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How to deal with cracked heels and dry feet

The problem may come up at different times of the year, during those cold and dry winter months or even during the summer when you are walking around in sandals all day long.  Cracked heels or feet that are dry and cracked can be just a minor problem requiring a few dabs of intensive care lotion, to a severe condition that requires some serious exfoliating and intensive moisturizers in order to bring your heels back to proper health. 

For some people, cracked feet are merely a symptom of the harsh dry weather that is occurring. It is a pesky problem for sure, but nothing that cannot be solved with a good moisturizing lotion that contains skin penetrating lipids along with the skin friendly products like Aloe and Vitamin E. However, some cracked heel problems are so bad, that no amount of heavy oil-based moisturizers seem to work and the problem seems to come back with frequency or to not even go away at all. These require some more aggressive treatments.

Those cracks in your heel’s skin are commonly known as heel fissures. Heel fissures develop as the skin becomes excessively dry and when the thick and brittle calluses on the heels of your feet become aggravated. Walking or standing in one place puts pressure on our heels, causing small cracks to open up within your epidermal layer of your skin. While most of the time, these dry and cracked heel fissures only look bad, that can end up forming deeper cracks leading to bleeding and even further infection. Here is what you should do as the weather turns dry (usually in the winter or at the height of summer) and you feel your feet start to crack under pressure.

Exfoliate

The skin on your feet can become a tough nut to crack with just a mere lotion application. Even the thickest of lotions will have trouble penetrating through your calluses in order to do their work. If you use up all your heavy duty lotion on your feet and still do not see improvement, you may need to soften and exfoliate your hard, dry skin in order to spur on the healing process. Start by soaking your tootsies in a nice foot bath using some Epsom salts or other natural foot soaking products that will help soften your heels. There are also some chemical based exfoliates that you can use in this manner. Once you soak your feet and soften your skin, it is time to do some exfoliating using either chemical or physical means. Once you reduce your calluses, the lotion will be able to better penetrate your skin and the healing process can begin.

What not to do

Some people claim that super glue is a great way to fill in those cracks and seal them off from infection. While it is true that super glue is not toxic in small doses and can be used for small cuts and such, most doctors will not recommend using an excessive amount to fill in your heel fissures. Also, never use sharp razor like objects to try to cut away your calluses. If you go too far, you might end up cutting into your skin and opening up your heels to further infection. Also, try not to wear open backed shoes while your feet are cracked. The pressure on your feet causes your cracks to expand and open backed shoes will allow this expansion to continue unchecked.

A ten minute sugar scrub spa treatment can turn those callused and crack heels  into soft and supple tootsies and help you relax the stress away as you massage your feet. Sugar scrubs contain alpha hydroxyl acids that can help dissolve away the dead, dry skin and polish your feet until they come out soft, smooth and supple, Sugar is a powerful exfoliate that can bring your feet back from the point of no return . Treating yourself to nice foot massage can also help you relax, relieving you from the stress that comes along with modern living leaving you feeling refreshed and relaxed.

In as little as ten minutes, you will be getting “on the good foot” and feel as though “Papa’s got a brand new bag” with great looking feet that you will be proud to show off to anyone who cares to see them. This foot treatment is just as relaxing and rejuvenating for men as it is for women helping your feet feel more comfortable as you rid yourself of all of that hard, dry skin.

What you need:

A natural sugar scrub
It is best to find an all natural sugar scrub  that contains granulated or cane sugar along with a foaming soap cleanser that can help soften and polish the feet. Only a scrub that contains pure sugar will have the all important alpha hydroxyl acid which will help dissolve the dry, hardened flaky skin.

A good moisturizer
A rich body butter or cream made from natural oils is the best type of moisturizer for your feet. Shea Butter, olive oil, soybean oil or sunflower oils are the best types of oil bases to look for. Good natural based oils will fully absorb into your skin and help condition your feet to prevent further drying out.

How to bring your feet back from the dead

First: Exfoliate

Take a good quarter sized dap of sugar scrub and with a little water, massage it into your feet working it into a creamy lather. Massage your feet for about two minutes.

Next: Rinse

 Make sure to get all the foamy lather off

Third: Dry

Use a towel to thoroughly dry your feet

Now: Moisturize

Massage your body butter or cream of choice into your feet, letting them soak up the moisture. Moisturizing is important after exfoliation in order to keep your skin from drying out too quickly. 

Hopefully this treatment will help turn your dry, cracked feet into something much more presentable. Depending how bad your cracked heels are, a good sugar scrub followed by a heaping helping of moisturizer should help cure your problem after several applications. Be sure to keep it up twice a week until your feet feel smooth, soft and supple. 

Here is list of essential foods that one can include in a regular meal and help curb deficiencies that may cause cracked heels:

Vitamins (Vitamin E) rich foods include: 

• vegetable oils
• green vegetables
• cereals
• wheat germ, 
• whole-grain products 
• nuts

Minerals (Calcium and Iron) rich foods include : 

• Calcium: milk, cheese, yogurt, goat's milk, fortified soya milk, mineral water, ice cream, tinned fish, juices, cereals and broccoli are excellent sources of calcium. Dairy products such as milk and yogurt are also considered as one of the best sources of calcium. 
• Iron: Meat, chicken and fish are good sources of iron. Iron is also available in cereals, eggs, vegetables and beans; however it is not as easily absorbed into the body as the iron from meat, chicken and fish. 
• Zinc rich foods include: Oysters, chicken, crab, kidney beans, yogurt, brown rice, spaghetti. 
• Omega-3 fatty acids are largely found in: Purslane herb, cold water fish, and flaxseed oil or flax seeds.

Blueprints for relief from he nagging problem of plantar fasciitis (heel pain).

L  • Lavender
     • Licorice Root

     • Lobelia
     • Lovage
M  • Madder
     • Magnolia
     • Maral Root
     • Marsh Cudweed
     • Marshmallow
     • Meadowsweet
     • Melissa (Lemon Balm)
     • Milk Thistle
     • Mugwort
N  • Nettle (Stinging)
O  • Olive Leaf
     • Orthilia Secunda
P  • Peony Root
     • Plantain
     • Purple Marshlock
R  • Red Clover
     • Rhodiola Rosea
     • Rhodiola Quadrifida   
S  • Sage
     • Saw Palmetto
     • Spirulina
     • St. John's Wort
U  • Uva Ursi (Bearberry)
V  • Valerian Root
W • Wild Yam
     • Wormwood
Y  • Yarrow