Week 9
In this week's Friday foot fact, I'm talking about what our feet are designed to do: walk!
Did you know the average person walks the distance of going 3 times around the world in a lifetime? Women walk an average of 10 miles in a day meanwhile men will walk an average of 7 miles in a day. Our feet absorb 3 times your body weight while walking and some of us will inherit the way we walk. The name of the way you walk is called a gait. Our moods can affect our gait and so does a really bad pair of ill fitting shoes. Making sure you take care of your feet now can save you from future foot problems.
I hope this post, even though short and sweet, will have made you appreciate what your feet do for you. Don't take them for granted either, it's when we have problems with them that we realize the important tasks they perform in our day to day life.
Have a great weekend everyone!
Friday, March 2, 2012
Tuesday, February 28, 2012
Advice on dry & cracked heels for Anonymous.
A reader was asking on how she can solve a dry and cracked feet problem even after moisturizing twice a day. If the skin is not getting rehydrated even after moisturizing, I'm thinking there might be a barrier that is preventing your skin to rehydrate, most commonly it would a layer of dead skin cells and even a build up of calluses.
For any moisturizer to be absorbed in your skin, exfoliating with a foot file or a pumice stone is always a good idea to prepare your foot properly. If you are going to use a foot file, usually it's 2 sided with the grain of the file coarser on one side than the other. You want to use the coarser side first to remove the larger dead skin cells than transfer to the finer side of the file to smooth out the job. The trick is using the foot file on dry skin.
The pumice stone is used on wet skin and it should be used in a similar manner by rotating the pumice from one side to the other. Depending on the shape of the pumice stone, it's sometimes more useful to get in the nooks and crannies that are harder to reach than with the foot file to remove the dead skin. Keep in mind to do this always in moderation. The fact is you don't want to overdo anything when it involves your skin and this type of quick maintenance can be done once a week depending on the severity of your cracking and dryness.
The best time to apply your moisturizer is once you're done with exfoliating your clean foot. Not all moisturizers are created equal either and it's not always the expensive creams or foot balms that work the best. The trick is finding the one that works for you. If you see moisturizer that contains urea, that would be a good choice since this ingredient will help draw the moisture to a deeper layer of skin. To those that suffer from food allergies, avoid the same ingredients in your moisturizer. My mother has celiac disease and has to stay away from some products containing oatmeal and wheatgerm, it will make her skin extremely dry.
A few things I'm really curious about this type of problem is what is causing it. A few factors to keep in mind is if you wear a lot of colored/dark or black type of socks. The dyes and chemicals that are used for them might be detrimental to the moisture of your skin. Natural fibers such as cotton, bamboo or hemp material.
Also, what kind of physical activities that your feet perform for you on a regular basis? Is there an area of your foot that is more dry than the rest of your foot?
So many questions to really get at the sole bottom of this, yes, the pun is intended. The more information you can provide me with, the more accurate my answer. If any of you have trouble explaining a foot problem in particular, you might want to consider sending me a picture by email if that's more convenient and you can find my address on my contact page.
I hope this information will help some of you sooth your dry skin and put your best foot forward.
For any moisturizer to be absorbed in your skin, exfoliating with a foot file or a pumice stone is always a good idea to prepare your foot properly. If you are going to use a foot file, usually it's 2 sided with the grain of the file coarser on one side than the other. You want to use the coarser side first to remove the larger dead skin cells than transfer to the finer side of the file to smooth out the job. The trick is using the foot file on dry skin.
The pumice stone is used on wet skin and it should be used in a similar manner by rotating the pumice from one side to the other. Depending on the shape of the pumice stone, it's sometimes more useful to get in the nooks and crannies that are harder to reach than with the foot file to remove the dead skin. Keep in mind to do this always in moderation. The fact is you don't want to overdo anything when it involves your skin and this type of quick maintenance can be done once a week depending on the severity of your cracking and dryness.
.JPG) |
| Dry and cracked heel |
The best time to apply your moisturizer is once you're done with exfoliating your clean foot. Not all moisturizers are created equal either and it's not always the expensive creams or foot balms that work the best. The trick is finding the one that works for you. If you see moisturizer that contains urea, that would be a good choice since this ingredient will help draw the moisture to a deeper layer of skin. To those that suffer from food allergies, avoid the same ingredients in your moisturizer. My mother has celiac disease and has to stay away from some products containing oatmeal and wheatgerm, it will make her skin extremely dry.
A few things I'm really curious about this type of problem is what is causing it. A few factors to keep in mind is if you wear a lot of colored/dark or black type of socks. The dyes and chemicals that are used for them might be detrimental to the moisture of your skin. Natural fibers such as cotton, bamboo or hemp material.
Also, what kind of physical activities that your feet perform for you on a regular basis? Is there an area of your foot that is more dry than the rest of your foot?
So many questions to really get at the sole bottom of this, yes, the pun is intended. The more information you can provide me with, the more accurate my answer. If any of you have trouble explaining a foot problem in particular, you might want to consider sending me a picture by email if that's more convenient and you can find my address on my contact page.
I hope this information will help some of you sooth your dry skin and put your best foot forward.
Monday, February 27, 2012
Functions of the skin
Today I will cover what the skin, our largest organ, really does for each and every single one of us when it's healthy. This information will help you better understand the world of aesthetics later on, why certain problems may appear with our skin and how it matures later on in life.
