Top Causes of Foot Pain & Natural Treatment Options

Did you know that 25% of your bones are located in your feet and your ankles? Your feet carry your entire body weight and are the foundation for your body.

With 26 bones and 33 joints in each foot, there is plenty of opportunity for something to go wrong.

This is especially true if you:

1. Don't walk and run with proper form and posture.

2. Wear improper footwear, including flip-flops, tight-fitting shoes or high-heeled shoes. Improper footwear may cause damage to your foot structure and can aggravate any foot condition that you may already have.

Simple foot exercises can make a big difference for problems, such as bunions and hammertoes.

Other common foot problems include plantar fasciitis, heel pain, ingrown toenails and fungal infections.

Plantar Fasciitis

is the inflammation in the ligament that runs along the sole of your foot. This is one of the most common chronic injuries that runners aquire. The ligament attaches to the bottom of your heel bone, which is why the pain is often felt in your heel. Stress placed on the heel bone and soft tissues can trigger inflammation. Improper footwear is typically part of the problem.

I treat plantar fasciitis by:

1. Making sure that there is proper mobility in the foot and ankle joints and no joint fixation. I do this by adjusting the foot with computerized adjustments with the Sigma Instruments Ultralign G2.

2. Stretching and strengthening exercises

3. Cold laser therapy

4. Trigger point soft tissue work

5. Tourmaline infused socks to reduce inflammation

Bunions tend to run in families, so are genetically linked. The metatarsal bones get displaced, causing the big toe to bend toward your other toes. There is typically a hallmark "bump" at the base of the big toe. This causes the foot to widen. Tight, narrow, high-heeled and pointed shoes can aggravate this condition.

Going barefoot can often help, since bunions are virtually non-existent in the barefoot populations of the world.

Some Helpful Exercises Are:

1. Heel raises. Lift your heels ¾ of the way up and hold for three seconds. Lower back down. Do 10 repetitions, once per day. This exercise strengthens your medial arch muscles, which helps pull the metatarsal bones into place, correcting the position of your big toe.

2. Toe crunches. Stand with feet hip-width apart. Rotate your ankles outward, so the weight is on the outside of your foot. Then scrunch your toes together, as if you're making a fist with your foot. Hold for three seconds, then release. Do 10 reps once a day.

Hammertoes occur from the bending of either one or both joints affecting the second, third, fourth, or little toe. This can be linked to poor-fitting shoes and in some cases it can also be a hereditary condition.

Once a hammertoe develops, the high point of the knuckle becomes prone to shoe pressure, which can lead to pain, inflammation and the formation of hard corns and calluses. Over time, the toe or toes tend to lose flexibility. As with bunions, foot exercises can be helpful, with a focus on stretching and increasing mobility.

Some Helpful Exercises Are:

1. Toe extensions. This is best done with assistance. Your helper will grasp your foot with both hands, and gently flex your toes toward the sole of your foot to stretch the extensor tendons at the top of your foot.

2. Plantar flexion. Similar to the toe extension, the toes are flexed so that the knuckles at the top of the foot are clearly seen. Your helper can augment the stretch by placing a thumb into the metatarsal arch, gently pushing up, while gently flexing your toes down. Hold the stretch for 20 to 30 seconds.

3. Toe flexion. Grasp the end of your hammertoe, and stretch it to elongate the flexor tendon.

Toenail Fungus is a very common that can be difficult to get rid of. The fungus typically causes thickening of the toenail. Conventional treatments typically involve harsh antifungal drugs and laser treatments.

Less expensive and less toxic alternatives include the following:

1. Begin by reducing the thickness of your nail using some sort of debridement tool, to allow any topical remedy to enter into the nail. A nail file will do the job in most cases. Tea tree oil, thieves oil, neem oil, or even Vicks VapoRub can be helpful.

2. Avoid wearing socks and shoes as much as possible, as they create a hot and a moist environment that fungi can thrive in.

3. Expose your feet to sunlight as much as possible. Ultraviolet light has a natural "anti-fungal" effect. It may take three to six months of nearly daily sun exposure to work, which may not be practical for most people.

4. Regularly submerge your feet in saltwater. The ocean is ideal, but you can also do foot baths, using natural sea salt.

5. Reduce your sugar consumption, since sugar is a the perfect food for fungi.

Ingrown toenails can many times be prevented by making sure you cut your toenails correctly, which is straight across. Avoid angling the nail at the edges. Also, avoid cutting them too short. Proper trimming helps prevent the nail from curving and growing into the tissue of your toe on one or both sides, which can cause pain and infection. Excessive pressure from tight shoes can also contribute to ingrown toenails, so avoid too tight fitting shoes.

If you already have an ingrown toenail, your best option is to see a good podiatrist who can address it.

Plantar Warts are also called human papillomavirus (HPV). They can appear when the HPV virus infects the top layer of the skin. This typically can occur in an area where the skin has been broken.They are called "Plantar" warts, since they typically grow on the bottom of the foot, which is called the plantar surface of the foot. They can be from a single wart, but are more frequently in a pattern grouped closely together and can cause swelling and tenderness. In most cases, they will eventually clear up on their own within two years, but most people want the warts treated and removed as quickly as possible.

There are over-the-counter treatments, such as a salicylic acid-based compound that removes a few layers of the wart at a time, to treatments available only in a physician's office, such as cryotherapy (freezing) and laser treatment. There is also evidence that using nothing more than duct tape may do the trick.

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