SearchExclusive.com

8 Causes of Foot Pain You Must be Aware of

Your feet manage your entire body weight, and at times, they too can get strained. The causes of foot pain can vary, sometimes it could be a result of stress, injuries, wrong footwear, or health disorders. Foot pain specifies any form of discomfort that occurs in the toes, arches, soles, and toes. Depending on the cause, the pain can be mild or severe. Many of these can be easily managed at home, but seeking the counsel of a podiatrist is always a great way to steer clear of any doubts. Medical intervention can also help you to evade any possible risks such as infections or permanent joint damage.

Here are some of the common causes of foot pain:

Sprains and strains
A very common kind of foot injury, sprains and strains mostly affect the muscles and the ligaments. A sprain refers to a condition where one or more ligaments have twisted or bent. Moreover, a strain implies that muscle fibers are ripped or stretched. Usually, they occur when you suddenly move, fall, or collide with something. Apart from pain, these may result in inflammation and contusions. These can be administered at home with simple remedies such as cold compression, OTC medications, and rest.

Plantar fasciitis
Caused due to damage to the fascia, a ligament situated in the bottom of the feet, plantar fasciitis is extremely common in athletes and individuals aged above 40. It can also affect people who are constantly on their feet for long hours throughout the day. The discomfort is usually at its peak when you wake up in the morning. Along with home treatments, plantar fasciitis can be fixed with physical therapy, prescription drugs, and orthopedic footwear.

Bunions
These are a type of bone abnormality that occurs in the big toe, which makes it lean inward towards the other foot. Interestingly, bunions are more prevalent in women. In the early stages, you might not observe any painful symptoms, but as the deformity advances, it causes discomfort, calluses, tenderness, and difficulty in toe movements. Bunions can be managed by using over-the-counter (OTC) painkillers, comfortable arched insoles, and prescribed medicines. In certain cases, corrective surgeries might be required.

Gout
A kind of arthritis, gout usually ends up affecting your foot joint due to the excessive accumulation of uric acid in the bloodstream. It can cause incidents of acute pain, redness, and inflammation in the joints. The elimination of uric acid from the body is crucial for alleviating the symptoms of gout. Therefore, along with medications, special importance is given to the anti-gout diet plan.

Ingrown toenails
A condition where the edges of the toenails grow into the skin situated near the nail is known as ingrown toenails. This mostly affects the big toe of the foot. These can occur due to intense athletic activities, genetics, poor hygiene, toenail injuries, improper grooming of nails, inappropriate footwear, unusually shaped toenails, etc. Tenderness, pain, pus accumulation, oozing, bleeding, skin overgrowth, etc. are some of its symptoms. This condition can be treated using home solutions and medical/surgical treatments.

Flat feet
Also known as fallen arches, flat feet, like the name suggests, is when there is an absence of the curve on the bottom of your feet. It is common with babies and toddlers. However, they disappear by the child turns two or three. Elderly individuals and athletes have an increased risk of developing flat feet because they are prone to frequent injuries. Similarly, patients with diseases such as cerebral palsy are also vulnerable to this type of foot pain. Usually having flat feet is no cause for concern, but if it induces pain while walking, then you should see a podiatrist. It can be treated using special footwear, prescription drugs, changes in diet, exercise, and in rare cases, foot surgery.

Corns and calluses
To protect the bottom of the feet from strain and abrasion, at times, the body creates hardened layers of skin known as corn and calluses. For some individuals, these can cause immense discomfort while walking or running. Corns are smaller as compared to calluses, and normally don’t cause pain. These can be treated by scraping away the excess dead skin or by applying salicylic patches. In extreme cases, your doctor might suggest using custom made insoles or surgery.

Achilles tendon injuries
If you are experiencing pain and stiffness in the back of your heel, then it possible that your Achilles tendon is affected. Under normal circumstances, this discomfort can be alleviated using OTC painkillers, cold compression, and relaxation. Although, it might take several weeks to recover completely. If you have ruptured the tendon, then apart from the severe pain you might notice a pop or a snap in the feet and an inability to walk or stand. This might require a cast on the foot or corrective surgery.

