Have you ever been ashamed of what your feet look like? Or do they cause you pain on a regular basis?
Proper care of our feet is something few of us are taught. Most of the time, feet are lucky enough to get a moisturizer quickly, while being sworn at quickly for looking dry, smelly, or having unsightly nail fungus.
Feet are like the body’s mule – they do all the heavy lifting, but usually go unnoticed and are considered useful. They don’t become the center of attention until they stop working as they should.
But what if we thought about those hardworking feet before things go wrong, so that they remain attractive, strong, and flexible in our later years as well. Here are some considerations for keeping feet healthy, including shoe choices, strength and flexibility, and skin and nail conditioning.
Choose the right shoes … or no shoes
We’ll get into the aesthetic concerns in a moment, but we need to get our feet functional before they’re beautiful. Most of us wear shoes most of the time, however What if your footwear compromises the integrity of your feet??
We expect our feet to (literally) carry us through life, but we subject them to some extreme forms of torture. How good does it feel at the end of the day to take off the shoes you were wearing? To walk your natural gait and move your toes freely?
This is the clearest explanation of why shoes can be the worst enemy to the health of your feet.
We mostly wear shoes during our waking hours. Therefore, it makes sense that our feet adapt to their surroundings.
Is it any surprise that we get disorders like bunions and corns when the natural shape of the foot is pinched in a toe or carrying excessive weight in the toes of high heels? These stilettos may look great for now, but if your feet look like a Komodo dragon’s horny paw when those shoes run out, who’s sexy now?
In the interests of long-term foot health, we recommend opting for more practical (but still cute!) Shapes if you wear your shoes for a long period of time.
Don’t we enjoy going on “vacation” when we “take off our shoes” and only wear flip-flops or go for a barefoot walk in the sand?
With that in mind, some holistic health experts recommend avoiding shoes altogether. This is not only due to the changed body shape, posture and movement of our shoes.
Wearing shoes can lead to mechanical weakness and misalignment Cause problems down to the “chain” of the bodythrough the legs, hips and spine.
Their recommendations are also based on contact with our environment through our feet, which are actually very capable and finely tuned to provide us with information about our environment. In the modern world, we are very focused on the tasks that we do with our hands.
Imagine how frustrating and alienating it would be to wear gloves all day. We would feel that we cannot understand or interact with the environment satisfactorily. But a person living in nature would also appreciate the information that comes from his feet.
Imagine cutting off an important part of brain functionality by depriving our feet of sensory input into the environment?
If this idea is intriguing to you, try walking barefoot in a safe environment for some time each day. Challenge your feet by walking on different surfaces like dry grass or gravel. Also, try to strengthen your feet and improve flexibility by doing yoga and foot-specific exercises.
If you work at a desk, take off your shoes and roll your feet on a massage ball when you sit down. When you get up all day, try to get a textured mat that will encourage you to change your foot and ankle positions more often.
The key is to deviate from this restrictive shoe environment as often as possible.
Natural remedies for skin and nails
Now that we have strong and functional feet, let’s talk about how they look (and smell) nicer.
While most observations of foot ugliness will require treatment with an ointment, cream, or device, it’s important to keep in mind that food and diet can play key roles. As with the rest of the body, the beauty comes from the inside out.
When you have beautiful, healthy gut, you also have beautiful, healthy skin, teeth, eyes, hair, and feet.
So what are some diets for beautiful feet? We recommend the following, but remember that you should consult a trusted healthcare professional before using unfamiliar foods or supplements.
- Zinc-dry, peeling feet can be the result of nutritional deficiencies. Zinc supplementation or increasing consumption of zinc-rich foods like oysters and grass-fed lamb can help correct this. Magnesium and iodine are other minerals that could be missing. Try a seaweed supplement and a topical liquid magnesium.
- Omega-3 fats – taking a fish oil supplement or eating wild-caught oily fish several times a week can help keep the skin soft and flexible.
- B vitamins – especially vitamin B12 should be considered as B12 or iron deficiency can be a cause of rough skin. These two deficiencies are often linked and can be remedied by improving gut bacteria through eating probiotic and prebiotic foods.
- Proteins – not only from muscle meat, but also from organ meat and homemade broth. Collagen and gelatin are important for shiny, healthy nails and flexible joints. You have to consume the “chunks” to get those proteins that muscle meat is lacking. Vitamin C works in conjunction with collagen. So be sure to eat these oranges and lemons.
More tips for healthier feet
- Prevent bunions by avoiding pointy shoes and using stretch toe separators for a few minutes each evening. You will be surprised how quickly this ball pain reverses.
- Protect your feet from infection and viruses in public places like pools and dressing rooms by always wearing a pair of flip flops.
- Don’t cover unattractive toenails with polish – cracks or discoloration are likely a sign of an underlying infection. Instead, try using essential antifungal drugs to solve the problem. Some options include tea tree, clove, or oregano oil.
You don’t have to suffer with embarrassing, painful feet – make them naturally beautiful and functional with these holistic solutions.
