How ageing affects your feet and what these changes can reveal about your health

As we age, our bodies undergo a number of physical changes, and our feet are no exception.

While such changes can be a common part of the ageing process, understanding how ageing impacts foot health can offer crucial insights into our overall well-being.

Foot health expert, Brenton Hurst from Hurst Podiatry, explains the various changes that occur in our feet with age and what these changes might signify about our health.

One of the most noticeable effects of ageing on the feet is a change in toenails.

“So probably the things I think that people most associate with it are probably toenail changes. We do see toenails typically thicken up. Sometimes they can change shape,” Hurst explained.

As we grow older, our feet also experience “changes to bones and joints”. Stiffness and reduced mobility in the feet are common complaints.

Circulation problems are central to many age-related foot issues. Diminished blood flow can lead to noticeable changes in the skin of the feet.

Hurst highlights that “circulation is sort of central to a lot of that and tends to deteriorate a little bit over time as well and that can result in a number of changes”.

“Some of them are more visible than others so you can see that colour change potentially to like a whiter sort of colour or even like a ready blue if they’re really deficient in blood down to the feet,” he says.

“The skin can change as well because the skin gets its nourishment and its nutrients and things from the blood if that’s sort of declining then the actual skin can thin, it can get very papery looking almost transparent in some cases which makes us more vulnerable to ulcers and wounds and things like that.”

These changes in our feet can reflect underlying health conditions, offering clues about our overall well-being. For instance, swelling in the feet and ankles can be a sign of heart disease.

“Heart disease can be reflected in feet so you can see swelling as I mentioned before the skin can atrophy and thin and can even look almost transparent at times as a result of the blood flow,” Hurst explains.

“Kidney disease can be reflected believe it or not in feet as well because kidneys have a big impact on how much fluid we do and don’t retain, you can see swelling in the feet as a result of kidney disease and a whole bunch of other different pathologies can show up in various ways in the feet.”

By paying attention to these changes in our feet, we can gain valuable insights into our overall health and potentially identify issues before they become more serious.

Regular foot check-ups and maintaining good foot care can help manage these changes and improve quality of life as we age.

IMPORTANT LEGAL INFO This article is of a general nature and FYI only, because it doesn’t take into account your personal health requirements or existing medical conditions. That means it’s not personalised health advice and shouldn’t be relied upon as if it is. Before making a health-related decision, you should work out if the info is appropriate for your situation and get professional medical advice.