After a long jog or a run, sometimes my feet are hurt. I do wonder if that indicates that I worked too hard or I’m just overusing my feet. Maybe it’s because my shoes don’t provide enough support for my feet. Whatever the case, there’s something wrong that my feet are telling me.
The feet can tell you if you’re hurt or have certain health conditions. Just by observing our feet, we may be able to tell certain things. From foot pain to severe numbness of feet, our feet can tell us about certain health conditions such as heart disease, ulcer, infection, etc.
Do you wonder what your feet might be telling you about your health? From the telltale signs to different symptoms coming from your feet, in this article, I’ll discuss what our feet can tell us about our overall health condition.
The Relation Between The Feet And The Health Condition
There was a time where feet were used to measure human intelligence, and thankfully that myth was debunked. However, there’s a correlation between the feet and the person’s health condition.
Like any part of our body, our feet can tell if there’s something wrong by showing early signs and symptoms.
An example of this is if you are experiencing cold feet that are more than usual. Consistent cold feet may be a simple feet condition but you may be experiencing underlying health conditions like thyroid disease or PAD (peripheral artery disease) according to the National Academy of Hypothyroidism.
That’s why I believe that having healthy feet is important in improving the quality of life, especially if you are an outdoor enthusiast like myself. If my feet tell me something or if I feel there’s something wrong with my feet, I quickly inspect it.
This article is for informational purposes only. If you feel there’s something wrong with your feet more than usual or if the signs and symptoms are appearing for several days, please consult with your doctor in order to prevent such serious health issues.
Since I know feet can tell me about my health, I’m committed to staying fit and I’m even more careful about my feet’ health and overall health. Listed below are some signs and symptoms your feet are telling you about your health condition.
Your Feet Tells You About Your Health With These Signs
Although seeing a doctor is a good idea when you are experiencing foot pains or any signs and symptoms that your feet tell you, however, you can identify the signs and symptoms with a simple observation. But, if you notice something more than usual, I think this is the time to consult with a doctor.
Below are the listed potential signs and symptoms your feet might be telling you about your health condition.
Cold Toes Or Feet Might Be Because Of Circulation Problem
Most of us will think that having cold toes or feet is normal due to chilly weather especially at nighttime. However, on rare occasions, it might be because you are having a poor circulation problem leading to diabetes or due to peripheral artery disorder (PAD).
Even though you sat by the fire and bundled up a bit, you notice that it’s not working. This is due to the feet’ restricted blood flow causing your feet to become colder. It may be due to PAD in which an artery either constricts or is blocked. In this case, you might be having Reynaud’s disease.
Besides, PAD, having a cold foot due to poor circulation can be a result of smoking, diabetes, or other factors. Consistent high levels of blood sugar narrow the feet’ arteries and decrease the blood supplies to the tissues.
If I were experiencing colder feet or toes more than usual, I would probably consult with my doctor to prevent any serious disease or complications.
Pitted Or Discolored Toenails Caused By Psoriasis And Others
Toenails with discoloration or pitted can be a result of psoriatic arthritis according to National Psoriasis Foundation. In addition, toenails that change their shape, thickening, or the nail is separating from the nail bed (onycholysis) are other symptoms to consider for psoriasis.
Other health issues regarding the discoloration or pitted toenails are nail fungus, overusing when having an injury from hiking, running, tennis; anemia, melanoma is among the other underlying cause.
Although usually having pitted toenails or discolored nails are due to physical injuries due to overuse injuries from repetitive trauma when performing outdoor activities (hiking, running, jogging, etc.), sometimes these symptoms are warning signs of serious health conditions.
If you feel there’s discoloration or changes with your feet specifically your toenails, I think going to the doctor is your safest option in order to detect these symptoms. Even if it’s just a simple feet condition, better examine it immediately, something might happen if you overlook these indicators.
Toes That Are Enlarged And Painful Could Be Gout
Have you been eating too much red meat or gorging on wine? Your toes might be already experiencing pains and becoming enlarged. This might be A sign of gout which is among the family of arthritis that affects the joints of your big toe.
Eating red meats and alcohol consumption that’s beyond your daily diet can increase the levels of uric acid in the body. Normally the uric acid is excreted through urine. However, when overproduced, the uric acid will create deposition to your toe.
As a result, this will trigger an attack, targeting the joint of your big toe or sometimes your ankle. Usually, you’ll feel extreme pain on your big toe along with having reddened, hardened, and swollen joints.
In most cases, a doctor will prescribe a short-term relief such as anti-inflammatory drugs or medication to reduce the production of uric acid. You will also be recommended to have a low purine diet.
The best prevention for this is to have a healthy lifestyle and reduce meat consumption. It’s less expensive and it’s more effective than most medications. However, It’s still important to see a doctor for the best preventive measures.
Other possible underlying health issues are psoriatic arthritis, rheumatoid arthritis, Charcot joint, cellulitis infection.
Clubbing Feet Might Be Due To Heart Disease Or Lung Cancer
Heart disease or lung cancer might be detected through your fingers or feet’ condition. If you notice a physical change in your feet like clubbing, there’s an indication that you might have an underlying health issue. This can develop in weeks or years depending on the severity.
