Do you know that your feet make up 25% of the body’s bones? Foot care is important, and in general, most people report having good foot health.
However, you need to monitor your feet as often as possible — and notice if there are any health issues. You should take care of your feet and prevent the apparition of dead skin — and even cracked feet.
And if your feet are cracked, you should treat them. There’re multiple reasons for cracked heels — such as excess sports, dry winter, or other skin conditions. If you tend to walk a lot, you may notice that your feet start to suffer. If you run or practice a sport that requires to use your feet more than usual, you can experience foot pain, too.
So what are the causes of cracked feet and how can you avoid this condition? In this guide, we explore various tips to keep your feet beautiful and healthy.
What Are Cracked Heels?
Heel fissures — or cracked heels — are a foot condition that may cause pain, discomfort, and skin problems. Your feet appear swallowed, brownish, and may not fit sandals or flip-flops anymore. As you walk, you tend to feel uncomfortable and when washing, you may see that cracked heels remain — no matter how deeply hydrating your soap is. You need to treat cracked heels to recover beautiful, healthy, and sexy feet.
How to Keep Your Feet Sexy — and Healthy
Keep your feet clean and dry
Wet feet can foster the apparition of bacteria and develop fungal infections. Learn how to dry your feet after each wash. Spend at least 30 seconds on each foot to clean and dry them perfectly. Avoid public swimming pools as a plethora of microbes or germs can enter your feet.
Examine your feet frequently
Don’t wait until you go to your pedicurist to notice an infection — or worse, cracked heels — which will hurt if you don’t treat as soon as possible. After you clean your feet every day, spend time examining your feet.
Find time for a pedicure
A pedicurist will help you see any problems on your feet such as fungal infections — on top of other benefits. A pedicure exfoliates the feet, prevents the apparition of corns, and keeps the feet moisturized. Plus, you will have fun getting a pedicure!
Foot massage
Who doesn’t like having a nice massage from time to time? In Asia, foot massages are cheap and widespread. Do you know that foot massages actually improve your sleep, help in relaxation, boost blood circulation, fight depression, and increase your mood?
Find the right shoes
It’s obvious that wearing the wrong footwear will bring not only discomfort but also issues related to your foot health in the long term. Get the right size for you and the right materials — and ensure you can walk comfortably without feeling any pain.
Don’t wear the same shoes every day. Alternate as often as you can between one pair and another. Finally, clean your shoes regularly to avoid the widespread of germs that could infect your feet.
Undergo a foot exam
Once in a while, you should see a podologist to discover if your feet have minor or major problems. If you feel some pain in the feet, ask for a medical routine exam to check your feet. You can also look for YouTube videos that will show you how to look after your feet.
Causes of Cracked Feet
Often forgotten, your feet — which support the entire body weight — deserve proper care. And if you are an athlete, you should even spend more time and money protecting your feet. Remember that your feet are fragile and once damaged, it takes long to recover. Yet cracked feet, in fact, are quite common.
A study in the US found that 20% of Americans experienced cracked feet — and mentioned bad foot health. Women seem to be more prone to cracked feet than men. Yet if the condition worsens — let’s say if cracked feet become deep — it may cause pain and will require medical treatment.
There are environmental factors to cracked heels:
- Walking too much in the wrong shoes
- Standing barefoot for too long
- Wearing shoes that don’t support your heels
- Practicing sports that overuse your feet such as football, running, or boxing
- Dry winter or climate can prevent your feet from being hydrated at all time
- Burning your feet in the sand
There are also medical causes of cracked feet:
- A lack of vitamin C has an impact on your overall health
- Skin diseases — such as psoriasis or eczema — can create dead skin
- Fungal infections can spread over the feet and alter their general health and beauty
- Obesity creates an intense weight, creating foot fatigue
- Aging, in general, may result in drier, painful feet
Natural Remedies
For cracked feet, you can use a repairing cream that will help remove dead skin and rehydrate it. You can seek medical advice if you suffer from cracked heels for a long time. Consider stopping any sport for a while and hydrate your feet.
