Sandals

[St.Ives]

I've heard that the wearing of sandals is a no no. Why is this?

I can only imagine it's to do with keeping your feet from being cut, but are there other reasons?

[camjen1]

I've heard that the wearing of sandals is a no no. Why is this?

I can only imagine it's to do with keeping your feet from being cut, but are there other reasons?

I have never heard of such a thing! I'm sandal queen so if this is a no no then it's going to be anther rule I will be always breaking.:) I prefer barefeet but that is a REAL no no.

[Jaclyn]

I was told not to wear sandles either and to always keep my feet covered. I love to barefoot also, I dont wear sandles but I dont cover them up either.

Jaclyn

[sofaraway]

I wear sandles and love flip flops, I don't go barefoot very often, unless on the beach. I have never been told not to.

[St.Ives]

One of the reasons I was given is that the feet need to be safe from harm and are much safter in shoes than sandals.

[sofaraway]

yeah that does make sence.

Do you have any problems with feeling or circulation in your feet?

[St.Ives]

yeah that does make sence.

Do you have any problems with feeling or circulation in your feet?

No problems to date. I also have high blood pressure that I am on medication for and part of that is a daily dose of 75mg of aspirin. I heard this helps with blood circulations, so perhaps this helps.

Incidentally I'm on 40mg Micardis also. I was on Sentil but was taken off when diagnosed type two.

[liz32]

I was told that the no bare feet and no sandle rule was a general one and that if I keep my sugars low and consistent that I don't need to worry about it for now. That being said, I was also told that if I do go bare foot to do a very carefull inspection afterwards to make sure of no splinters etc....that could get stuck in my feet and cause a problem. I wear my berkinstoks all the time! Power to the sandle!!!:cool:

[camjen1]

I think it just has to do with diabetics having alot of feet problem and one cut can lead to infection and then possible amputation if it gets so bad. I have gotten cuts on my feet alot but I just treat them quickly and all is fine. Now last summer I got a big gash on the back of my foot from a pier and that is the main reason I choose not to go barefeet anymore.

[lesley]

the podiatrist I go to and have a lot of respect for says that it is recommended because diabetics generally don't have injuries to their feet healing as quickly as non-diabetics. She feels that as long as you are getting your feet checked regularly and are at a stage where the blood flow to your feet is not restricted then you are much better wearing sandals than going bare foot. When I said that I had always gone bare foot she just smiled and pointed to the pics on her wall of amputations, ulcers, gangreous feet, etc. and said "do you want me to be treating you for that?" So I now rarely wear even sandals, occasionally go barefoot in the house and generally wear shoes with or without socks.

HTH

[mg_2204]

Has to do with protection your feet.

But then again, shoes can be responsible for damaging your feet too! If they are too tight for example, cutting off the blood supply. Especially if you have nerve damage I was told.

The best advice is to buy good footwear, wear sandals too if you like (I do!), and most importantly check your feet. A little thingy on your feet has the potential to turn into a nasty one. Don't forget!

The very best to you,

[shanda]

I was advised to never go barefoot, which makes sense to me. I used to be barefoot at home a lot in the summer but never outside. Now I always wear something on my feet, but I love sandals!! What woman doesn't love wearing pretty sandals in the summer eh? :)

I'm pretty lucky, living in Canada where we have universal health care at no personal cost. Most hospitals in large cities have Foot Care Clinics where you can go and have your feet cared for by a professional. Usually you have to be referred by your family doctor as a diabetic to receive this service but it's worth the effort to go and take care of your feet from the earliest stage possible.

Right now I still have Home Health Care (visiting nurses) for follow up care on a burst appendix and subsequent abdominal infection, and while I have this they also send a foot care nurse right to my home because of the diabetes. How lucky is that eh? :) Once the Home Care is finished I'll have to go to the clinic but right now I'm being spoiled :)

[St.Ives]

Sandals are better than bare feet, that's for sure. I suppose the key word here is to be cautious whatever way you go. And if the thoughts of having your foot amputated isn't enough to reinforce that caution then I imagine nothing will.

[mg_2204]

One story that made me go off trendy shoes i.e. way too tight, and heels too high :

A woman's daughter was getting married. Of course she wanted to look smashing for the wedding. She squeezed her feet into a lovely expensive pair of designer shoes. The stress and emotions of the day running high she forgot about her discomfort. At the end of the day her feet were so painful. She ended up with a foot being amputated...

She had diabetes and a beginning of nerve damage.

I still love trendy shoes. I'll look at them. Sometimes I'll even try on a pair. Just for fun. I want to keep my feet though. So I go for the comfortable shoes now. If I ever marry my oldest son I'll wear a long dress and shoes won't be so visible :) :) :)

Sorry. Had to tell that story.

[parrotletzoo]

Here is a link to an article that was in Diabetes Voice by International Diabetes Federation about sandals and appropriate footwear. It was really interesting considering the international perspective on the issue.

http://www.diabetesvoice.org/issues/2005-11/Appropriate_footwear_sandals_or_shoes.cfm

[Belinda]

I was told that the no bare feet and no sandle rule was a general one and that if I keep my sugars low and consistent that I don't need to worry about it for now. That being said, I was also told that if I do go bare foot to do a very carefull inspection afterwards to make sure of no splinters etc....that could get stuck in my feet and cause a problem. I wear my berkinstoks all the time! Power to the sandle!!!:cool:


Not to be disrespectful of your health care provider BUT.........even if you check your feet after going barefoot you can still develop problems. The thing about the fancy shoes is you should check your feet every couple of hours if you are wearing dressy high heels for an occasion etc....you may not be able to prevent a blister but at least within the couple of hours you can stop some serious damage. I had a blister on the bottom of my big toe this past summer that took 41/2 months to heal. I had to wear a crazy orthopedic boot etc....

Wearing of good shoes is the best way of protecting the feet of a diabetic this is not to say that other shoes can't be worn but if lots of walking or standing is to be done a supportive shoe is the best way to go.

I am a voice of experience since out of the blue my toe turned pink and then gangreous and before I knew it......off with my toe in less than 18 hours. It came out of NO WHERE.....so be extremely careful with your feet

[shanda]

I have to admit all this information about amputations etc is seriously making me re-think what type of shoes I wear. I don't normally wear real high heels but for an occasion I do and now I think I'd rather go with comfort than style.

As for sandals I think I'll stick to wearing them when I get where I'm going, that is, indoors, it's probably safer. Living in Canada our sandal wearing time is fairly limited anyway ;)