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Can you have diabetes and be healthy?

7/28/2014

There is no cure for diabetes yet, but there is a lot you can do to have a wonderful quality of life as you manage your condition.

7 basic rules for staying healthy

1. Follow the basic rules of healthy foot care and educate yourself regarding your condition.
2. Follow your physicians advice for managing other aspects of your diabetes.
3. Monitor your blood sugar regularly.
4. Eat healthy, your dietitian will have some good advice.
5. Take your prescribed medications.
6. Enjoy some physical activity every day, be it walking, stretching or biking, etc.
7. If you smoke...stop now.

Quiting smoking is one of the best things you can do for yourself and your family. You may have learned what smoking can do to your lungs. But have you learned that smoking can cause problems with your blood vessels? Combine this damage with the negative effects of diabetes on your circulatory system and you are in a dangerous situation. Smokers are more likely to experience amputations from diabetes related complications.

Please see my link to Quit Smoking Community for more information on how to help yourself stay healthy.

Thank-you to Orthofeet for some of this information.

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You have ... What?

10/26/2013

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You have a callous? A callous is hard skin found on the bottom of your foot. Don't worry, you can do something about that.

A callous on your foot is caused by friction. The cause of the friction could be one of two things. It could be friction between one of your bones and the soft tissue of your foot or friction between your footwear and your foot.

How do you get rid of the callous? You get rid of the cause of the friction. If your bone and skin are rubbing, perhaps your foot has a biomechanical fault. This can be corrected with orthotics. If there is more than one callous on your foot, though, it is less likely the orthotic will completely get rid of your problem. Too expensive you say? Let me tell you, if you have a biomechanical fault in your foot, eventually, if you live long enough, it will become a bigger problem. It will multiply into problems in other parts of your body, perhaps in your knees, hips and back. The expense of orthotics could be the price required to save you a lot of pain, in more than just your feet.

If your footwear is rubbing on your skin and causing the callous you will need to change your footwear to something that does not rub. Yes, you may need to give away your offending footwear and buy something else. Lots of people do not like this. They don't like to think about spending money on a new pair of shoes when the old ones are not worn out. Don't be a scrooge! Your feet have done a lot of work for you and they deserve to be treated right. Face the facts, your footwear does not fit you correctly. You bought the wrong shoes. Be smart, change your shoes!

If you have diabetes, and you have a callous, you have an ulcer in waiting. You cannot afford to ignore your callous. The danger, of course, is that you could start losing your foot, or part therof, to amputation(s). See your foot care nurse. After soaking your foot rub the callous with a towel, not a pumice stone. This is because the pumice stone holds bacteria, putting you at risk of infection. After rubbing it down, apply a moisturizer. Your foot care nurse can suggest some. Do this as per the directions according to the product you use. Any product with more than 20% urea is for your heels only. A moisturizer with 25% urea can break down your good skin. A product with 20% urea, or less , is safe for your whole foot.

I had callouses on the balls of my feet, below the 2nd toes. They didn't bother me so I didn't do anything about them. Eventually, though, they advanced and seed corns developed in them. Soon it hurt to walk. I saw a foot care specialist and she pared the callouses down. I learned that orthotics would help. I didn't go right away and my callouses started to come back. So I made an appointment with a pedorthist. I discovered I had a lot of issues with my feet. I got the orthotics. Wearing orthotics for years, my callouses are very thin, have no seed corns in them, and have not advanced. I delight in my pain free feet.

Your feet have served you well. Treat them right. You can do something about your callous(es). It will cost money in the short term, but will be well worth it in the long term. Be smart, reduce friction, reduce the callous and reduce future trouble.

Feel free to comment on this blogg. Do you have any callous stories to share?

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Shoes - Friend or Foe?

