Foot Care & Diabetes
Important Information From Your Doctor
- Keep your blood sugars in control.
- Wash your feet every day. Dry them carefully, especially between the toes.
- Check your feet twice a day for sores, calluses, red spots, cuts, swelling, and blisters. If you cannot see the bottoms of your feet, use a mirror or ask someone for help.
- Do not soak your feet.
- Don't put your feet in hot water. Test the temperature (with your elbow) before putting your feet in it just as you would before bathing a baby.
- If your feet are cold, wear loose, cotton socks. Never use hot water bottles, heating pads, or electric blankets. You can burn your feet without realizing it.
- Don't cut off blood flow to your feet. Do not wear garters.
- Do not use chemicals on corns, calluses, or warts. Over-the-counter products are often too strong for use by people with diabetes. They can burn your feet. Also, do not cut corns or calluses yourself.
- Cut your toenails straight across and file the edges. Do not tear off hangnails. Never dig into the edges.
- Wear wide, comfortable shoegear that fits your feet. Break-in new shoes slowly.
- Never wear shoes without socks or stockings.
- If you have lost feeling in your feet, ask your health care provider for advice on proper shoes.
- Check the insides of your shoes before wearing them. Make sure there are no pebbles, nails, or other sharp objects in them and that the shoe itself is not rough and the lining is not torn/worn.
- Inspect your feet immediately after taking shoes off for signs of redness or blisters.
- Choose socks carefully. They should not have seams or other bumpy areas. Do not wear mended socks.
- Pull your socks on gently to prevent ripping a toenail. Choose padded athletic socks to protect your feet and make walking more comfortable.
- Never walk barefoot. You could burn or cut your feet and not notice it. Keep hard-soled shoes or slippers by your bed to use whenever you get up at night.
- Do not smoke. Smoking narrows the blood vessels and decreases the circulation to your feet.
- See your foot doctor immediately if you develop a blister, puncture wound, new corn, or callus, see bleeding in your shoe or have pain in either of your feet.
For more immediate information on foot care and diabetes, please contact our Long Island foot doctors at Advanced Podiatry today . You may also contact us 24/7 through our Appointment Request Form .
