Are Your Feet Ready For Spring? Get Set To Bare It All With New World-First Innovation To Beat Foot Pain
With winter finally over, we’re starting to welcome the warmer weather. But are your feet ready for the transition? After months of being tucked away in boots and trainers, you might not give your feet much thought but with millions of Brits suffering from common foot lesions, including corns, calluses and verrucas, there’s no time like now to give your feet a much-needed MOT.
In fact, studies suggest that as many as 48% of people suffer from corns[1] meaning lesions are a problem that affects nearly half the UK population.
GP, Dr Nisa Aslam explains: “These lesions can often be painful and they can make general movement a little uncomfortable. With our feet having to carry our weight throughout the day, it’s important we do what we can do to care for them. Plus, corns can become infected leading to inflammation and more pain[2].”
Show your feet some TLC with ZeroSole Reliever, a world-first innovation that’s set to change the game for common foot lesions and provide a gold standard of treatment to relieve pain. Whether you spend all day on your feet, have a construction job that requires you to wear hard footwear or suffer from foot deformity, ZeroSole can help.
Podiatrist from ZeroSole, David Barton, says: “ZeroSole has been created with a one-of-a-kind design to make life more comfortable. The unique hexagon ‘cell’ technology found in ZeroSole helps to relieve the pressure on the soles of the feet, preventing some lesions from forming in the first place, but also allowing lesions that have already formed, to heal.”
Explaining more about the world-first technology in ZeroSole, podiatrist and ZeroSole co-creator, Heather Smart says: “ZeroSole’s hexagon ‘cells’ can be manually removed using your fingers so the user has the ability to customise and remove direct pressure from any location on the sole of the foot that’s affected by corns, callus and other painful foot lesions.”
What lesions are you dealing with?
There are various lesions – classed as an area of abnormal or damaged tissue caused by injury, infection, or disease – which can develop on your feet.
When it comes to corns and calluses, these are thickenings of the outer layer of the skin[3].
Calluses are common on the soles of the feet, as well as the palms of hands and they come in various different sizes.
Dr Nisa Aslam adds: “They don’t tend to cause any pain but they can occur on the hands from the pressure of lifting weights at the gym or heavy bags when you’re shopping, or they can crop up on the feet from tight shoes or from foot abnormalities.”
Corns are typically smaller than calluses, with a central point[4]. “These are usually found on bonier areas of the body, such as the feet and hands, where rubbing is more likely. These areas of skin are subjected to long term pressure or rubbing, often from tight or ill-fitting shoes such as heels, or from wearing no socks, where skin is more exposed,” adds Heather Smart.
It’s only when the pressure is removed that the corn will disappear. Speaking of verrucas, Dr Nisa Aslam says: “These are essentially warts on the soles of the feet[5]. They are caused by the human papilloma virus (HPV)[6]. Although verrucas look similar to corns, they typically have blood vessels in them which appear as very small black dots right in the centre of the verruca.”
Spring into spring: 4 ways to prepare your feet
1. Keep feet neat: With feet often being crammed into tight shoes, sweaty trainers and uncomfortable heels, they really are being put through their paces.
Dr Nisa Aslam says: “It’s no surprise they can end up developing lesions plus, footwear can cause nail and toe deformities, blisters and general aches.”
Keep your feet in good condition by regularly devoting time to exfoliating dead skin and keeping nails short and trim. Heather Smart adds: “Keep feet moisturised too. You can even apply a thick layer of moisturiser to your feet before bed and then wear socks on top so your feet soak up all the moisturising goodness.”
2. Use ZeroSole: ZeroSole Reliever can be fully customised to relieve the pressure on corns, calluses, verrucas and other foot lesions. David Barton says: “Essentially, ZeroSole has been created to reduce the impact of high-pressure areas on the sole of the foot, while providing additional comfort and support. They work with all conventional footwear, so all users can benefit.”
To use ZeroSole insoles, cut along the chosen pre-cut size guide clearly labelled on the insole, using a pair of scissors, and then follow the easy guide on the ZeroSole packaging to customise your ZeroSole to your foot and reduce the pressure from your foot lesion.
3. Put your feet up: If you’ve been on your feet all day, make sure you give them the rest they deserve.
Dr Nisa Aslam says: “We so often forget that our feet need a break sometimes. So, when you can, sit down, kick off your shoes and stretch out your feet.”
Flex your feet and point your toes back and forth several times. Wriggle your toes too and turn your feet side to side and forward and back.
David Barton adds: “A tennis ball can help to relieve sore feet. Keep one near your desk at work and roll your bare foot over it when you’re sitting down.”
4. Watch your footwear: If you can, be wary of tight shoes that offer no breathability. Go for shoes with cushioning and support so your feet are well looked after as you walk.
Dr Nisa Aslam says: “When you buy new shoes, wear them around the house for a day or two so that you break them in. Wearing new shoes out and about for hours at a time can lead to pain, blisters and cuts.”
Heather Smart adds: “Upgrade your footwear with ZeroSole Reliever ; not only does it have the unique hexagon design, but it also features a mild musculoskeletal arch support and heel cup for even more pressure distribution across the foot without changing the mechanical function. Anyone who needs pressure relief to help avoid or heal lesions on their feet will benefit from ZeroSole.”
ZeroSole retails at £30.00 from Boots Online; Amazon, or www.zero-sole.com