10/8/2013

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As children, shoes may have been absent from our feet for long periods of time. They may have felt foreign. For other children, shoes may have been required apparel, even during the summer months. The beach would have been the exception. As adults we continue our shoe preferences.
Whatever our fondness or lack of fondness for shoes, there are some facts we should be aware of. Shoes can be good and shoes can be bad.
Shoes, generally speaking, are helpful because they protect, support, and cushion our feet. This is especially important for those of us who have foot deformities such as hammer toes, bunions, tailorette's bunions, high arches, etc., and/or reduced sensation, circulation, less padding on the bottom of our feet, and diabetes.
Shoes can be bad if they do not fit properly. Shoes are a potential cause of skin breakdown.

10 things to do to find friendly shoes

Shop at a reputable store with trained staff.
Ensure your shoes fit the widest part of your foot and that they have space at the toe end. Make sure any bunions you have are accommodated.
Every time you shop for shoes, have your feet measured. Changes in weight and age can affect your shoe size.
Shop for new shoes at the end of the day, when your feet will be their largest.
The toe box of the shoe must be higher than where your toes sit. This is especially important for people with claw or hammer toes. If you have a corn or red spot on the top of a toe, the toe box of your current foot wear is not high enough. Also, you should be able to wiggle your toes in your shoes.
Fit shoes to your largest foot, if one is larger.
When you try on shoes at the store, use the socks you plan to wear with them.
If you use orthotics, take them with you and try shoes on with them insitu.
Walk around the store. You want to make sure the shoes are comfortable. Shoes should not need to be "broken in".
A leather shoe takes 24 hours to dry out. If you have two pairs and wear them on alternate days, your shoes have time to dry out.

13 more things to do if you have decreased sensation in your feet and if you have diabetes

Call the shoe store before going to ensure qualified and experienced staff are working.
Shoes with laces are preferable to slip-ons. Slip-ons are made narrow so that your feet will not slip out. Laced shoes can be made wider by loosening the laces.
Buy shoes for the beach or pool. It is not safe to go barefoot in the water.
If you have numbness in your feet, you must be careful that your shoes are not too tight. If you suspect the shoes you are wearing, or considering wearing, are fitting snuggly, try a little trick. Trace the outline of your largest foot on a piece of paper. Then take the insole of your shoe and using a different colour pen, trace it over the tracing of your foot. If any of the insoles tracing is inside the tracing of your foot, you know the shoe is not right for you.
New shoes should be worn only for 1-2 hours at a time for the first few days. When you take them off, assess your feet for redness or blisters.
Leather shoes are preferable as they let your feet "breath". A cushioned sole with a soft upper is preferable to a stiff leather sole.
Avoid shoes with more than one inch heel height. Heels higher than 1" place tremendous pressure on the forefoot, putting your foot at risk.
Check the inside of the shoe for seams or rough spots that could rub your skin.
Good fitting and comfortable shoes are priceless if you have diabetes or reduced sensation in your feet. Keep them in good repair and wear them to protect your feet from skin breakdown leading to ulcers and possibly to amputation.

Thanks to Ruth Ruttan for sharing most of this information in one of her courses.

May your shoes be friendly.

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Reducing amputations

12/18/2012

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Studies show diabetic footcare programs decrease ulcers and amputations by 44-85%

People with diabetes can reduce the risk of amputation by regular visits to their health care professional for regular foot assessments, foot care and for health teaching. SAVE THOSE LEGS and FEET! Save our health care dollars.

In Ontario, 50% of lower limb amputations are related to diabetes. Do your best not to be part of this statistic. Learn what the dangers are and what you can do to help prevent this kind of loss.

I am interested in helping you reduce your risk of foot ulcers and amputations. If you are a diabetic, a callous on your foot is an ulcer in waiting. See your foot care nurse about your callouses.

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Can you have diabetes and be healthy?

You have ... What?

Shoes - Friend or Foe?

Thanks to Ruth Ruttan for sharing most of this information in one of her courses.

May your shoes be friendly.

Reducing amputations

Lorraine Reid

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