Diabetes can mean double trouble for your feet.
First, diabetes can reduce blood flow to your feet, depriving your feet of oxygen and nutrients. This makes it more difficult for blisters, sores, and cuts to heal.
And second, the diabetic nerve damage called peripheral neuropathy can cause numbness in your feet. When you can't feel cuts and blisters, you're more likely to get sores and infections.
If you don't notice or treat the sores, they can become deeply infected, and lead to amputation.A sad reality: having a toe, or lowwer leg surgically removed is 10 times more likely in people with diabetes.
Diabetic peripheral neuropathy can also cause sharp pain in your feet. You may become excruciatingly sensitive to the lightest touch, like the sheets on your bed.
Fortunately, a little Tender Loving Care goes a long way in preventing foot problems from diabetes.
10 Tips to Protect Your Feet
Foot Care Tip 1. Check both feet daily.
Look over both feet carefully every day, and be sure you check between all of your toes. Blisters and infections can start between your toes, and with diabetic neuropathy, you may not feel them until they've become irritated or infected. If a physical challenge keeps you from checking your own feet, ask a family member to help.
Foot Care Tip 2. Wash with warm - not hot -water.
Wash both of your feet briefly each day with warm not hot - water. You may not be able to feel heat with your feet, so test the water with your hands first. Avoid soaking too long in water, since waterlogged sores have a harder time healing. Dry your feet right away, and remember to dry gently between all of your toes.
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