Corns, calluses, and cracked heels are three common problems that we have the privilege of helping our patients with every day at My FootDr. Unfortunately, there are problems that are often ignored in the hope that they will go away on their own, but can get worse if left untreated. The good news is that treating the discomfort caused by these conditions is simple and easy and can be completed in one appointment. Today, the My FootDr team shares why each of these problems occurs, how to treat them today, and what you can do to prevent them from happening again in the future.
So why do corns, bruises, and cracked heels occur?
The main causes of nipples and corns are pressure and friction. The skin on the feet begins to harden when it is subjected to excessive pressure and frequent rubbing due to walking and tight shoes. It is actually a protective mechanism to protect the skin from cracking. Of course, other factors can contribute to stress, including:
Prominent leg bones
Biomechanical function of your feet
Your shoes
Your walking surface
The amount and type of exercise you do
A callus is a larger area of tough skin that accumulates on the weight-bearing areas of the foot, but corns are better described as small pressure points, and the tough skin is almost conical in shape. It makes you feel like you are walking on gravel and it hurts a lot! Both corns and callus can have different sizes and thicknesses, which directly depends on the amount of pressure.
Cracked heels develop thick calluses that dry out and crack the tough skin. Because a callus is dead skin without nerve endings, bone fractures are usually painless. Unfortunately, the fissures can touch healthy skin, causing bleeding and pain in the fissure area.
How do you treat corns, corns, and cracked heels?
Treating these problems is very common for our podiatrists, and we can safely and painlessly remove your corns in just one appointment, while also eliminating your flat, cracked heels.
We do this by using the right tools such as sandpaper and scrapers to remove the baby’s dead skin. There’s a fine line between your healthy skin that bleeds easily, a corn, callus, and a cracked heel, so it’s important not to do it yourself. This is why corn pads are not recommended – they use acid to eat away at the skin and soften it. Unfortunately, the acid doesn’t distinguish between dead skin and the surrounding healthy skin, which can leave you with more pain than you started with.
The result of our treatment is faster relief when you put your feet on the ground, more comfortable and smoother skin when you put on your shoes and walk.
How can I prevent corns, bruises, and cracked heels from coming back?
The key to preventing them from recurring, or reducing the rate at which they happen again, is to address their cause. This includes changing shoes that rub the sides of your feet, cushioning your feet when exercising on hard surfaces, using orthotics to improve foot biomechanics, and not overloading certain areas of your feet. , and others.
During your appointment to treat your skin problem, your My FootDr doctor will also discuss the possible causes of the problem and develop a plan to prevent it from occurring in the future.