The paucity of oil glands portends grave difficulties in providing the feet with adequate nourishment in winters to prevent them from cracking up the way other limbs of the body do. The effects of the blistering winter manifest in ways that render even the most hydrated of feet dry, and thanks to the continentality peculiar to North India, the consequences can be quite severe in a scenario wherein one is negligent in tending to their feet with appropriate panache.
Preventive measures you can take
-Owing to the aforementioned circumstances, it is vital that preventive measures assume the utmost mainstay to allow the winter to accustom itself to the feet in a salubrious manner. For instance, the generous application of humectant moisturizer on the feet cannot be downplayed in the slightest. The formation of a protective barrier plays an indelible role in inoculating the feet from the blistering tentacles of winter. Undertaking this measure scrupulously at least twice a day bears testimony to the success of this preventive measure.
-Furthermore, this strategy can be bolstered by donning socks. Wearing socks deprives the environment from rendering your feet wizened and dry, for the socks trap the moisture and prevent its permeation to the surroundings.
-Thirdly, soaking the feet in warm water assists in softening the feet skin and easing the pain caused by fissures. Under no circumstances is hot water to be used, for it plays a very detrimental role. Moreover, the steady yet graceful rubbing of the pumice stone against the heels aids in sloughing off the dead skin cells entrapped firmly within the confines of the feet. Don’t overdo it: rather, do it gently and steadily. Vigorous rubbing entails nothing but harm.
-Furthermore, the application of homebrewed concoction of foot scrub can have a significant bearing on providing the feet with adequate nourishment: take a few drops of olive oil and add a minute helping of sugar. Scrub this concoction gently across your feet in a circular fashion. While the application of olive oil infuses the skin with moisture, the coarseness of the sugar masquerades as a slapdash exfoliant that bristles past the dead skin cells and extricates itself dexterously from the feet. As is the case with the preceding measures, don’t undertake this measure frantically or it will undermine the very purpose of the endeavour.
Things to keep in mind
Contrary to prevailing opinion, overdoing any measure, be it the inordinate slathering of moisturizer or the scrupulous yet unremitting rubbing of the feet with a homebrewed concoction, can dampen its impact. While preventive measures of this nature have an instrumental bearing on adequately-hydrated feet, tweaks in one’s diet also have a significant role to play. While the aforementioned measures are by no means exhaustive, they provide one with a ready reckoner whose centrality cannot be impugned in the slightest. As one ages, the effects of winter will be even more catastrophic on the feet, which will entail the undertaking of measures with even more vigour.
With over sixteen years of experience, Dr Anuj Chawla has pioneered revolutionary foot treatment mechanisms and is considered an authoritative luminary on the subject of foot and ankle disorders.
