Common Foot Problems with Seniors Part II

                                                        Feet problems and remedies for active seniors

Fitness-freaks try to keep themselves fit even at an older age. They get involved in different activities such as jogging, playing tennis, walking and other activities to stay healthy and active. These activities are possible only with healthy and pain-free feet. However with aging, the foot loses its mobility leading to foot problems that restricts the activities seniors usually perform.

The foot has a complicated structure with 33 joints, 26 bones and more than 100 tendons, muscles and ligaments. With age, the feet increase in size and start flattening. The fat pads on the bottom of the feet get degraded, causing the feet to lose their mobility in the process. Being overweight will add to the problems, affecting the ligaments, muscles and general structure.  This leads the way to those scary foot issues, Bunions, Hammertoes, Corns, are among a few.    www.MyBadFeet.com

Foot problems in people are mainly due to poor fitting shoes, and genetics.  In addition to structural conditions, there are more than 300-foot diseases. The most viable way to avoid majority of foot problems is by wearing comfortably fitting, clean shoes and socks.

Arthritis is a very common foot problem found among older individuals.  Multiple joints can be affected simply due to the years of wear and tear. Those suffering from arthritis often have sore and swollen feet. Such people should wear especially designed shoes with high and wide space at toes and rocker soles reducing pain and stress at the ball of the foot.

How to buy the right shoes and avoid foot problems

Here are some tips that will help you find the right shoe:

• The size of your feet can change as you become older. Have you measured your feet before buying shoes? Best time is to measure your feet would be at the end of the day when your feet have expanded.

• Usually in most cases, one foot is larger than the other foot. Select the shoe that fits your larger foot comfortably.                                                                              www.MyBadFeet.com

• Choose the shoe that has a shape similar to your foot.

• The ball of the foot must fit into the widest part of the shoe.

• Avoid those shoes that seem tight or are required to be stretched while wearing.  www.MyBadFeet.com

• While fitting the shoe, check whether it has a gap of at least 3/8 inches to ½ inches for your longest toe at the end of each shoe.
 
• Have a walk wearing the shoes to ensure that the heel fits well and has minimal slipping. The shoe must not move up and down when you are walking.

• Spend some time wearing the shoe and walk on different surfaces to make sure that it fits you well.
 
• Most importantly, the upper part of the foot should have a flexible, soft material shaped like your feet. Try to get shoes made of real leather as they will cause less skin irritation.

• Soles of the shoe must be solid and not slippery. Choose thick soles, as they will cushion your feet when moving over harder turfs.

• It is always better to avoid wearing high-heeled shoes for long periods of time, 8 or more hours. Lower-heeled shoes are safer to wear and less damaging to the feet.

Dr. Maasi J. Smith & Staff Writers
www.MyBadFeet.com
"Foot Care From The Dr. Who Cares"