Believe it or not, just 5 minutes of walking in this freezing weather can be exceptionally dangerous for your feet if they are not well protected.
Did you know that people who have itchy, burning, painful feet may actually not have oft-heard-of athlete’s foot but actually something called chilblains? After being in the cold for no longer than 5 minutes at a time, even just walking to the car and to school, you may experience early symptoms of potential frostbite.
So what should you do to control the pain? It would seem practical to dip your freezing feet in a tub of hot water or let them sit under a heater but this may actually aggravate the pain. What you want to do is to slowly, emphasis on slowly, warm up your feet with socks and blankets. It is best to see your podiatric doc (we have several at the DMU Foot and Ankle Institute) so they can evaluate the severity and educate you on protecting your feet during this nasty cold weather.
Stay safe!