There are also some homemade remedies you can try at home, which include:
Olive oil is excellent at removing any dead skin. A deep intense moisturizer, olive oil penetrates gently onto the skin of your feet and brings nutrients, antioxidants, and the right level of hydration your feet need.
Coconut oil is a key ingredient in soothing and hydrating your skin. Rich in vitamins and minerals, this powerful antioxidant is well-known for repairing every cell of the body, including your feet.
Sea salts are great at both removing dead skin and have multiple health benefits. Himalayan sea salts, for example, help balance the body, reduce water retention, and are a great source of minerals.
Apply both oils and salts gently and massage to the areas where you notice cracks. Don’t forget to rinse. If you notice no improvement after a while, consider seeing a podologist and spend more time taking care of your feet.
Soak and Exfoliate Your Feet
Refresh your feet in some hot water. For those of you who want to have fun, consider a fish pedicure that will remove the dead skin, efficiently.
Keep the feet for up to 20 minutes into the water. Use a foot scrubber to remove dead skin. Apply a heel balm or a thick moisturizer to the affected area.
Other methods or ingredients to remove the dead skin on your feet include:
- Paraffin wax is well-used in pedicure treatments and is great for treating cracked feet. Melted at medium temperature, the wax is applied onto your skin and takes away the dead cells. However, if you are diabetic or have low blood circulation, you should not use paraffin wax.
- A foot scrub can be found in a variety of shops or drug stores. Foot scrubs contain ingredients that will remove the dead skin such as sea salts. Apply on wet feet and massage gently until complete absorption and rinse off well. Over-the-counter foot scrubs can easily be found at very reasonable prices.
- A pumice stone — which is formed from volcanic rocks — lets you exfoliate your feet skin gently. Abrasive, the stone sloughs the feet perfectly. Wet the stone and massage the areas of your feet where you noticed dead skin. Rinse well. Pumice stones can be found anywhere from your local drug stores to the nearby supermarket and don’t cost a fortune.
Use a Deep Intense Moisturizer
Choose your foot cream according to the condition of your feet. Are you looking for an antifungal cream, a cracked foot treatment, or an anti-inflammatory and odor-reduction foot balms?
The following ingredients have proven positive effects on soothing damaged feet:
Karanja oil: A native of India, this oil can have multiple therapeutic benefits including treating psoriasis, infections, and promotes wound healing. Look for a Karanja-oil based cream to treat cracked feet.
Shea butter: Is another natural product found in foot creams that alleviates pain, reduces dryness, and intensifies skin repair. Use a shea-butter cream to obtain a one-of-kind healing treatment for your feet. Plus, shea butter scent makes the experience even nicer.
Urea: An essential component in skin maintenance, urea acts both as a humectant — retaining water into your skin — and as a moisturizer. Urea formulated foot creams are extremely powerful at combatting dry and cracked skin.
Neem oil: Contains ingredients that are beneficial to the skin such as fatty acids, vitamin E, antioxidants, and calcium. An intense moisturizer, neem oil is great to treat dry skin. It also reduces scars and heals wounds.
How to Prevent Cracked Heels
Wear 100% cotton socks after applying petroleum jelly to prevent cracked heels. Petroleum jelly has been found to be the most effective occlusive moisturizers and retain the water up to 98%.
Don’t walk too much wearing flip flops or flat shoes. Buy the right footwear and allow your feet to relax into lukewarm water as often as possible. Adopt good walking habits and learn how to stand well to avoid too much weight on your feet.
Apply a moisturizer cream to nourish your feet every day, to prevent dryness. Gently massage the entire area from foot to toe, and repeat each day. Find a moisturizer that contains the following ingredients: hyaluronic acid, glycerin, petrolatum, or mineral oil as they have great properties for the skin.
Remember that beauty comes from inside and goes down to the feet! So don’t underestimate foot care and treat your feet well.
