Why Do I Have Itchy Feet?

There will be particular days when we will have itchy feet. While the itchiness can sometimes go away for most of us, there are some people that get itchy feet almost every day. The chronic itchiness of the feet is most likely caused by underlying illnesses or conditions on the feet’s skin or other parts of the body, and in this article, we will talk about these and understand how they can be treated. If you currently have chronic itchy feet, here are some of the possible reasons why you have it.

Eczema

eczema on a foot

Eczema, also known as dermatitis, is a skin condition where the surface of the skin has redness, rash, and itchiness. It is currently unclear what causes eczema, but it is argued that an allergic reaction is one of the probable causes of the skin condition.

When you have eczema on your feet, the itchiness would just get worse whenever you are wearing socks and shoes, as your feet would feel warmer, which would then irritate your skin and make the itchy areas itchier. In addition, the itchy areas can also be infected by bacteria, which thrive in high-moisture areas.

When the feet get sweaty inside shoes, the sweat will create the perfect high-moisture area where bacteria can survive. So, the bacteria would just make the itchiness much worse, and the itchy areas can also become wounds that can be difficult to heal.

Treating Eczema

To treat eczema, you will need to apply moisturizers on the affected area to prevent them from getting dry and becoming itchier. In addition, steroid creams can also be applied to the affected areas of the skin to reduce inflammation. However, steroid creams should only be used at least once or twice every two days to avoid side effects.

When you already know what causes your allergies, it would be best to avoid consuming or touching them. If infection on the skin occurs, taking antibiotics is needed in order to reduce the level of infection.

Keeping your skin moisturized is also an important factor when it comes to treating eczema. For more tips and recommendations, you may check out our Guide to Selecting Moisturizing Solutions for Your Skin.

Athlete’s Foot

athlete’s foot itchiness

A common cause of itchy feet is athlete’s foot, also called tinea pedis. An athlete’s foot is caused by a fungus that lives on the surface of your feet’s skin. Fungus thrives in areas that are full of moisture, similar to the areas where bacteria survive.

So, if your feet are always wearing thick socks and shoes that don’t have proper ventilation, then you will most likely get athlete’s foot because of how high the moisture is on the skin of your feet due to excessive sweating and overheating. [1]

Treating Athlete’s Foot

Fortunately, treating an athlete’s foot is relatively easy, as there are home remedies that you can try out, and the topical medications that you can apply to the affected areas are relatively affordable. For home remedies, you can try soaking your feet in a bucket filled with warm water that is mixed with sea salt and vinegar. The sea salt/vinegar/water mixture can also help in reducing the size of blisters and bubbles on your skin that is caused by an athlete’s foot.

For topical medications, you can apply antifungal creams on the affected areas to reduce the level of infection while also killing most of the fungi that are living on the skin of your feet. You may also want to use essential oils like tea tree oil that can help moisturize your skin while also preventing or reducing fungi buildup.

You may read our Guide to Selecting Creams to Deal with Fungal Infections for more tips and product recommendations.

Psoriasis

psoriasis on feet

Another cause of itchy feet is psoriasis, which is an auto-immune disease wherein the production of skin cells is at an abnormal cycle. When the skin cells are produced abnormally, there is often an overabundance of skin cells in specific areas of the skin, and this results in the flaky, sore, and reddish appearance of the affected areas.

The dry and dead skin cells that are flaking would then cause itchiness in your skin. There is currently no clear cause of psoriasis, but it is believed to be a genetic disease, meaning that it is passed on from generation to generation in a family.

Treating Psoriasis

Unfortunately, there is no known effective cure for psoriasis, as many people that are affected by it would just randomly develop rashes and reddish spots on their bodies. However, you can reduce the redness and the severity of the rashes that appear when you have psoriasis. [2]

Steroid creams are considered to be some of the best topical medications to use on psoriasis, as they are effective in reducing the size of the red spots on the skin while also alleviating inflammation and itchiness.

Bug Bites

small bug bite on a leg

Bug bites are also a very common cause of itchy feet, and most bugs or insects like mosquitoes and ants tend to bite our feet since these are arguably the least protected part of our body whenever we walk, stand, sit, and lie down barefoot.

Bug bites can be quite mild for most people, but there are certain insects that can cause severe redness and rashes on our skin whenever they bite or sting, and these insects include millipedes, bees, and centipedes. Once the redness on the stung or bitten areas appears, they will start to become itchy.

Treating Bug Bites

A lot of bug bites can just fade away on their own, and the only thing you have to do to make the healing process faster is to not scratch the bitten areas. But for severe bug bites, you may need to apply a small amount of steroid cream just to reduce the inflammation on the affected areas of your skin.

So, there you have it, the possible reasons why you have itchy feet and how you can treat them. If the problems in itchiness still persist even after applying medication and home remedies on the affected skin, you should already talk to your local healthcare provider to see if there are underlying causes for the itchiness of your feet or other areas of your body. 

Aside from having itchy feet, some people might also experience jock itch. If you want to learn more about this, you may read our post about the Best Remedies for Jock Itch for tips and recommendations.

References

[1] Huzar, T. (2019, February 18). Causes and treatments for itchy feet. Medical News Today. Retrieved January 20, 2023, from https://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/324473 

[2] Cleveland Clinic. (2022, September 15). Psoriasis. Cleveland Clinic. Retrieved January 20, 2023, from https://my.clevelandclinic.org/health/diseases/6866-psoriasis