Clubbing is a medical condition where either your fingers or toes are having certain changes. These changes are curving downward of the nails, increased and widening of the nails, enlargement of the tip of your toes or fingers. (refer to this article: Healthline.com)
Currently, it’s not completely understood why clubbing appears. However, heart disease, lung cancer, and other health condition trigger such symptoms. (This is according to healthline.com)
As most of the symptoms in the feet, these health issues are a hit or miss. Sometimes the clubbing of feet is due to physical attributes from genes, medical history. As such, this symptom can vary from a simple condition to severe cases.
So, if you think your feet are developing clubbing-like changes, you might want to consider talking with your doctor for an early diagnosis and early prevention.
Tingling/Numbness In Feet Might Cause By Multiple Sclerosis
Your feet might tell if you have multiple sclerosis. Experiencing a tingling or numbness feeling in your feet can be a result of multiple sclerosis, although there are other reasons why your feet are having this condition.
In addition, this can be due to poor circulation around your feet which is often the case. Sometimes nerve damage is the cause of numbness or any tingling sensation of the feet or known as peripheral neuropathy. Diabetes is considered among the underlying cause for your feet’s numbness or tingling.
Multiple sclerosis, it’s a serious health condition that weakens your immune system. This may be incurable but it can be treated especially if it’s in the early stages.
If you feel numbness or a tingling sensation in your feet, just be sure to schedule an appointment with your doctor for an early diagnosis. Because I believe that prevention is better than cure.
A High Arch Foot Might Due To Nerve Damage
If you noticed your foot increased an arch (known as Cavus foot), nerve damage might be a possible root cause. Although high arched foot is normally due to your genetic makeup, however, it can be an underlying neurological or neuromuscular condition.
Of those nerve damage, among the common condition Charcot-Marie-Tooth (CMT). When you’re experiencing this, you might feel the numbness in the feet, it changes how you walk, difficulty in balancing, as well as weakened muscle in the lower legs.
Other causes of the high arch foot are muscular dystrophy or spina bifida. Genes are also another contributing factor. Often this can be normal due to foot pain due to the wrong size of shoes or sometimes due to overwork of your feet. People with flat feet are more prone to this than with high arch people.
For a simple treatment, a simple day of rest is needed. If it’s a serious illness, thankfully, there are plenty of treatments for people with high arch foot such as surgery, night splints, bracing, orthotics. The treatment will depend on your health condition under your doctor’s advice.
Ways To Keep A Healthy Feet And Overall Health
There are ways in keeping your feet healthy as well as your overall health. Some of them are simple and cost you nothing but a bit of your time.
To make sure you will have healthy and happy feet and bodies, I have come up with simple ways in which I believe it will keep your feet pain-free and enjoy an active lifestyle like myself.
Here are some of them:
Inspect Your Feet Regularly — Be conscious of your feet’ condition. Make it a habit on checking your feet regularly. Check if your feet have small cuts, feeling numb, blisters, dry or flaky skin; or if there’s any crack on the skin. Use a hand mirror if you can’t see the bottom of your feet.
If you suspect there’s something wrong or you’re feeling off with your feet, you might consult with a health professional like a physical therapist or a doctor. Don’t disregard if something bad happens on your feet which might have an underlying cause.
Wear Shoes That’s Comfort Fit — Tight or loose shoes can cause you to discomfort especially while walking or running. Wearing the wrong shoe size might also cause undesirable foot conditions in long term.
I think that comfort fit shoes will ensure a healthy foot. I suggest when buying a new pair of shoes, they shouldn’t be too tight nor too loose. There should be enough space for your toe to wiggle and to move your ankle a bit.
Having A Healthy Diet And Stay Fit Are Keys To Healthy Feet— I believe that having a healthy diet and performing exercise (like feet stretching) on a regular basis not only makes us stay in shape but also makes our feet healthy. Being overweight is usually among the reason why our feet hurt.
Due to our heavyweight, our feet can’t provide enough support to our entire body. So, the best way to improve stability in our feet is to stay fit and eat healthy foods. Doing these, I think will prevent any serious health condition from in our body like diabetes or heart disease.
Trim Your Nails Regularly And Carefully — Trimmed nails not only make your feet healthy but it makes your feet look clean. It’s important to trim your toenails regularly, just be sure to not cut it too short. Otherwise, it will cause you to ingrown.
Not trimming your toenails can badly affect how you wear shoes. This will create discomfort as your long toenails touch the shoes which can be painful and can damage your socks.
Final Thoughts
The feet are an amazing part of the human body. Learning the importance of having healthy feet and what can it say about my overall health condition is fascinating.
Our feet have a story to tell about our health. Your feet can tell you about your health issues just by checking your feet’ condition. Sometimes there are underlying health issues. In some cases, it just tells us that we just need to rest our feet due to overwork.
There are certain steps in having healthy feet and body and most of them are easy to do. If ever you’re experiencing something wrong or more than usual, don’t hesitate to seek a health professional.
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