They can be easily and painlessly removed by a chiropodist – but be beware..if you continue to wear the same shoes they might come back !

I don’t usually recommend trying to get rid of them yourself with the treatments available in chemists – they contain strong acid and the acid can easily burn the skin and cause more pain !!

But do you know how important is to look after your feet when you’ve got diabetes ?

My very pregnant wife (who has gestational diabetes at the moment – this is a diabetes induced by her pregnancy- it should disappear after the baby is born ) spurred me to write something about diabetes !

Diabetics can ,due to the excess sugar in the blood , can damage the nerves in your feet and hands,can damage your eyes and can lead to minor infections becoming worse

This is why regular foot checks are important as a diabetic might not feel or see any small problems .

Chiropodists and Podiatrists are also trained to spot the early signs of Diabetes as well .

i see lots of patients with distorted painful nails ..most people assume that any pain around the side of their nails means that they have ingrown nails …this is not always true

they pain they describe can be usually divided into two types of nail issues

1. Involuted nails – these are nails that press into the skin around the edges of the nail (see picture above ) they don’t actually break the skin and usually don’t become infected . There is sometimes a large amount of hard skin under the edges of the nail .This can increase the pressure even more on the underlying skin and make the toes very painful . Careful clipping and removal of the hard skin usually fixes them ..But the nail regrows over time in the same way and sooner or later the nail problem returns . If the nails  are a long standing problem then a small procedure called a Partial Nail Avulsion can help .This removes the sides of the nail permanently so that the curved bits don’t press into the skin

2 . Ingrown toenails . These are what most people recognise as a bad toe problem . They can be very painful , infected ,swollen, smelly and lots of pus ! Ingrown toenails ,i feel,are often caused by bad toenail cutting . Toe nails that are clipped too short ,or when the sides of nails are dug or picked (often trying to remove a piece of sock !) can often turn into nasty ingrown nails . If your quick to do something about it (come to the podiatrist !!) then a major problem can often be avoided . Playing around with the toe often makes it worse and the toe can swell and become infected very quickly . A good tip is – if you think you’ve got a problem bathe the whole toe in a bowl of warm salty water ..and don’t pick the toe ! . Get some professional help ASAP !

whilst today is not exactly the best day to be looking at your feet, i guess i could give you some advice about a communicable foot ailment …namely Fungal infections !

Fungal infections are extremely common and can present in 2 different ways . the first is a white moist itchy area between the toes – this can sometimes split open and become very painful . keeping the area dry and using firstly a fungal foot powder then a good fungal ointment usually clears this – but it might take a week or so …its important to keep applying the cream regularly !

The other type – and probably not as well recognised , is a diffuse pattern of dry flaky skin over large areas of the foot , sometimes with small red dots . This is usually ALSO fungus ! i find it more commonly than the in between toes variety ! again use of a good fungal treatment usually works ..but beware it often comes back !

found this intresting article in the Daily Mail Online

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/health/article-2090903/Ditch-multi-vitamins-Stand-Wear-better-shoes–Can-simple-habits-stop-getting-cancer.html

its New year and i see lots of people with foot related New Year Resolutions ..the main one is “ive got to get rid of my verruca” !

Verruca can be very tricky to get rid of …sometimes there almost impossible to shift

heres a few tips on getting rid of them

1 Leave them alone – dont pick them or rub them down too much – they may spread(obviously the best thing is to come and see a podiatrist !)

2. Make sure they ARE verruca ! pinching them usually hurts – pressing them is usually painless

3 If you want to try some home treatments ( i dont reccomend them normally) there are two types. If your using cream only put the cream (or paste) on the verruca , not the surrounding skin – cut a hole in a plaster to mask the surrounding skin .If your using freeze spray , make sure you dont go too mad – you can create a nasty blister ,which could become very sore or even infected if you dont look after it

4. Verruca can take a long time to clear , but dont use any of the home treatments for long prolonged periods ..give it a few weeks between treatments to let the surrounding skin recover

mainly verruca (its usually the significant partner that request the patients attendance ) , but a few ingrown toenails too !

as the month goes on i see more and more usually !

some verruca tips next time

andrew

after a few weeks of fiddling around ,i think im finally able to say ” welcome to my new website “. Chad and Dan have done a fine job of putting it together …and an even better job of putting up with all my small changes …but i think it was worth it

ill be posting some interesting foot stuff on here ,hopefully , regularly !

lets start with this i found..

Swearing can provide effective relief from pain …but not if you swear regulary !

Researchers at Keele University’s School of Psychology recruited 71 undergraduates who were asked to carry out a cold-water challenge while either repeating a swear word or a non-swear word.The students put their hand in room temperature water for three minutes to act as a control before plunging it into cold 5C water for as long as they could while repeating their word.

The authors concluded: “Swearing increased pain tolerance and heart rate compared with not swearing”

“Moreover, the higher the daily swearing frequency, the less was the benefit for pain tolerance when swearing, compared with when not swearing”

Thankfully i dont hear many patients swear when i’m treating them !

The level of perceived pain together with a change in heart rate were compared while people swore or said their non-swear word.