Remove calluses - this is how it works!
Sabine Schrör is a freelance writer for the medical team. She studied business administration and public relations in Cologne. As a freelance editor, she has been at home in a wide variety of industries for more than 15 years. Health is one of her favorite subjects.
More about the mylife authorsThere are many tools that can be used to remove calluses - from files to special plasters. But not all of them are equally suitable for eliminating the annoying skin calluses. How do I get rid of calluses on my feet? Are there any effective home remedies for calluses? Read here what causes the annoying skin calluses and how to remove calluses correctly!
What to do about calluses
Callus, or callositas from a medical point of view, refers to the thickened areas of skin that usually appear on the feet, but also on the hands, knees and elbows. The formation of calluses protects the skin from excessive pressure or friction. In this respect, the cornea is quite useful. However, too much of it looks ugly: yellowish in color and with a cracked, chapped structure, it is particularly annoying in summer when the feet are no longer in socks and closed shoes.
However, there is a lot that can be done to get the calluses on the feet under control. Here's how you can remove your callus with simple home remedies:
Many people use pumice stones to remove the callus. Home remedies such as foot baths or chamomile packets prepare the skin for it:
Preparation: foot bath
Callus on the feet becomes softer if you treat your feet to a warm bath with either apple cider vinegar, aloe vera juice or tea tree oil. Put a few splashes (vinegar, aloe juice) or a few drops (tea tree oil) in 37 degree warm water and bathe your feet in it for about ten minutes.
Preparation: chamomile packet
A chamomile packet is also well suited for pre-treatment. Before removing the callus, put a tablespoon of chamomile flowers on a linen cloth and wrap the flowers in it. Then pour a few tablespoons of boiling water over the packet until it is well moistened. Now press the chamomile flower packet onto the affected skin area for about 15 minutes. After that, you can easily remove the softened cornea.
Remove calluses with a pumice stone
Removing calluses with the pumice stone was already common in ancient times. Pumice is an airy, coarse-pored volcanic rock. Pumice stones are nowadays available inexpensively in pharmacies and drugstores in various sizes and colors. It is best to moisten the pumice stone a little before use so that it glides more easily over the skin.
The many pores of the pumice stone quickly fill with sanded-off skin particles. For reasons of hygiene, you should therefore wash the stone thoroughly after each planing. There are also less porous, synthetic pumice stones that you can use to remove the callus. Experts recommend this especially to diabetics, who often suffer from inflamed skin on their feet.
Pumice stones are well suited for gently removing thin calluses. It is better to remove thick calluses with a callus file.
Remove calluses with a file
You can remove the callus from the feet with the help of special foot files. Like pumice stones, you can buy them cheaply in pharmacies and drug stores.
Callus files are usually made of sandpaper and have two sides: With the coarse side, you can grate the callus away over a large area. Then use the fine-grained side to do the fine work and smooth out rough spots. Do not be too violent, because a thin layer of cornea is important to protect the skin on the feet from injuries.
In order to optimally prepare the feet for the removal of the callus, a warm footbath is also ideal here.
Please do not use a callous plane, as the pointed, sharp devices can very easily injure the skin, which allows dirt and germs to penetrate. Electric callus removers should also be avoided for this reason.
Callus remover cream and corneal plaster
Special creams containing salicylic acid, ointments with urea or deer sebum creams can also remove calluses. Alternatively, you can also use a corneal plaster with the active ingredients mentioned. You can find plasters and creams in pharmacies and drug stores.
Nibble fish
In recent years, another method has come to us from Asia that can be used to remove calluses: kangal fish or the reddish sucking barbs, also known as doctor fish, simply nibble away the calluses. Many cosmetic studios now offer this treatment in this country.
To do this, you dip your feet in lukewarm water basins in which some of the fish swim. They immediately start eating the calluses on the heels, soles, balls of the feet and between the toes. This is painless, you usually only feel a slight tingling sensation when the fish remove the callus.
However, medical professionals see this type of corneal removal critically for hygienic reasons. Criticism also comes from animal rights activists who speak out against misusing fish as live callus removers.
If you want to remove your calluses with the help of nibble fish, you should pay particular attention to the cleanliness and hygiene of the water basins. It is best to take a very close look before you decide on a provider.
Medical foot care: remove calluses at a professional
If you don't want to remove your callus yourself, you can get medical foot care in a podiatry practice or at your dermatologist. Such a professional foot treatment is particularly advisable for diabetics, who are often prone to inflammatory skin diseases on the feet, as well as for people with excessively proliferating calluses (hyperkeratosis). When the cornea dries out, cracks appear, which enable germs that cause inflammation to penetrate the skin. Trying to remove the cracked cornea yourself can quickly worsen the problem.
Apart from podiatrists and dermatologists, you can also have the callus removed in some cosmetic studios as part of a pedicure. This purely cosmetic, non-medical treatment is only suitable for healthy, unproblematic skin.
Calluses on the feet: causes
If the skin is regularly exposed to particular pressure or friction, it increasingly forms new cells. Over time, thick, calloused skin develops, mainly on the heels and balls of the feet. The following factors have a positive effect on the formation of calluses on the feet:
- Badly fitting or too tight shoes: The friction promotes the development of calluses.
- Shoes with high heels: When wearing high heels, the body weight is almost exclusively on the balls of the feet, so that more calluses are formed there.
- Misalignments of the foot skeleton: Hammer toes, for example, lead to an uneven load on the foot and thus to increased callus formation in certain areas.
- Overweight: Excess pounds increase the overall pressure on the feet.
- Regular long standing or walking: This, too, leads to increased callus formation in the long term.
