Things You Should Know About Diabetic-related Foot Pain

Foot pain (Diabetes-related foot pain) is a very common complication that happens to many people suffering from diabetes. It happens to patients with both type 1 and type 2 diabetes. The longer you have diabetes issue, and the less controlled your blood sugar is, the more likely it is that you will develop foot pain or discomfort at some point in time. Let’s learn more about diabetic foot pain.

How does diabetes affect the feet?

Diabetes-related foot pain is caused mainly due to high blood sugar levels. Over a period of time, high level of blood sugar damages both the nerve endings & blood vessels throughout the body. This combination causes nerve pain & leads to poor circulation. The feet are especially prone to poor blood circulation as they’re not close to the heart. However, Diabetes-related nerve pain can appear in the hands also, but most commonly people experience this kind of a pain in their feet first and can be chronic. Thus, diabetic foot pain treatment needs to be taken seriously The other factors that can increase the risk of developing this diabetes-related foot pain include being overweight, kidney disease, and smoking.

What does foot pain from diabetes feel like?

The common symptoms of diabetes-related foot pain are:

Tingling

- you may feel a “pins and needles” kind of sensation.

Pain or increased sensitivity

- you may feel pain or sensitivity to things that are normally not painful. It could be pain from a bed sheet brushing against your feet or feeling uncomfortable or painful wearing certain socks.

Numbness or weakness

- it is the nerves in the human body that makes you feel or gives you sensitivity. Sometimes people with diabetes don’t feel someone stepping on their feet or getting a cut on their feet. This happens because of the nerve damage due to diabetes.

Healing of cut or wounds take longer

- Healthy blood vessels in the body carry immune cells to the wounds which help them to fight infections and repair the damaged tissue. So, if blood circulation is poor, which is very common in diabetes, these wounds take longer to heal.

Can diabetes-related foot pain be prevented?

The best way to prevent diabetes-related foot pain is by managing your diabetes in the best possible way. You need to understand that high sugar level is what causes nerve pain. So, by managing your blood sugar levels through diet, exercise, and medications, you can prevent the various complications of diabetes. Apart from this, consulting a doctor for a diabetic foot [pain treatment is always better.