Did you know you can use essential oils for cracked heels? Aromatic oils have so many uses. One of them is potentially smoothing those unsightly patches of rough skin that develop on your feet.
During the winter, cracked heels can be annoying. But we tend to forget about them.
In the summer, though, dry cracked heels become a cosmetic problem, especially if you like wearing open backed sandals.
Ever since I’ve reached a certain age, I’ve noticed the skin on one of my heels is often flaky and uneven. If you look closely, you can also see thin white lines. So this is something I try to fight, with essential oils and natural plant-based emollients.
Home Remedy for Dry Cracked Feet
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From everything I’ve read, there are two ways to fix cracked heels. One is the find a way to slough off the skin. You can do this at home with a pumice stone. This is a piece of natural volcanic rock with rough edges, which you can use to gently remove built up dead skin cells.
However, a far more efficient way to get rid of dead skin is to use an electrical foot sander. I use the Amope Pediperfect Foot File. (Bye, bye pumice stone.) Until I bought the foot file, I was using a pumice stone. But the electric sander works so well that I’ve put my pumice stone on a shelf.
What To Use for Cracked Heels
The Amope battery-operated foot file works amazingly well. So well that when I first started using it, I often forgot to also moisturize my feet, which was a mistake.Unless I take the second step of moisturizing, I’m never going to solve the problem. Fighting cracked heels is a two-pronged process.
I wouldn’t rely upon essential oils alone, because they work better when you can first slough off the dead skin. For that, I use my foot sander. However, after using the sander, you should condition your feet with a plant based moisturizer, ideally one that contains essential oils.
Essential Oils for Cracked Skin
Here’s why essential oils are so useful for cracked skin. It’s believed that certain aromatic oils have an affinity for the skin. This means they sooth, protect and may even help regenerate new cells.
Out of all the essential oils, lavender is probably the best known skin remedy. (Even though it has a number of other potential uses.) It’s long been believed that lavender helps with skin healing. This idea was reinforced when a famous French chemist named Maurice Gattefosse burned his hands. He was spared lasting damage because a vat of lavender oil was nearby.
Best Oil for Cracked Heels
Gattefosse died in 1950. But recent research has confirmed his findings. A study published in the BMC Complimetary & Alternative Medicine journal found that lavender accelerated wound healing in lab rats.
So it’s probably no coincidence that you’ll find lavender essential oil added to ready-to-use cracked heel remedies. This is the first essential oil I suggested in another post on how to make Essential Oil Salve for Dry Cracked Heels.
Essential Oils for Dry Cracked Feet
Geranium and chamomile essential oils are also very soothing. You could use them in addition to lavender oil. Actually, it’s good to combine two or more essential oils together. It’s believed that blends are more powerful than individual oils. In addition, there’s now evidence that geranium oil can potentially play a role in treating various skin problems.
Best Treatment for Cracked Heels
However, you decide to treat cracked heels, I’m convinced that natural is the way to go. That’s because chemicals can be irritating. And you want to sooth the skin, not punish it.
My skin improved so much once I got rid of the drugstore concoctions, and upgraded my beauty products..
Natural plant-based beauty care products are all I use now. For me, they work so much better than chemicals. They moisturize, instead of irritate. For years, I suffered from blotchy patches around my mouth. I couldn’t figure out how to get rid of them, until I ditched the chemicals. Then the blotches went away.
Natural Dry Cracked Feet Remedy
Many cosmetics contain potentially toxic compounds, such as parabens. These are tentatively linked to breast cancer, although more studies are needed before anyone will say they’re a definite factor. (But I’m not waiting for the research. I’m avoiding them right now.)
Instead, I use natural remedies for my beauty problems. The good news is that there’s now a wide range of chemical-free options, including a special aromatic cracked heels formula. This contains soothing plant-based emollients, as well as several essential oils often recommended for skin problems.
