diabetes:

• Inspect feet daily for signs of cuts, scratches, bruises, blisters, or cracks between toes. If needed, use a mirror to see the bottom of your feet.

• Wash feet gently each day with a mild soap. Dry carefully, especially between the toes, blotting rather than rubbing. Use cocoa butter or lanolin to coat the skin and help retain moisture. Use medicated powder at the direction of your doctor.

• Avoid extremes of temperature. Use your elbow or wrist, rather than your feet, to test bath temperature. Use warm (never hot) to treat some foot lesions, but only at your doctor’s direction.

• Avoid external heat sources when your feet are cold. Use woolen socks to maintain body heat. Heating pads, heat lamps, hot water bottles, and heat registers may be dangerous.

• Never try to remove corns and calluses yourself. Check with your doctor.

• Check inside your shoes daily. Nail points, torn lining, bunched construction material, and even accumulations of foot powder can produce pressure areas. Turn each shoe over each time it is put on to be sure nothing is in it.

• Avoid socks that bind at the toes or the top. Watch for pressure from seams and darns.

• Have your shoe fitted properly. Avoid pointed shoes. If you have any clawing or hammering, get shoes with a high toe box.

• Don’t wear new shoes for more than one to two hours without checking for pressure areas on the feet until the shoes are broken in. It usually takes a week to 10 days to break in new shoes.

• Don’t go barefoot. Wear footwear at all times for protection, even when getting up to go to the bathroom at night.

• Cut nails straight across. Do not cut into the corners. At the first sign of redness or irritation, see your doctor.

• Have your feet examined each time you visit your doctor.

• Don’t wear sandals with thongs between the toes.

• Don’t smoke.

Dr. Freeling is a Rochester podiatrist and member of Preferred Care’s Geriatric Advisory
Posted: October 2004