Foot Pain Information And Prevention

An additional stretch for plantar fascists treatment is a towel stretch. A towel stretch concentrates on the same principle as the stair stretch, only the towel stretch is performed while sitting or lying down. To do a towel stretch, hold the different ends of a towel in each hand with the center of the towel covered around the top of the foot. Slowly pull back the towel to pull back the top of the foot till reaching a comfy stretch, keeping the leg unbent. This extends the back of the foot and calf bone. ARCH PAIN. As mentioned with heel pain, the lack of support to the shoe often will cause inflammation of the plantar fascia. However, instead of the heel , the scource of pain will be located at the arch. The plantar fascia begins at the heel but fans out to the forefoot. Lack of support will often cause excessive stretch to the fascia along the arch thus leading to pain. Women experience pain when they wear high heels because their feet slide forward into the shoes, inevitably forcing their bodies to redistribute their weight while creating unnatural pressure points and disrupting the natural alignment of our body. Bunions and hammer toes are the bread and butter of a podiatrist. They keep on coming into my office like coughs or upper respiratory infections keep coming into a family doctor's office. I have seen large, small, deformed, gross, tiny, under corrected and over corrected hammer toes and bunions. I have never seen a cute one though. Sometimes I even dream about bunions and hammer toes at night (sad but true). It is very common that I see these two foot problems together. Everyone can benefit from the effects of exercise. Diabetics should speak with their physician or trainer about participating in exercises that are low impacting on the feet. You can improve this type of pain by stretching out the back of the lower leg. Do this by putting your foot up on a low stool while you are standing. Hold the foot so the big toe is pointed straight up. When you are in this position, pull your foot up so your big toe is trying to point toward your head. You should feel stretching in the back of your leg. After doing this for a few days, you should start feeling some relief of your foot pain. Your health care provider will make the diagnosis after observing the skin. In most cases tests are not necessary. Treatment Calluses develop due to excessive pressure at a specific area of the foot. Some common causes of callus formation are high-heeled dress shoes, shoes that are too small, obesity, abnormalities in the gait cycle (walking motion), flat feet, high arched feet, bony prominences, and the loss of the fat pad on the bottom of the foot. Many people try to alleviate the pain caused by calluses by cutting or trimming them with a razor blade or knife. This is not the way to properly treat calluses. This is very dangerous and can worsen the condition resulting in unnecessary injuries. Diabetics especially should never try this type of treatment. Calluses are thickened, dead tissue involving the outer layer of the skin (epidermis). They are similar to corns, with the difference being their location. Calluses are located on the soles of the feet, particularly the 'balls,' while corns are located on the toes. A callous may form secondarily to a bunion deformity, a prominent metatarsal bone on the bottom of the foot or a Tailor's Bunion on the outside of the foot. A hammertoe can cause friction on the toe joints and a painful corn may develop. Your health care provider will make the diagnosis after looking at your skin. In most cases, tests are not needed. Treatment