Verrucas
These can be mistaken for corns, but they usually only develop on the soles. Verrucas are white surfaces filled with black dots in them. Unlike corns, they are flat and will clear up on their own. You can easily find over-the-counter (OTC) topical gels and plasters to get rid of them quickly.

Usually, causes of foot pain can be easily identified, but you should get an accurate medical diagnosis for an efficient and faster healing process.

Related Reading

Tips for Buying the Best Dog Food

Most of the dogs do not have a food fuss and may eat almost anything that you feed them. Dogs are not choosy at all when it comes to food and nutrition. Hence, it is important to make sure that the food that you are purchasing for your dog is healthy. The landscape of dog food has been developing by leaps and bounds in recent times. There is a wide variety of options to choose from in the online and offline market. Given the wide range of options that are available today, buying the best dog food might seem to be a confusing task indeed. All the commercial pet food that is available in the market today is regulated by the FDA. Therefore, most of the products do contain nutritious, healthy, and safe ingredients. But it does help to know certain basic factors you should look for while buying food for your dog. Prioritize on the nutritional guarantee The best dog food, which meets the dog’s needs adequately has a statement written on the label of the product, from the Association of American Feed Control Officials. Buy from some of the best dog food brands, such as Fromm Family Foods, Earthborn Holistic, Nature’s Variety Instinct, and The Honest Kitchen.

Different Types of Kitchen Cabinets Available for Your Home

The most important aspect when designing your kitchen is deciding on the type of cabinets. In addition to functionality, kitchen cabinets score on aesthetics as well. Once the layout is planned, you can go ahead with choosing the cabinets. If you’re remodeling your home or just the kitchen, what you need to consider are the types of cabinets that furnish your kitchen. Here are a few types of kitchen cabinets that you can choose from. Base cabinets These kitchen cabinets are mounted on the floor and they are placed after checking out the floor plan. A major part of your job in the kitchen is on these base cabinets, which hold and support the countertops. These base cabinets are combined to carve out kitchen islands. A number of base cabinets are fused/set against one another and installed on site. The base cabinets, in addition to supporting the countertops, serve as drawers to hold your cutlery and appliances. Wall cabinets Mounted on the walls, these cabinets can store everything, right from your cookware to cookbooks. In terms of design, they offer utmost flexibility. Wall cabinet kitchen is available in varying heights, multiple widths, and custom depth options. This customization helps you to fit in your stuff of varying shapes and sizes into the wall cabinets.

How to Pick the Right Dog Food for a Sensitive Stomach

In today’s world, where you are presented with over a dozen choices for every item you would purchase for your own kitchen, it is not surprising that you have an equal number of options for your dog’s food. However, choosing the perfect brand and formula for your dog out of a range of options in the market is not an easy job. Your pet depends on you and trusts you to make the right choice for them. Therefore, it is imperative that you do your research about the products available in the market, understand what your dog needs, know what might be your pet’s problems, and then make a sound decision. What is a sensitive stomach? Dogs are known to have voracious and large appetites. Keeping that in mind, it is normal to assume that they have strong stomachs. They can eat close to anything be it sweets, bakes, chewy gum, hard leather or even woolen socks for that matter! It always so happens that the strongest of them are prone to allergies and can develop a disorder which is medically translated as a sensitive stomach. This might be due to a sudden change in the food habits or even due an infection picked up from somewhere.

All You Need to Know about Cat Food

For cat owners, cat food is a hot topic. You need to think about it in different aspects. The best thing is to know which ingredients are good for cat food and which are harmful. If you are aware of this, you can get an idea about the quality of the cat food just by going through the label. It is always sensible to stick to one brand of cat food. However, you may also want to try and prepare cat food yourself. There are also various options for wet cat food as well. Cat’s love for fish is universal, so you can do without going for expensive cat food. Nevertheless, whether you buy it or prepare cat food at home, you need to ensure that the food contains enough nutrition and calories. You would need to have some idea about the ingredients that must be present in cat food and make a worthy selection for your cat. Basic ingredients present in good cat foods Cats need a variety of nutrients to stay healthy and active; they need various vitamins, minerals, fats, proteins, and oils. The following is a brief explanation of the basic ingredients that should be present in cat foods.