DO YOU HAVE HEALTHY FEET?

Cracked heels, damaged cuticles and dryness aren't just ugly. They can put your health at risk. Serious medical conditions can result from neglected feet - from bacterial infections to cutaneous tuberculosis. But chill out! You don't have to celebrate summer without healthy, pretty feet. Here are easy fixes for 4 common foot woes.

FOOT PROBLEM #1: PAINFUL CRACKS

Some disorders, such as diabetes, poor circulation and thyroid problems, contribute to dry, cracked feet. Dryness may also be caused by skin conditions like eczema or psoriasis. Plus, a poor diet and not drinking enough water makes cracks worse. So can scrubbing with harsh soaps and applying alcohol-containing lotions.

FOOT FIX: If your feet are already cracked, your top priority is to avoid infection. Here's how: Don't walk barefoot outdoors where germs, fungal spores and parasites lurk in grass; Always wear flip-flops or water socks at public pools and in shower rooms; When getting a pedicure, make sure the footbath is sterilized before dipping in your toes.

FOOT PROBLEM #2: DRY, ROUGH CUTICLES

Trimmed, smooth cuticles certainly make a woman look fabulous, but they're also essential to good foot health. Cuticles serve as a seal between skin and nail bed to prevent microbes from getting in and causing infections.

FOOT FIX: Dry feet thoroughly after bathing, and then apply a cuticle-removing product to soften cuticles and dissolve any dry, excess skin. Finally, push them back gently with an orange stick.

FOOT PROBLEM #3: CORNS AND CALLUSES

Corns and calluses are technically the same - a hard, thickened area of skin - but they show up on different parts of your feet. Calluses can form in various places - heels, toes or balls - but corns always appear on top. What causes them? Pressure on the skin caused by the way you walk, structure of your foot and nonsupportive or ill-fitting shoes. Pronation - rotating your foot in and down as you walk - is another factor. It can trigger calluses on sides of big toes and bottom of your feet. Although those bumps are unattractive, calluses and corns are the body's defense mechanism. The body produces callus material to protect itself from irritation.

FOOT FIX: Prevention is really the goal. It's much harder to deal with the problems after they have developed. Creams with urea can help, too. So can changing your shoe-buying habits. Once you have a callus, a simple pedi won't fix it because pedicurists aren't allowed to cut off calluses in many states. For that, you need to see a podiatrist.

FOOT PROBLEM #4: ATHLETE"S FOOT

You don't need to be a jock to get the itching, burning and flaking skin that comes with this fungal infections. So why the name? People catch it from walking barefoot in showers or locker rooms - as well as from sharing footwear, clothing or towels. Not taking care of your feet can make the fungus spread. Warm, sweaty feet with lots of dead skin on the surface are an incubator.

FOOT FIX: Keep feet dry to prevent them from hosting organisms that causse athlete's foot; Change socks frequently if your feet sweat a lot and always right after aerobic exercise; Use absorbent powder on feet daily, including inbetween toes; Don't wear the same pair of shoes two days in a row. It takes at least 24 hours for sweat in shoes to dry out from the previous day's wearing. If you have athlete's foot, treat mild cases with over-the-counter ointments. A more severe infection may require antibiotics. See your doctor if the problem persists.

source: www.lifescript.com