The sun and heat that come with summer can be great for getting us out of the house and back into the real world. For a few shorts months, we can actually go outside without wrapping ourselves up in warm, waterproof clothing fit for an Arctic expedition. During summer, we tend to show off more of our bodies than we usually would, and this is especially true of our feet. Although they spend most of the year wrapped up in shoes and socks, summer is a time when showing off your feet is much more common. With that in mind, we’ve put together a short list on how to get your feet summer ready.
Foot Bath
The feet can be one of the dirtiest areas of the body, but also one of the most neglected when it comes to cleaning. This can lead to easily avoidable problems such as verrucas and fungal nail infections. To prevent this, just give yourself a foot bath once a week or so throughout the summer. This will keep the skin clean and soft, and help avoid any infections.
Exfoliate
The skin on your feet is about ten times thicker than the skin on the rest of your body, so when it dries out, it can get very hard. Exfoliating your feet can help you avoid painful problems like calluses and cracked heels. To do this, you can use a foot scrub during your foot bath, or a pumice stone after the bath. Just be sure that, once the skin has softened, you don’t scrub too hard, or you could pull off healthy skin as well.
Proper Footwear
Most people don’t want to spend their summer wearing shoes that completely engulf their feet. Sandals can be a great way to let your feet out to breathe, but be wary of going overboard. Many people can take this as an opportunity to just throw on an old pair of flip-flops and head out, but there are a few problems with this. They are easier to trip over, easier to get cut in, and they often don’t provide proper support. Wearing open shoes is fine, just make sure that you don’t do it every day, that you’re not getting a lot of cuts and bruises, and that you have good quality sandals (that can’t be folded in half).
Moisturise
Dry skin is more susceptible to foot problems than soft skin, and since the skin on our feet is so much thicker than anywhere else, keeping it soft can take a bit of extra effort. For this reason, moisturising your feet is a very important step in preventing cracks, which can lead to infections and other problems. Ideally you should moisturise your feet after every bath or shower. Although this is not completely necessary, it is a quick task, and could be worth it if you have had foot problems before. Otherwise, you can moisturise after giving yourself a foot bath & exfoliation, or every night before bed. Moisturising is most effective when done at least once a day for 2 to 3 weeks.
With summer just around the corner, now is really the time to start thinking about getting your feet ready. Many of these treatments take time before the real effects can be seen, so don’t give up after the first go. Commit to keeping your feet healthy, and you’ll be proud to show them off this summer. To learn about some of the most common foot problems people face in summer, be sure to visit our blog on that topic.