Tingling in the feet is a concern for many people. Compression socks can help alleviate that feeling, so if tingling feet are a problem for you, consider Comrad’s line of compression socks.
The first thing you should do when you experience this tingling is notify your doctor. It could be a sign of a much more severe disorder, like diabetes.
What Causes Tingling In Feet?
When people say they feel tingling in their feet, they might feel pins and needles, numbness, or pain. These feelings commonly come about if you have been in the same position for a long time. And moving will often relieve your discomfort.
For other people, the tingling could be a sign of peripheral neuropathy, a condition in which there has been damage to the peripheral nervous system. Through this system, your brain and spinal cord send signals to other parts of your body. Tingling in the feet is a sign that this network of nerves is not working correctly.
A person may experience neuropathy or tingling in the feet because they have an underlying condition. Below, we will go over some of these conditions.
Diabetes and Diabetic Neuropathy
Many people with diabetes experience tingling in their feet, or diabetic neuropathy, due to high blood sugar levels. High blood sugar can damage your nerves. In addition to tingling in the feet, diabetics may experience symptoms or complications such as:
- Dry mouth
- Frequent urination
- Extreme thirst
- High blood pressure
- Pain or numbness in the extremities
- Slow healing of wounds
- Vision changes
If you are concerned about diabetes, ask your physician to run a series of tests to determine if you have it. These tests usually involve providing blood and urine samples. If you do have diabetes, treatments may include insulin, diet changes, and other lifestyle changes.
Multiple Sclerosis
Multiple sclerosis (MS) is a disease of the central nervous system. When you have MS, your immune system damages your myelin, the insulating layer that covers your nerves. As a result, you may feel muscle spasms, paralysis, tingling, or numbness in different parts of your body.
MS cannot be cured, but it can be managed with plasma exchange, corticosteroids, physical therapy, muscle relaxants, and various medications. To diagnose MS, patients may undergo MRIs, spinal taps, blood tests, and evoked potential tests.
Hypothyroidism
Hypothyroidism, or underactive thyroid, occurs when your thyroid does not produce enough of the thyroid hormone. People with an underlying underactive thyroid experience common symptoms such as:
- Weight gain
- Thinning hair
- Fatigue
- Painful, stiff, or swollen joints
- Muscle weakness
Hypothyroidism can lead to neuropathy issues, which cause tingling in the feet. To diagnose hypothyroidism, doctors perform blood tests called thyroid-stimulating hormone tests.
Other Causes
Don’t worry—not every person with tingling feet has an incurable illness. Besides going for long periods without moving, tingling feet or tingling sensations can be caused by:
- Vitamin deficiencies (B vitamins like b1, b6, or b12)
- Tarsal tunnel syndrome
- Alcohol use disorder or alcoholic neuropathy
- Kidney failure
- Nerve damage
- HIV
- Rheumatoid arthritis
- Consumption of toxins
- Physical injury
- Bacterial infections
- Lupus
It’s important that you find out what’s causing your tingling feet so that you can begin treatment right away. In addition to blood tests and a doctor examining your medical history, you may have to submit to electromyograms (EMG), computed tomography (CT), nerve or skin biopsies, and examinations of your cerebrospinal fluid.
Your doctor may also ask about your family medical history in addition to yours and may perform a physical exam for a proper diagnosis.
Treating Tingling Feet
Medications and lifestyle changes are the top treatments for tingling feet and underlying causes. It’s possible to reconstruct nerve cells that have not been damaged.
Some other treatments for nerve pain may include using neuropathy creams or oils, massage, controlling sugar intake (in the case of diabetes), and increasing your intake of vitamins. Your doctor may also suggest that you lose weight, reduce alcohol consumption, stop smoking, and begin exercising.
Improving Circulation
Improving your circulation is an excellent way to get rid of your tingling feet’ woes. Circulation issues are prevalent in the legs and feet. Issues arise when your blood does not flow correctly between your heart and the rest of your body.
If deoxygenated blood from your feet is having trouble moving back to your heart, it can cause your feet to feel numb, stiff, tingly, or cold. You could even develop varicose veins, blood clots, and ulcers. If this is not treated right away, your veins could become irreparably damaged.
Other causes of poor blood circulation include atherosclerosis, peripheral artery disease, obesity, and Raynaud’s disease.
To improve your circulation, you can exercise, improve your diet, quit smoking, elevate your legs when lying down, or wear compression socks. You may use a combination of these solutions.
How Compression Socks Can Help
Compression socks improve circulation by promoting better blood flow and help with nerve compression. Wearing them can not only stop your feet from tingling, but they can also prevent the discomfort of your legs and feet.
When you wear compression socks, the girth of your veins reduces due to the socks’ graduated compression. This stops your veins from swelling, which prevents more serious problems like vascular diseases.
Compression socks are available in different styles, whether you want them to come to your thigh or just up to your ankle. Knee-length and thigh-length compression socks, in particular, will apply less pressure on the upper and lower parts of your leg than the ankle, thwarting the pooling of blood in your feet.
By improving your circulation with compression socks, you put yourself at lower risk for neuropathy. If you’ve already experienced neuropathy, select the best kind of neuropathy socks you can find to provide you with relief.
Summary
If you experience tingling feet, do not ignore the issue. Talk to your doctor. Find out what is causing your feet to tingle, then work with your doctor to develop a treatment plan. Whether that involves massage, medication, exercise, or compression socks, there are effective ways to treat or completely cure tingling feet.
If you need help selecting the compression socks for your tingling feet, Comrad socks have a variety for you to choose from — contact us today.
Sources:
Multiple sclerosis - Diagnosis and treatment | Mayo Clinic