Diabetes taking care of your feet

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Diabetes taking care of your feet

Alternate Names

Diabetes - foot care - self-care

Self-care

Diabetes can damage the nerves and blood vessels in your feet. This damage can cause numbness and reduce feeling in your feet. As a result, your feet may not heal well if they are injured. If you get a blister, you may not notice, and it may get worse.

Check your feet every day. Inspect the top, sides, soles, heels, and between the toes. Look for:

Dry and cracked skin
Blisters or sores
Bruises or cuts
Redness, warmth, or tenderness
Firm or hard spots

If you cannot see well, ask someone else to check your feet.

Call your doctor right way about any foot problems. Do not try to treat them yourself first. Even small sores or blisters can become big problems if infection develops or they do not heal.

Wash your feet every day with lukewarm water and mild soap. Strong soaps may damage the skin.

Check the temperature of the water with your hands or elbow first.
Gently dry your feet, especially between the toes.
Use lotion, petroleum jelly, lanolin, or oil on dry skin. Do NOT put lotion between your toes.

Ask your health care provider to show you how to trim your toenails.

Soak your feet in lukewarm water to soften the nail before trimming.
Cut the nail straight across, because curved nails are more likely to become ingrown.
Your foot doctor (podiatrist) can trim your nails if you are unable to.

Most people with diabetes should have corns or calluses treated by a foot doctor. If your doctor has given you permission to treat corns or calluses on your own:

Gently use a pumice stone to remove corns and calluses after a shower or bath, when your skin is soft.
Do NOT use medicated pads or try to shave or cut them away at home.

If you smoke, stop. Smoking decreases blood flow to your feet. Talk with your doctor or nurse if you need help quitting.

Do not use a heating pad or hot water bottle on your feet. Do not walk barefoot, especially on hot pavement or hot sandy beaches. Remove your shoes and socks during visits to your health care provider so that they can check your feet.

Diabetes

Diabetes is usually a lifelong chronic disease in which there are high levels of sugar in the blood.

Causes, incidence, and risk factors

Insulin is a hormone produced by the pancreas to control blood sugar. Diabetes can be caused by too little insulin, resistance to insulin, or both.

To understand diabetes, it is important to first understand the normal process by which food is broken down and used by the body for energy. Several things happen when food is digested:

A sugar called glucose enters the bloodstream. Glucose is a source of fuel for the body.
An organ called the pancreas makes insulin. The role of insulin is to move glucose from the bloodstream into muscle, fat, and liver cells, where it can be used as fuel.

People with diabetes have high blood sugar because their body cannot move sugar into fat, liver, and muscle cells to be stored for energy. This is because either:

Their pancreas does not make enough insulin
Their cells do not respond to insulin normally
Both of the above

There are two major types of diabetes. The causes and risk factors are different for each type:

Type 1 diabetes can occur at any age, but it is most often diagnosed in children, teens, or young adults. In this disease, the body makes little or no insulin. Daily injections of insulin are needed. The exact cause is unknown.
Type 2 diabetes makes up most diabetes cases. It most often occurs in adulthood. However, because of high obesity rates, teens and young adults are now being diagnosed with it. Many people with type 2 diabetes do not know they have it.

	Symptoms of Diabetes

	Signs and test for Diabetes

	Treatment for Diabetes

	Diabetes prevention

	Diabetes foot ulcer

	Taking pressure off of your foot ulcer

	Wound care and dressing

	When to call your Doctor regarding wound care

	Diabetes - Taking care of your feet

	Diabetes - Shoes and socks

Gestational diabetes is high blood sugar that develops at any time during pregnancy in a woman who does not have diabetes.

Diabetes affects more than 20 million Americans. Over 40 million Americans have pre-diabetes (which often comes before type 2 diabetes).

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