7 Tips for Summer Ready Feet

About The Author:  FutureDerm is pleased to welcome dermatologist Dr. Hanan Taha, M.D. to our staff as a Contributing Writer. For a complete bio please visit our About page.

Let’s be honest, we all ignore our feet in the winter. We stuff them in socks and boots, and do no more than cut the nails short every now and then, thinking who is gonna see them anyway? But summer is here and feet will be out for all to see! Here are a few tips to get your feet summer ready.

• Moisturize your feet. Because of excess sweating and washing/swimming, feet are prone to get dry in the summertime, ⁽¹⁾ so moisturize. Yves Roche has a very pleasant lavender scented foot repair balm.
• Moisturize your Toenails. We tend to forget that nails need some love too. The truth is, nails get dry just like skin, and when dry, they get weak just like skin. Soaking your feet on the beach or while swimming can take its toll on your nails. ⁽²⁾ When moisturizing your feet, always remember to rub the moisturizer into your cuticles and the actual nail too. Or pamper your nails and get them their own cream. Nailactan by Mavala is a good option.
• Sweaty feet? There are a few solutions. Foot antiperspirants use the same concept as regular antiperspirants, using aluminum salts to decrease sweating. A more serious problem might benefit from prescription only Drysol. For extreme hyperhidrosis, consider Botox: It’s effective, a session is not very long, discomfort and downtime are minimal, and effects last between 6 to 12 months.
• For warts: many OTC remedies containing 40% salicylic acid do a great job.
• For cracked heels, scrubbing and using a pumice stone plus moisturizing regularly helps. Find a moisturizer that contains a combination of urea and salicylic acid. One good suggestion is Kerasal Moisturizer. Applying it at night under occlusion (i.e. wrapping a plastic bag around your feet and sleeping with it) increases the penetration and therefore the benefit of treatment. NEVER use scissors or a razor to get rid of a big chunk of dead skin at a time. This might injure the normal healthy skin which may then get infected. If the problem persists, consult your dermatologist

  

• Approach Salon Pedicures with Caution. This cannot be said enough: the rate of toenail infections caused by salon pedicures is still scary. ^(3,4,5) What’s worse, treatment can take months. Make sure you are dealing with a salon that regularly disinfects equipment between every customer, or, even better, take your own pedicure set. Also avoid salon whirlpools as these may harbor bacteria that are just impossible to clean out no matter how clean a salon is.⁽⁶⁾ 
  One additional tip:  Never shave immediately before going to a salon, or you would be increasing the risk of an infection to your lower legs from the whirlpools.
• Seek medical attention if your feet have blisters, toe web macerations, persistent bad odor, or stubborn warts.

Happy Summer! Remember, stop by my blog or tell your friends if interested in reading about skin care in Arabic!

Sources:

1-     A. Shai. Skin Moisture and Moisturizers. In Handbook of Cosmetic Skin Care 2009; 4: 24-33.

2-     S. Wessel et al. Hydration of Human Nails Investigated by NIR-FT-Raman Spectroscopy. Biochimica et Biophysica Acta 1999; 1433 (1-2): 210-6.

3-     M. Karmochkine et al. A Case Control Study of Risk Factors for Hepatitis C Infection in Patients with Unexplained Routes of Infection. Journal of Viral Hepatitis 2006; 13 (11): 775-82.

4-     F Turgut. A Forgotten but Important Risk Factor for Infective Endocarditis in Patients with Prosthetic Valve: Pedicure. Scandinavian Journal of Infectious Diseases 2007; 39 (3): 274-6.

5-     KL. Winthrop. The Clinical Management and Outcome of Nail Salon Acquired Mycobacterium fortuitum Skin Infection. Clinical Infectious Diseases 2004; 38 (1): 38-44.

6-     S. Boschert. Pedicure Whirlpools May Swirl with Mycobacteria. Family Practice News 2005; 35 (8): 33.