We hope our patients enjoyed Valentine’s Day! We believe it’s a great opportunity to show others that we care – and brought to mind the phrase “random acts of kindness”.
Tomorrow (2/17) is a lesser-known holiday – Random Acts of Kindness Day.
(If you want to learn about lesser-known holidays for any day of the year, you can find them on National Day Calendar.)
As you might imagine, this is a day some people use to show a little kindness to others. It was actually started in New Zealand, but has started gaining traction here in the U.S.
Now, the key to properly celebrating Random Acts of Kindness Day is to make sure the kindness you show is random and unplanned. Why? Because doing so means you become more aware for those opportunities life presents all of us to be kind towards each other on a daily basis.
As such, it doesn’t count if, for example, you were going to give your loved one a foot massage anyway.
Instead, this is the perfect day to show kindness by doing things like:
- Paying for someone else’s coffee. It’s a minor financial investment, but it can put a smile on someone else’s face and brighten their day.
- Sending a handwritten note to a friend or loved one. Sure, you can always post on someone’s Facebook wall or send them a nice tweet, but these modern forms of communication just aren’t the same as receiving a thoughtful, handwritten note.
- Giving out genuine compliments. Take advantage of this day to share things you appreciate about people in your life with them. Too often, our busy lives keep us from doing this,
Performing random acts of kindness is a great way to make a positive difference in our Princeton and Roselle Park communities—imagine for a second what it would be like if everyone participated—but did you know it is scientifically-proven that doing good things for others also benefits yourself?
When we do nice things for other people, our brains release endorphins and serotonin, both of which are “feel good” hormones. This contributes to feeling less stress and anxiety. Further, being kind keeps us healthy by reducing illness risk and improving heart health.
Being kind to others is important, but so too is being kind to your feet!
If it helps, you can think about it this way – your feet work hard so you can stand upright, be mobile, and participate in favorite activities. We all rely on our lower appendages every day. Accordingly, it only makes sense to show them some appreciation.
A key distinction between kindness shown to strangers versus your feet, though, is that you need to be more strategic—and less random—when taking measures to keep your lower limbs healthy and safe.
This means that you need to do the following on a regular basis:
- Mind your foot hygiene. In all likelihood, your feet are probably the last things you think about when considering hygienic concerns. Unfortunately, neglecting foot hygiene puts you at risk for a variety of skin and toenail problems. Since you’d probably prefer not to deal with problems like athlete’s foot, ingrown toenails, and toenail fungus, you have to use appropriate measures. These include things like washing your feet every day, properly trimming your toenails on a regular basis, and keeping your feet dry (but not too dry!).
- Mind your footwear. In addition to hygiene, another proactive way of reducing your risk for problems is to be careful with your shoe choices. As a starting point, make sure you wear appropriate footwear for the activities you do – and make sure they fit well. If your toes are squashed together in the front, you need either a larger size or different model of shoe. Some people think you should completely avoid high heels, but that’s a bit extreme. It’s more reasonable to just limit how often you wear them. (Best practice is to save them for special occasions and wear low-heeled shoes most of the time.)
- Avoid flip-flops. High heels are more frequently cited as being footwear to avoid, but these beach staples are the ones you should really pass on wearing. They don’t provide enough arch support and you can strain tendons trying to keep them on.
- Stretch on a regular basis. Stretching isn’t only for professional athletes! Competitive and noncompetitive athletes of all ages and talent levels should engage in a regular stretching routine. More than that, anyone can benefit from this particular practice. Keeping the muscles and connective tissues in your lower legs and feet limber can help you prevent—or recover from—injury.
- Exercise on a regular basis. Sure, stretching is a type of exercise, but your feet love it when you lead an active lifestyle. Elevating your heartrate means the tissues in your lower limbs receive essential nutrients and oxygen for optimal health and performance. This doesn’t mean you have to run marathons all the time or lift weights like an Olympic athlete! Even going for a half an hour walk 3-4 times a week is incredibly beneficial for your feet (and your whole body).
- Adhere to a healthy diet. There are so many reasons to eat well – to the point benefits of a healthy diet for your feet are often overlooked. Your feet contain a stunning amount of bones, muscles, and connective tissues (especially when you consider how small they are in relationship to the rest of your body). Making sure your diet is centered on whole grains, fresh fruit and veggies, lean proteins, legumes, and low-fat dairy products is a smart way to keep those tissue healthy. On top of food choices, skip sodas and other sugary benefits—so many empty calories! —and stick to water, unsweetened tea, and coffee. If you want to add flavor, consider mint leaves and lemon slices for your water, honey in tea and sprinkle cinnamon in black coffee.
- Check them out. Inspecting your feet on a daily basis is an absolutely critical measure for those who have Even if you are not afflicted with this common disease, it is still a wise idea to take the time and give your feet a look over periodically. When you do, make sure to take note of anything unusual or that has changed. This is especially important with regards to any skin moles on your feet. Catching melanoma at the earliest possible stage gives you the best chance of successful treatment.
Of course, the very best thing you can do for your feet is come to see any of our Associates in Podiatry team members when you need first-class foot care services! Remember – early treatment and intervention is always the best, so contact us today by calling our Princeton office at (609) 924-8333 or our Roselle Park office at (908) 687-5757.