Caring for Your Feet

If you have diabetes, your regular doctor probably stresses the importance of controlling your blood-glucose levels every time you see him or her. This is because your blood-glucose levels have a lot to do with your health, and when your levels are high too often, you are more prone to developing a variety of problems, including neuropathy. If you develop neuropathy, you may experience problems with your feet. Here are several things you should understand about the correlation between your blood-glucose levels and the health of your feet.

High blood-glucose levels lead to neuropathy

When you have your diabetes under control, it means you are able to keep your blood-glucose levels regulated, and this is very important if you want to prevent developing neuropathy. Neuropathy is a condition that describes nerve damage, and this condition can occur if your blood-glucose levels are too high too often.

When your blood-glucose levels are high, the extra sugar in your blood damages the nerves in your body. It also causes damage to your blood vessels, which are essential for transporting oxygen to your nerves. This damage can occur to any of the nerves in your body, but it often targets the feet first.

Neuropathy can lead to many problems

If you do not control your blood-glucose level properly and end up with neuropathy, you can experience a variety of problems with your feet. The first problem is that you will lose feeling in your feet. Your feet may also begin to burn, tingle, or feel very strange. When you stick your foot in the bath to check the water, you may not be able to sense the temperature. Once you lose this feeling, you may never be able to get it back.

In addition, neuropathy can also lead to ulcers on your feet. If you cannot feel your feet, you will have trouble noticing if you have foot pain, and any type of foot pain can lead to diabetic ulcers on your feet. These ulcers typically start off as small wounds, but they can become infected relatively quickly. If this happens, you may end up losing your feet from the infection.

Keeping your blood-glucose levels regulated is vital if you want to stay healthy, and part of your health plan should include visiting a podiatrist on a regular basis. A podiatrist may not be able to help you control your blood-glucose level, but he or she will be able to help you take the right steps to keep your feet as healthy as possible if you suffer from diabetes.

For more information, contact a company like Center for Foot Care.