The 8 roles of your skin are:
The 8 roles of your skin are:
1. The skin provides protection against injury and invasion of bacteria.
2. It prevents the loss of fluids, in other words, it holds every in the body. I imagine we would be not as nice and dry as we are without it. Just a tiny bit juicy we are on the insides!
3. It regulates heat. The internal body temperature is 37 degrees Celcius, when the external temperature changes, the blood and sudoriferous (sweat) glands heat or cool the body to maintain it's internal temperature.
4. It responds to external stimuli, meaning the nerve endings in our skin allow us to respond to stimuli such as heat, cold, pressure, pain and touch.
5. It secretes an oil called sebum that is made in the sebaceous (oil) glands. Sebum is responsible to maintain the moisture in your skin by slowing down the natural moisture of your skin from evaporating and keeping excess water out.
6. It excretes salt and waste from the body through the sudoriferous pores, in other words, that's when we sweat!
7. It absorbs small amounts of cosmetics, drugs and chemicals. For example, the way a nicotine replacement patch function is by absorbing the drug through the skin.
8. It breaths, no word of a lie here, through the pores where oxygen is absorbed and carbon dioxide is expelled.
By taking care of our skin through healthy habits, nutrition, hydration and providing it with protection from harmful uv rays, your skin should love you back for a lifetime.
Remember when your mother told you not to make faces because your face would stay that way? Well there's a lot of truth in that one, so better start smiling once a day in the mirror and to be kind to yourself and it's way better than frowning. Your skin will forever be grateful for it.
4. It responds to external stimuli, meaning the nerve endings in our skin allow us to respond to stimuli such as heat, cold, pressure, pain and touch.
5. It secretes an oil called sebum that is made in the sebaceous (oil) glands. Sebum is responsible to maintain the moisture in your skin by slowing down the natural moisture of your skin from evaporating and keeping excess water out.
6. It excretes salt and waste from the body through the sudoriferous pores, in other words, that's when we sweat!
7. It absorbs small amounts of cosmetics, drugs and chemicals. For example, the way a nicotine replacement patch function is by absorbing the drug through the skin.
8. It breaths, no word of a lie here, through the pores where oxygen is absorbed and carbon dioxide is expelled.
By taking care of our skin through healthy habits, nutrition, hydration and providing it with protection from harmful uv rays, your skin should love you back for a lifetime.
Remember when your mother told you not to make faces because your face would stay that way? Well there's a lot of truth in that one, so better start smiling once a day in the mirror and to be kind to yourself and it's way better than frowning. Your skin will forever be grateful for it.
Friday, February 24, 2012
Friday foot facts
With all this talk on bones and joints in the latest Friday foot facts, I thought I would introduce you to the 4 main arches of the foot. Arches help support the body's weight and they provide flexibility for shock absorption.
 |
| 4 main arches of the foot |
Arches are also what determines if you have high arches or flat feet. If you have one of these, your feet will have different problems because of these arches but they can also affect different parts of the body too.
A flat foot can lead to knee pains right up to your hips and back. Meanwhile a high arch can lead to stress fractures. It's important to go see a foot specialist when you have these problems, wearing shoes that properly fit you and being aware of how your feet can impact your life in the long run.
Thank you for reading, have a great weekend and remember to put your best foot forward!
Thursday, February 23, 2012
Introduction to your largest organ: the skin
The skin is the largest organ of your body. Rarely do we think of it as an organ but it's functions and abilities are wonderful. Without skin, let's face it, we wouldn't be able to contain ourselves, literally! The fact is, it maintains our bodies temperature, it's semi impermeable and it sheds constantly.
Basically our skin renews itself just about every 28 days. Where does it go? Well if you look around you will see it as dust. Anyone that has worn dark nylons on dry skin will see the white skin flakes being rub off through them.
Before I go any further though, I want to show you the anatomy of the skin. When you see it in it's many layers, you can better understand it. It sweats when we work out or get nervous, it breaks out when we are hormonal and produces hair in very unsightly places where we, gents and ladies, put a lot of money into removing hair.
 |
| Skin anatomy |
1. Sudoriferous gland (sweat gland)
2. Sebaceous gland (oil gland)
3. Hair follicle (hair cavity)
4. Arrector pili muscles (responsible for goosebumps)
5. Hair
6. Papilla of the hair
7. Blood vessels
8. Capillaries
9. Sensory nerves
10. Touch receptors
11. Collagen fibers
The skin has layers within layers. The epidermis is the outermost part of your skin, this part contains 4 layers. The epidermis is in constant shedding, contains no blood vessels, has many nerve endings, produces cells named keratin and is responsible for your skin being waterproof. It is also in these layers of the epidermis that a dark skin pigment called melanin. Melanin is what gives skin it's color and it's role is to protect the sensitive cells underneath it from u.v. rays. Ultraviolent rays are produced from the sun and u.v. lamps, meaning tanning beds. You do not want to compromise the protection melanin gives to our bodies. It has more serious consequences than just sun spots but also melanoma, meaning skin cancer.
Next week I will cover the layer underneath the epidermis, the dermis and it's functions.
How you treat your skin today determines the health of it in the futur. What we usually look at is the outer layer of our skin but health and beauty is really skin deep. Toes2U is more than just footcare, it's about skin too.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)