All of us probably know how cracked heels came about. The cold chilly weather or indoor heat and dry or dehydrated skin is the most common cause.
So, you should always make it a point to moisturise your feet and ensure that they have enough moisture to sustain the load – which is you – they are carrying around everyday.
Hot baths, showers and prolonged soaking of feet in hot water is also harmful for your heels. Moreover, you should also be aware of the soaps you use and avoid harsh and dry soaps. People also tend to scrub their feet until they are raw – which is actually doing more bad than good.
These cracks, called fissures, are a real nuisance to deal with. Although they may seem like a small problem at first, it will develop into something more serious if left untreated – such as bleeding, infection and pain when standing or walking. It is also easier to watch out for any symptoms of cracked heels and take action before it gets any worse; flaky, patches on the heels, cracked skin, itchy heels and sometimes bleeding from the cracks.
Here are a few tips for your cracked heels:
1. Lemon, Salt, Glycerin and Rose Water Foot Mask
This foot mask is a very suitable home remedy if your cracked heels are just in its first stage. It is also excellent if you want to prevent cracked heels. You just need some raw salt, lemon juice, glycerin and rose water. Put all these ingredients into warm water and soak your cracked heel into the mixture for approximately 15 minutes. After soaking, the dry skin on your heels should be loose enough for you to scrub it off with pumice stone, foot file or scrubber.
You should also prepare a thick paste with 1 teaspoon of raw glycerin (thick), 1 teaspoon of rose water and 1 teaspoon of lemon juice. Make sure to mix them well and apply this sticky mixture to your cracked heels. Leave it overnight, you can wear a pair of socks if you want, and wash it off in the morning. You will need to use this treatment for 2 to 3 days up to 7 to 10 days to cure cracked heels.
2. Feet Oil Massage
If you don’t really like sticky treatments, you can try oil massage. It is also suitable for sensitive feet that get cracked easily. Choose any of these oils according to your liking – sesame oil, coconut oil or any other hydrogenated vegetable oil – and massage them to your cracked heels before heading off to bed. Wear a pair of old socks – better if old ones as you might be able to use them later – and go to bed. This treatment should be continuing for 3 to 5 days or until your cracked heels are healed.
3. Natural Exfoliation and Oil
As mentioned before, dry skin on your heels causes cracked heels. Exfoliating your feet regularly is a good idea to have healthy heels. However, instead of using harsh cosmetics, maybe you can try making your own natural exfoliating scrub. To make this scrub, you should have honey, apple cider vinegar and rice flour. Grind 2 to 3 tablespoon of rice to get coarse flour. Don’t grind it too fine as it will be needed to scrub off the dry skin.
Then, add a few spoons of honey and apple cider vinegar to the rice flour. You should get a thick paste. For deeper heel cracks, add in a spoon of olive oil or sweet almond oil to the paste. Gently massage your feet with this paste after soaking your feet in warm water for 20 minutes. This treatment is very good in preventing further cracking and can be said as the best natural cracked heel treatment.
4. Mashed Fruits Massage
The mashed fruits massage is good for people with a more serious case of cracked heels. Apply mashed ripe banana to the cracks of your heels. Allow it to stay for approximately 15 minutes before washing it off. This can be your daily basis treatment as it is simple and dry. Other than ripe banana, you can add in half an avocado or coconut flesh if you have a more serious case of cracks. These ingredients should be blended together to form a paste. Essential oils, minerals and vitamins are contained in avocado and coconut which can then nourish your dry feet while preventing cracked heels. You can also change ripe banana to ripe papaya if you wish.
5. Fitting Shoes
The shoes you wear are also important when it comes to taking care of your cracked heels. Make sure that the shoe you are wearing fits you. When the shoes and boots are too big, your heels will move around which will cause friction. The friction will lead to dry calluses around the ridges and surface of the heels. You should also avoid shoes that are too tight to ensure that your toes have enough room to wiggle. So, get a shoe that is properly sized. You can also apply some powder on your shoes and socks.
6. Wax and Mustard Oil
This method is for the worst case of cracked heels which cannot be cured by any of the listed methods here. You will need paraffin wax for this and you can use wax melted from a regular candle. Make pieces of candle after removing the wick. Then, heat up both the mustard oil and candle to make a paste. Then, apply this wax-mustard mixture to your heel crack after soaking your feet in warm water and scrubbing the dry skin off. Make sure to fill your deep cracks with this mixture. The treatment will be more effective if you do this treatment before going to bed and wear a pair of socks. Continue this for about one week and you will be amazed with the results. Any unused paste can be kept in a bottle. The next time you need it, just heat it up or leave it in the sun for a while and it is ready to serve your cracked heel again.
7. Leg Hygiene
Always keep your feet clean. Wash them well when you reach home. It is also good to scrub and exfoliate them regularly to get rid of the dead skin. Use warm, soapy water to wash your feet daily and not hot water as it could dry out your skin. Other than that, hot water is harmful to diabetics or anyone else with impaired circulation to the feet. While washing, exfoliate at the same time – focusing on the heels. After you are done, make sure that your feet are dried thoroughly especially between the toes since it is a favourite spot for fungus and bacteria.
8. Night care
Try to make it a habit of wearing a pair of socks when you are off to bed to keep the moisture of your feet – better if cotton socks. It is also a good idea to massage some oil or honey – natural moisturiser – on your feet, concentrating on the heels. When morning comes, just wash it off, exfoliate, dry and moisturise again.
