If you have diabetes, there are high chances that you may encounter some problems with your legs and feet. You need to carefully consider many things, from inspecting your feet to keeping your skin dry. Foot care is essential in the case of diabetes, which otherwise may cause some severe morbid conditions. Diabetes may put the patients at high risk for developing calluses, bunions, corns, ulcers, and blisters. The increased blood sugar may also complicate injuries which may extend to disabling infections in the case of diabetic patients. But you may take some steps to ensure your foot health, including wearing particular footwear, doing foot exams regularly, and performing some exercises to ensure foot health.
Diabetic foot care by Selin Sakarcan
- First, let us see why such complications arise. One significant impact of the high level of blood sugar is that it may cause damage to the nerves. It is not still sure how and why this damage happens, but it is thought that blood sugar can hurt the cells and enzymes of the nervous system. Selin Sakarcan explains that the nerves getting damaged may cause diabetic neuropathy, where you lose the feeling in your feet and hands.
- As per the research studies, neuropathy may occur in 70% of diabetic patients and may cause some harmful infections if not taken care of. With such symptoms, you may not be able to feel the feet and may not notice the sores, cuts, and pain on the feet. If the patient does not feel the wounds and irritation, it may be infected and may further lead to gangrene. In many cases, such untreated infection may even end up requiring amputation.
3. Neuropathy is also the primary cause of dry skin in diabetic patients. The damaged nerves will not be able to receive the brain’s signals properly to sweat out. The dry crack on the feet also makes an easy entry for germs into the body. The friction created by this may also cause bunions and calluses, which may also cause exposure to germs. Nerve damage may also cause a change in feet shape and make it difficult for the patients to wear shoes and hard to walk. Diabetes may also cause shrinkage of blood vessels, which will make it hard for the foot to fight and heal infections.
How to deal with diabetic foot infection?
To avoid infections on the feet, you may lose lotion. However, it is essential to ensure that you do not apply cream between toes as the extra moisture in the suitable space between toes may encourage fungal growth. Soaking feet is also not a good idea for diabetic patients. This will make the skin more fragile and prone to infection. So, never let your skin be too soft or too dry in case of proper diabetic foot care.
Selin Sakarcan also suggests that you need to be very careful while shopping for your shoes if you have diabetes. Always choose shoes with more depth at the toe box, good coverage at the top and bottom, and no seams which may cause friction inside the boots. Also, choose socks without any seams, and preferably you may use padded socks with moisture control.
