You may gain a lot of life experience and wisdom through aging, but it also takes a toll on the body especially for women entering menopause. The idea of menopause conjures up symptoms such as unexpected mood swings, hot flashes or difficulty in sleeping, but hardly foot pain. Unfortunately, the more we age, the more chances our feet will give us problems. Being the case, here is what you need to know about the relationship between menopause and foot pain and the best ways to help suffering feet.
You can blame that foot discomfort due to those hormonal changes and the loss of estrogen. Why it makes such a difference to how your feet used to feel compared to how your feet may feel now is because estrogen depletion causes the ligaments and tendons to weaken and become inflamed in the feet and elsewhere in the body. The reason the problem is worse in the foot area is because of all the wear our feet get daily that only compounds the problem of foot and joint pain.
Another reason our feet undergo more pain is because missing estrogen also causes the fatty padding on the feet to flatten more. This causes foot skin to tighten and blood vessels in the area to constrict more to reduced blood flow, which can cause pain and even to play a part in injury.
The skin of the feet also tends to get drier and thicker because of estrogen loss, which can cause pain due to that inability to retain moisture as before in your younger days. Thanks to all that extra dryness, your feet could develop more callouses. Increased dry skin is especially of concern in the heel area where cracks may also appear to bleed or become infected.
Since menopause can also cause weight gain, your feet will also notice because even a few more pounds can add enough pressure to flatten or weaken the arches. This particular foot pain is better known as plantar fasciitis. Furthermore, extra weight could alter how your body weight is distributed to cause more pressure in the balls of your feet.
Aging also isn’t kind for your big toe as cartilage or bones thin and weaken. This can cause joint pain, reduced flexibility of that toe and inflammation as you walk.
How to Help Relieve Menopause Related Foot Pain
Get more collagen through your daily diet. The reason this can help alleviate foot pain is because collagen is the main structural component of extracellular connective tissue. In other words, it is the essential protein needed to build elastic muscles, ligaments, tendons, and stronger bones. Aim for better sources of quality protein, bone broth, eggs, fish, and legumes. You can also turn to adding a collagen powder for a smoothie, baked goods or soups as well.
Depleted estrogen also affects blood circulation as those arteries stiffen that can result in poor circulation and cause foot pain. Another goal is to increase blood flow to your feet. You can accomplish this in several ways such as wearing compression socks or stockings, massaging the feet or keeping legs elevated. Foot cream with specialized plant extracts such as arnica, ginko bilobo, pine bark extract known to increase circulation is also helpful for bringing relief to sore feet.
Decreased estrogen because of menopause also contributes to osteoporosis and osteopenia because of damage to the weaker foot structure and tissues. Taking a calcium supplement (1200 mg. with vitamin D) is beneficial and can help strengthen the bones and tissues for more support.
Moisturizing your feet and practicing more self-care is another way to keep feet feeling better. Improving skin condition can help deal with the stress of extra thick skin rubbing when walking in your shoes or for those beneficial foot creams to penetrate.
You also try simple foot exercises such for keeping the tendons more limber such as sitting in a chair with your feet flat on the floor and then spreading your toes apart. You hold that position a few seconds and then release. You repeat this about eight times can help. Another interesting exercise is using your bare toes to pick up a marble. You can also use a golf ball rolling it with your foot that can help with arch or heel pain.
What else worth exploring is orthotic inserts for your shoes for help regain idea balance and weight distribution for more comfortable walking.
The information shared here is not intended to replace your medical doctor. It is only to serve as an additional resource that could possibly help relieve foot pain that menopause may have caused.
