Your feet may be among the most underappreciated and hardest working parts of your body. They will carry you hundreds of thousands of miles during your lifetime, pound the pavement for you when you are looking for a job and keep you on your toes when everything else around you is falling apart. For all they do for you, don't you think your feet deserve proper care and a little pampering? Here's how to make sure that your feet feel good and keep on doing what they are supposed to do.



The Basics - Proper Footwear

Treating your feet properly starts with proper footwear. If you are on your feet a lot during the day, be sure that you choose shoes that fit well and offer proper support. Some very basic tips for properly fitted footwear include:

• Shop for shoes in the late afternoon because your feet will expand over the course of the day. It is best to fit your shoes when your feet are at their largest.



• If your feet are two different sizes (and that's true of many people) buy your shoes to fit the larger foot. Better to pad then to live in pain.



• Have the salesperson size your feet when you are standing, not sitting.



• Choose shoes with a roomy toe box and moderate heel.



• If you must wear heels for work, keep a pair of comfortable shoes that you can slip into for walking and commuting.

Footwear is more than shoes, though. The socks that you wear can also make an enormous difference in the way your feet feel - and in preventing some common foot problems.

• Choose socks that fit your feet right. Loose socks can wrinkle inside your shoes and cause blisters and discomfort.



• Choose socks that have cotton or wool blend that lets your feet breathe and wicks moisture away from them. Your feet will stay cooler and bacteria will have less moisture to breed.



• If you wear pantyhose or stockings, consider slipping a pair of cotton pedi-socks on over them for the reasons above.

More Basics - Routine Care

Most women lavish attention on their faces - daily scrubs and exfoliation creams, moisturizers and special cleansers - but few do much more for their feet than run a cloth over them in the shower. A monthly pedicure is no substitute for routine daily care for your feet.

• Wash your feet with warm water everyday. Do not soak them more often than once a week, though, or you will dry out the skin.



• After washing, dry thoroughly with a clean, soft towel. Make sure to dry between your toes.



• Keep skin soft and smooth with a thin layer of foot lotion, petroleum jelly or skin lotion applied to the tops and bottoms of your feet. Do not put lotion between the toes to avoid causing an infection.



• Smooth rough heels, calluses or other rough spots with a pumice stone. There are some great new products on the market that make smoothing your feet easier and prevent injury to your skin.



• Trim toenails once a week. Cut nails straight across to avoid ingrown toenails. If toenails are exceptionally thick or yellowed, or if they curve or press into the skin, have your toenails trimmed by a foot doctor or a pedicurist.

Home Care for Common Problems

You can head off serious problems by caring for your feet properly and dealing with common problems before they become acute. Some foot problems need medical treatment and can become serious health threats. Others are little more than an annoyance. Whichever categories your foot problems fall into, here are some tips for dealing with common foot problems.

Sweaty, smelly feet

If your body produces excess perspiration, you can end up with moist feet inside dark shoes - the perfect breeding ground for bacteria - which can lead to smelly feet. If you have a problem with smelly feet, there are several ways to deal with it:

• Keep your feet clean with daily washing. Pay particular attention to the areas between your toes, where dead skin cells can collect and contribute to the problem.



• Use foot powder in your socks.



• Wear cotton socks, or invest in anti-bacterial socks.



• Use odor-absorbing insoles in your shoes.

Dry, cracked heels

The skin on your heels is especially prone to drying and cracking. This condition can be especially common in people with diabetes and in older adults. The best way to deal with cracked heels is to prevent them with good foot care, but sometimes that is not enough.

• Use a pumice stone to gently rub away dry, dead skin.



• Wash feet regularly, but go easy on the soaking. Too much soaking will dry out your skin further.



• Do not use razors or other trimmers to remove dry, dead skin.



• Keep circulation going in your feet with regular exercise and stretching.