With winter just around the corner, the holiday season is upon us. But apart from delicious foods and joyful gatherings, it also brings many challenges to the table.
One of the biggest yet often overlooked difficulties is caring for your feet in the cold weather. Thanks to the chilly air, freezing environment, and layers of protection, winter foot care calls for some special measures. Otherwise, your feet can fall prey to issues such as cracked skin or nail fungus.
If you are looking for help in the Eagle Mountain area or in Saratoga Springs, visit our team at the Rogers Foot and Ankle Institute today. Our highly proficient team in Saratoga Springs is here to take care of your feet and help you lead a better life when it comes to your health.
To help you steer clear of these unsightly issues, here are 6 ways to protect your feet from the cold in Eagle Mountain. By going through these details, you can learn exactly how to care for your feet in winter.
There is no doubt that socks make for cute accessories. But this basic piece of clothing can also serve as your number one shield against the weather. No matter if you are lounging on the couch or having dinner by the kitchen table, make it a point to wear weather-appropriate socks at all times. This includes wool, cotton, or fleece socks. Since you can get these fabrics easily, this practice doesn’t require you to move mountains.
Wearing socks keeps your feet from being exposed to cold air and abrasive surfaces. This saves your skin from getting cracked or falling prey to dryness. At the same time, the practice also adds to your comfort in the chilly weather. In turn, the simple action helps you steer clear from a world of trouble.
Rotating shoes is a common practice among runners. This gives shoes a rest after each use, which allows the foam padding to bounce back. In the winter, your shoes can get soggy from snow or rainwater, which can create a variety of issues that need medical intervention. This includes fungal infections and bacterial infections such as nail fungus.
This makes the practice of rotating shoes an essential tip for winter foot care. Besides giving you comfort in the form of dry shoes, this small step also works as a preventative measure against these problematic conditions. You don’t need to buy seven different pairs of shoes for every day of the week. Having 2-3 pairs can work to your advantage.
Even when you are constantly switching out your shoes, there can be times where the sweat from your feet creates wet and warm conditions. These damp feet not only cause you functional discomfort but also lead you down a road of physical infections. If you do not have the right footwear, this can be an ongoing problem for you.
That is why, besides investing in moisture-wicking shoes, you should also wear moisture-wicking socks. These types of options are not hard to find and cost just a little more than their usual counterparts. But they give you plenty of comfort and safety in return. This makes this an essential point about how to care for your feet in winter.
As an easy but highly effective tip for winter foot care, looking into a lotion to apply on your feet can have a significant payoff. This helps you keep dryness at bay, and allows you to have soft feet even when the weather creates ideal conditions for them to feel rough. You can basically use any type of foot lotion to fulfill this purpose.
But for optimal results, it’s important that you use a lotion that is meant for winter protection. This practice is worth the time even when you are about to wear shoes for going outside or put on socks for relaxing at home. Just a few minutes a day, and your feet will thank you for the protection this brings to the table.
Long nails look amazing on your fingers and provide you with a great aesthetic as well. But this cannot be said for toenails, which create issues if they are left to grow on their own. This includes discomfort with wearing shoes and socks, as well as higher risks of injury. These challenges bring you to another essential tip on how to care for your feet in winter.
In winter, the possibility of developing fungal infections in toenails also emerges. Due to this reason, it is important that you cut and trim your toenails short. You should also clean between them with a nail brush to prevent fungus growth. This action may seem like a special measure, but you can easily execute it whenever taking a shower.
If you have any kind of foot injury, it is possible that you may want to pick at it. In winter, it is common for this mental urge to be accompanied by a physical itch. This creates a need for touching and scratching dry skin. While the action may seem satisfactory at the time, its practice creates painful issues in the long run.
In order to steer clear of making your injuries worse, you can put lotion on top of bandages or around the injury site. This winter foot care practice helps you reduce pain as well as itching. As a result, this can save you from wanting to pick at your injuries or scratch the injury site. This also helps in protecting the injury site from dryness as well as cracked skin.
Following these suggestions can help you stay away from a world of pain in winter. But if you notice any infection, wound, or injury on your foot that doesn’t heal within a couple of days, it is important to see a podiatrist in Eagle Mountain, UT right away.
At the Rogers Foot and Ankle Institute, you can seek personalized consultations and treatments from seasoned podiatrists at your own comfort. With flexible appointments, professional approaches, and urgent care solutions, you can easily take care of your feet throughout the winter season. This helps you enjoy the season to the hilt, without throwing any worries into the mix.
We keep our patients at the center of our operations in Utah and strive to improve the quality of life for those that visit us at our office. Find out how we have helped other patients and can help you determine the right course of action when it comes to your feet. Contact our team at 801-756-4200 to request an appointment.