How To Manage Cracked Heels

Cracks in the dry hard skin that form around the heel can be very painful and look unsightly. They are an ongoing problem and do need regular care and maintenance to look after them and prevent them.

The biggest risk factors for cracked heels are being overweight; wearing open heel rather than closed heel shoes; and having dry thicker callused skin around the heels. Under our heels is a normal fat pad that extend out sideways under the side of the heel. This expansion out sideways puts a lot of stress on the skin and does try to crack it in the same way that when you gentle squash a tomato, the skin of the tomato cracks. If the skin around the heel is not supple and is dry as well as callus, this skin will crack. The crack in the callused skin will try and rip or tear the good skin below which if successful, will possibly bleed and become painful. A closed in shoe will help hold the fat pad under the heel and stop it expanding sideways, hence wearing an open shoe increased the risk for this. Being overweight will put further stress on the fat pad to expand out sideways under the heel. When a crack in the skin develops, every step taken will keep opening the crack, so healing is going to be very difficult without help.

When a cracked heel develops, the best thing is probably to get to a Podiatrist and not try self-management. The podiatrist will meticulously remove all the callused skin around the heel and especially along the edges of any split in the skin. The crack in the good skin will not heal unless this is removed. After the callus thicker skin has been removed, the edges of the crack can be taped together to allow them to heel. The tape needs to be kept on until it has healed. Even one step without the tape may open up the wound.

After this callus has been removed by a podiatrist and the wound has heel, which is when a lot of self-management is needed to prevent it happening again. If you are prone to this problem, it really is better to wear closed in shoes around the heel to help keep the fat pad under the foot and not have the tendency to crack. In extreme cases, as plastic heel cup may need to be used to do with. Of most importance is the regular daily application of am emollient to keep the skin supple and moist, so it can withstand the pressure of the fat pad expansion. Probably prior to the application of the emollient cream it is often a good idea to use to foot file to keep the callused skin down after the podiatrist initially removed it. If this routine is followed, then there is a really good chance that the cracked heels can be prevented. If it is not followed, then its back to the podiatrist when the next one occurs.