I hesitate to start with this next topic because who really wants to talk about feet, because what do you think of? Ugly toenails, disgusting smells, and corns and bunions? There ain’t nothing sexy about feet. But you live and learn, and I have found that this constantly-used and often neglected part of the body is a clue to your overall health and critical to your wellbeing.
Many things can go wrong with your feet — which probably is not surprising to most of you — so it is important to assess your foot health regularly in order to catch problems early. Here are five easy steps to examine your feet and ankles.
1. Check the appearance of your feet and ankles.
While sitting, look for things like swelling, discoloration of the skin or nails, blisters, and excessive calluses. Be sure to examine the space between the toes and the soles of your feet. (If I try, I feel as if I’m imitating a soft-knotted pretzel!) And while standing, look for anything that has changed or looks suspicious in the shape of your foot and ankle.
2. Assess the blood flow.
Press down on the nail of your big toe until the color fades, about five seconds. Then let go and allow the blood flow to return to your toe. If you have average circulation, the return of normal color to your toe should take 2-5 seconds.
3. Test your foot and ankle function and flexibility.
For your foot, try to pick up a marble or small dishtowel with just your toes to assess their flexibility. (Is that really possible?) To test your ankle flexibility, stand facing a wall, move your front foot back four inches, and move your knee towards the wall. If your knee can touch the wall, you have good flexibility in your calf and ankle.
4. Evaluate sensation.
Take a pencil eraser and run it on the top, bottom, and both sides of your feet. The sensation should feel the same on all sides of the foot. If you lack sensation in one area, repeat the test over the next few days to see if you get the same result.
5. Examine your level of pain.
There should be no pain in the average, uninjured foot. If you do have pain, make sure to feel the parts of your foot to locate the exact position and source of the pain.
If you find anything suspicious or unusual, from swelling and excessive callouses to persistent foot pain, make sure you contact your primary care provider. Good foot care and regular foot checks are an important part of your health care. Often foot problems are the first indication of more serious problems including arthritis, diabetes, and kidney, heart, circulatory, or neurological disease.
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BRAIN TEASE
What word is missing?
Begin, inch, chapel, elastic, ? , cellar, arisen, end.
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Johnny Carson’s sidekick and announcer was Ed McMahon. I received correct answers from Dave Lutgens, Donna Mollet, Rebecca Abrams, Kim Birge, Pat Evenson-Brady, Keith Clymer, Ronda Spies, Nancy Higgins and Lana Tepfer, who is this week’s winner of a quilt raffle ticket.
And from the week before when the answer was Abbott and Costello, I received correct answers from Rhonda Spies, Lana Tepfer, Keith Clymer, Donna Mollet, Rebecca Abrams, Deborah Medina, and Nancy Higgins’s almost 99-year-old mom Anna Bolton, who is the winner of a quilt raffle ticket.
Since my mom grew up with the Mills Brothers, Harry James and Frank Sinatra, she couldn’t understand why the musical groups I listened to had such foolish names: The Beatles, the Animals, Mamas and Papas, and the band called just — The Band. So for this week’s “Remember When” question, what band, whose name is more appropriate for a basic journalism class, was known for smashing guitars on stage and writing the 1969 classic rock album Tommy? Email your answer to www.mcseniorcenter@gmail.com, leave a message at 541-296-4788, or drop it off at the Center while singing with youthful rebellion “My Generation.”
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Well, it’s been another week, wondering, “Where did the time go?” Until we meet again, sometimes stubbornness is just another name for being determined — and sometimes it’s not!
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“It’s a strange world of language in which skating on thin ice can get you into hot water.”
— Franklin P. Jones
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Nutritious home-delivered and in-person meals are available at noon Monday through Friday unless otherwise noted.
Seniors of Mosier Valley (541-980-1157) — Mondays and Wednesdays; Hood River Valley Adult Center (541-386-2060); Sherman County Senior and Community Center (541-565-3191); The Dalles Meals-on-Wheels (541-298-8333).
For meal sites in Washington, call Klickitat County Senior Services — Goldendale office (509-773-3757) or the White Salmon office (509-493-3068); and Skamania County SeniorServices (509-427-3990).
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Answer: Ice. Each word begins with the last two letters of the previous word.
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