Foot Health Guide
Dry Skin Relief

Dry skin on feet, is usually the culprit behind cracked heels and commonly appears on the soles and heels red, flaky and very itchy. There is relief to the condition of dry skin on your feet.

Don't confuse dry skin flaking with the blistering of athlete's foot. If you have red, flaky, itchy skin on your feet you are suffering from dry skin condition.

What causes dry skin on feet?

Dry skin is not a dangerous condition, but can become painful, and if the cracking starts to bleed, it can lead to infection – an especially serious problem for anyone with a chronic disease such as diabetes, or a lowered immune system due to age or illness.

Dry skin can result from any one of a number of reasons:

- Age
- Improperly fitting shoes
- Athlete’s foot
- Psoriasis
- Thyroid disease
- Diabetes
- Certain skin conditions
- Household heat that reduces humidity and dries out the skin

Prevention And Relief From Discomfort

The best way to treat and also prevent dry, cracked skin on your feet is to use good therapeutic ointments and creams and avoid using lotions, as these often contain alcohol, which actually dries the skin out more.

Additional therapies include the following:

- Use a pumice stone or sand stone to file the hard dry skin, allowing the moisturizers to better penetrate the skin
- Use creams especially designed for nighttime use, and wear socks to help the cream better absorb into your skin while you sleep
- Check your shoes for tight spots and areas that rub. Use insoles and other corrective devices to eliminate points of friction
- Wear comfortable shoes
- Avoid getting cream and ointment between your toes, as the additional moisture can lead to bacterial infections such as athlete’s foot
- If the dry skin and cracking worsen, or bleeding occurs, consult a physician (especially important to persons with diabetic conditions)

Information on foot pain, leg and lower body health conditions taken from FootSmart.com and provided by The Podiatry Institute, dedicated to advancing the standard of care in podiatric medicine and its effects on muscoskeletal health.


    

The Comfort Shoe Store is affiliated with FootSmart.com Experts in keeping feet moving in comfort