Essential Oils for Dry Heels
Several years ago, I started using essential oils. I’m hooked. They are the backbone of my natural beauty regimen. It’s believed that aromatic plant extracts may contain natural ingredients that encourage the skin to repair itself, which is why you’ll find them in aromatic heel repair formulas.
As I mentioned above, science is beginning to prove that essential oils are good for your skin. However, essential oils are very strong. So before putting them on your skin, you need to mix them with a carrier oil. Carrier oils are oily. So they add a moisturizing element to an essential oil mix. Many carriers contain skin soothing agents as well.
Lavender Oil for Cracked Heels
Lavender oil is considered one of the best aromatics for soothing problem skin. If you already own lavender oil, you could mix it with one or more carrier oils and apply it to your feet right after you shower, or before you go to bed. Even better, cover your feet with cotton socks afterward. You could also add geranium or chamomile essential oil to the mix.
Or, you could purchase a premixed blend, such as Healing Solutions H-Cracked Heels Formula. It contains lavender, as well as geranium, chamomile and tea tree essential oils. It also has hazelwood, avocado, rosehip and wheat germ oils. These are natural emollients. They also serve as “carrier oils.”
If you don’t already own the above oils, then a blend with all of these ingredients may be the most economical option.
How To Fix Dry Cracked Heels
Since essential oils are too strong to apply directly to the skin, they need to be diluted in a carrier. Carrier oils protect and moisturize the skin. I like the fact that multiple ingredients are combined in one bottle of H-Cracked Heels Formula, which you can see below. That’s because herbalists and aromatherapists believe the mixing natural ingredients together creates a positive synergy.
What I like about this blend is that it’s premixed and ready to use. You don’t have to buy anything else.
You’ll probably need to use this (or a homemade blend) repeatedly and regularly to see good results. There’s a greater chance you’ll do that if you don’t have to worry about mixing essential oils and carrier oils every time you want to apply them to your feet.
Essential Oils for Cracked Heels
How to Heal Cracked Heels
Cracked heels are a very common problem caused by dry, thickened skin that “cracks” under pressure. The trick is to keep it moisturized. This is better achieved with natural remedies, instead of chemicals, according to Healing Natural Oils, which makes the H-Cracked Heels blend.
This is something I’ve also noticed first hand. For years, the skin around my mouth would get dry and flaky during the winter. Chemical moisturizer did nothing to solve the problem. Now that I’ve switched to plant-based face products, the problem is gone.
Essential Oils for Cracked Heels
To get to the root of your cracked heel problem, Healing Natural Oils also recommends a number of other steps, which include.
- Soak your feet in warm water for 20 minutes each evening, before applying natural moisturizer. In this case, it could be the H-Cracked Heels Formula. Then, cover your feet with cotton socks before going to bed. These will help your skin retain the moisture.
- Don’t go barefoot until your feet are totally healthy again. Ditto for sandals and flip flops. If you do go barefoot once your feet are healed, make sure to apply natural moisturizer afterward.
- Healing Natural Oils also suggests periodically using a pumice stone to remove dry skin. This is one option. However, I’m very partial to my electric foot file, which you can see below.
Electronic Foot File for Heels
How To Fix Dry Skin On Heels
They say beauty is only skin deep. But that’s not entirely true, when it comes to cracked heels. Aside from being a cosmetic problem, these patches of rough skin can potentially signal a condition that requires medical attention. Some alternative healthy experts believe cracked heels can be related to thyroid problems, elevated blood sugar or nutritional deficiencies.
People with diabetes will want to work with their doctor before embarking on home remedies for cracked heels. That’s because they’re at higher risk of their skin becoming infected or ulcerated.
For More Reading
Essential Oils Good for Toenail Fungus
Lavender Oil for Wound Healing
Disclaimer
These statements have not been approved by the FDA. These products are not intended to diagnose, treat, cure or prevent any disease. Women who are pregnant or nursing should not use essential oils unless told to do so by a healthcare professional.
