Common foot complaints and remedies

Dry feet and brittle nails:
These can be caused by a diet deficient in fat and certain vitamins. To get healthy feet, add one or two tablespoons of organic, cold-pressed flaxseed oil to your diet every day. Other vital nutrients are vitamins E (found in whole grains and green leafy vegetables) and C (red peppers, citrus fruits), biotin (a form of vitamin [B.sub.6] found in molasses and milk) and silica (unrefined grains, cereals, root vegetables). To spot treat brittle nails caused by frequent use of polish and polish removers, rub some olive or vitamin E oil into them twice a day.

Ingrown toenails
Too short nails can become painfully imbedded in the soft tissue of your toe. This problem can also occur if you wear too-tight shoes or rip your nails off without cutting them--a bad habit that leaves jagged edges digging into your nail groove and possibly infecting it. Avoid this problem by regularly trimming your toenails straight across with clippers.

Yellow nails
If you wear dark polish regularly, you could develop stained nails. Skip the polish for a month and rub lemon juice onto them. Long, yellowish streaks may indicate onychomycosis, a fungal infection caused by microorganisms lurking in locker rooms, on shoes and clothes. Untreated, onychomycosis can cause nails to thicken, become brittle and flaky, and separate from the nail bed. You must treat this with a topical or oral antifungal medication prescribed by a podiatrist.

Plantar warts
These contagious growths appear on the bottoms of your feet and are caused by a virus. You get them from walking barefoot in warm, moist environments like locker rooms, which is why you should always wear a pair of thongs in public showers. You can't treat plantar warts yourself; your doctor has to freeze them off or remove them with a laser or scalpel.

Calluses
These hard patches of skin that build up on soles and heels are caused by ill-fitting shoes and irregular foot care. For heavy calluses, make a paste from 1 cup of kosher salt, 8 tablespoons of mineral oil, 1/2 cup of Epsom salt, and 1 tablespoon of baking soda. Apply this mixture to your calluses. Then, put your feet into separate plastic bags and wrap them in a warm towel. Sit still for ten minutes, unwrap the towel and plastic, and use a pumice stone to slough off dead skin.

Corns
Untreated calluses can turn into even more painful corns. You can treat these thickened areas with special round or oval felt or moleskin corn pads available at your local drugstore.

Bunions
These inflammations of the joint of the big toe can be painful and unsightly. Switching to shoes that fit correctly (i.e., that aren't tight) may help relieve the pain and pressure on your big toe. But if the pain doesn't subside, your podiatrist may have to remove the bunion surgically.

Heel cracks
Neglecting to regularly moisturize your feet can lead to splits in the skin called heel fissures. To treat, apply moisturizer to your feet and slip on a pair of socks every day after you shower or before you get into bed. If your fissures are painful and bright red, they're probably inflamed or infected, and you should see a podiatrist or dermatologist.

Back