Winter foot care: Five easy tips for cracked heels!

New Delhi: Dry or cracked heels can be a major source of embarrassment for most women, espialy in the winters. During winter season, the skin on the feet becomes drier as there are no oil glands present there. This dryness, when persists for long, causes the skin to crack. 

Lack of proper moisture, over-exposure to pollution, and some medical conditions such as eczema, diabetes, thyroid, and psoriasis lead to dry and cracked feet.

While some people have cracked heels due to excessive dryness during winter season where as some face it throughout the year. Initially, if you don’t care cracked heels, it may not cause you any problem. But, if it persists for long, people will start having the pain due to cracked heels. But, if you can take precaution from very beginning, getting painful cracked heels can be ideally stopped.

Here are few simple tips that can help you get rid of ugly fissures and repair your painful cracked heels:

1. Glycerin-Rosewater - Glycerin is one of the best moisturisers that one can imagine. Mixed with rosewater, it can give you a smooth and soft heels without any cracks.Do this preferably at night before going to bed. Once your heels are cured, apply this glycerin lotion to your heels everyday after having bath to prevent recurrence of cracked heels..

2. Oil Massage - Oils are the best natural moisturisers, not only for your dry feet but also for your skin anywhere. You can either use any hydrogenated oil alone or mix them to get added benefits of their different components.

3. Fruit Mask - Fruits have many enzymes and other wonder components and that’s why they are so healthy! They can even make you get rid of your cracked heels. You just need to pick certain fruits like banana, pineapple, avocado, papaya etc. and mash them to massage your feet. Banana and papaya are the best options as you can mash them easily. Rub them alone or make this fruit mixture.

4. Milk-Honey - It’s essential to follow a daily regime of cleansing and moisturising your heels and a weekly regimen of ex-foliating them. If you have cracked heels, ex-foliate them daily and moisturise them till they are cured. 

5. Herbal Neem-Tulsi – It is an Ayurvedic remedy for cracked heels which has been used since ages in India. The anti fungal and anti bacterial margosa leaves or neem leaves when mixed with the very skin friendly herb turmeric, can do wonders to give you soft and smooth heels. This remedy is particularly good for bleeding heels.