Make Lifestyle Changes to Improve Podiatric Health
When is foot care not directly about your feet? When it involves the lifestyle choices you make that can directly or indirectly impact your podiatric health. In honor of National Foot Health Awareness Month, we at Goldsmith Podiatry want to highlight, for our Manhattan patients, some unexpected paths to healthier feet.
Get a Good Night’s Sleep
Did you know, according to The Sleep Foundation, that nearly half of all Americans report feeling sleepy during the day anywhere from three to seven days each week? And 35% of adults are sleeping less than 7 hours per night—8 is still the recommended number for optimal health. So how does this hurt your feet?
People who don’t get enough sleep tend to eat more calories (and not the good kinds) during the day. It leads to weight increase which adds strain to your feet.
When you feel tired, you’re less likely to exercise.
Fatigued driving has a similar effect to alcohol, increasing the risk of a car accident—a primary source of serious foot and ankle injuries.
Drop the Nicotine
Smoking damages the lining of your blood vessels and decreases blood circulation. It is particularly important to your feet as they are the part of the body farthest away from the heart. Your feet and ankles depend on good circulation to bring them oxygen-rich blood needed to function properly and for healing. Smoking also increases your risk of conditions like heart disease and high blood pressure, which can also cause significant harm to your feet. Vapers are also in danger—even low or no-nicotine vape options contain other chemicals, which can cause similar blood vessel damage.
Create a Salad Repertoire
The humble salad can become a palette for painting a healthy addition to your daily menus. Think rainbow when shopping for salad ingredients—the greater the variety of colors in the produce you use, the more antioxidants and nutrients you are getting. These can help your feet in a number of ways.
Start with leafy greens and use berries, carrots, purple sweet potatoes, chives or onions and beets in your salads to reduce inflammation—a primary cause of foot pain.
·Beginning a meal with a salad has proven to reduce the overall amount you will eat, helping you maintain a healthy weight.
Salads—if you go easy on high fat dressings—generally contain nutrient dense foods that you can eat more of and help you feel full without adding significantly to your daily calorie count. It can help prevent several disease such as diabetes, heart disease and stroke—all of which can be a medical threat to your lower extremities.
Of course, one of the best ways to take good care of your feet is not to ignore foot and ankle pain. If your feet are bothering you, contact our Upper West Side office by calling 212-877-1002 for an appointment with one of our podiatrists, Dr. Howard Goldsmith, Dr. Rosanna Troia and Dr. Kristina Ruff today.