One of the symptoms that comes from long-standing and untreated diabetes is peripheral neuropathy, which means nerve damage experienced in the feet and legs. Peripheral neuropathy causes numbness, making it difficult to feel minor injuries. A cut, blister or wart could go completely unnoticed for a long time.
What’s worse is that diabetes can affect your ability to heal from an injury, which can lead to a serious infection. If you are living with diabetes, here are three small skin problems that you should respond to right away for the sake of your health.
Ingrown Nails
An ingrown toenail is a toenail that breaks into the border of the nail bed instead of straight-ahead, causing pain and swelling. An ingrown toenail is often caused by footwear that is too small, poor trimming or injuries. Sadly, the problem can also be hereditary.
Clipping an ingrown toenail further down can worsen the problem and increase the risk of infection. Instead of trying to treat it yourself or visiting a salon, people with diabetes should seek care at a foot clinic. A licensed chiropodist can safely treat the ingrown toenail using sterilized tools, reducing the risk of infection and ensuring the issue is resolved correctly and without complications.
Plantar Wart
A plantar wart is a form of the Human Papillomavirus that grows on the bottoms of your feet. The virus enters through a crack in the skin, causing a wart that looks similar to a corn or foot callus. Putting pressure on the wart can be painful and make walking difficult.
Warts may seem harmless, but for people with diabetes they can pose serious risks. Diabetes can impair circulation and weaken the immune system, making it harder for the body to fight infections. Even a small wart can lead to skin breakdown, ulcers, or secondary bacterial infections, which can be difficult to heal and may result in serious complications. For this reason, it’s important for people with diabetes to have warts evaluated and treated promptly by a licensed chiropodist. Don’t try to treat warts using DIY over-the-counter solutions if you have diabetes.
Blisters
The blister begins as a fluid-filled pocket covering the injured area. Your first instinct may be to lance it at home, but you should fight the temptation. The pocket guards the vulnerable area against infections from fungus, viruses and bacteria. Signs of infection are inflammation and unusual colouring like yellow or purple.
If you have a foot blister, you should gently clean it and dry it without bursting the fluid pocket. Cover it with a gauze bandage and avoid putting pressure on it. Then, you can see a podiatry clinic today to get a chiropodist to safely remove it and treat the damage left behind.
Diabetes Canada recommends that people living with the condition practice daily foot care so that they can take stock of injuries and skin problems. Look at the bottoms of your feet, your nails, your heels and even between your toes for any red flags. If you have difficulty seeing the bottoms of your feet, you can use a mirror or ask for a confidante to do the investigation for you.
These problems start out small, but they can spiral out of control when you don’t have a strong enough immune system to combat them. This doesn’t mean you should panic every time you spot a wart or a blister forming. It just means you should make note of the change and head on over to the clinic to sort it out as quickly as possible.

