Your Feet Want You to Know About the Great American Smokeout
We U.S. citizens know what to expect on the fourth Thursday of November. We look forward to Thanksgiving Day! It’s a day for family, football, and turkey – or perhaps a less traditional food that fits your vegetarian or vegan lifestyle.
Okay, that’s the fourth Thursday. Do you know what to expect on the third Thursday of November? It’s The Great American Smokeout. The American Cancer Society wants all smokers to consider the third Thursday of November “Day 1” – that is, the first day of their plan to quit smoking.
Our expert podiatrists are completely on board with this campaign to get folks to stop smoking. Smoking is bad for your feet:
- The chemicals in cigarettes cause plaque to build up in your artery walls. Plaque takes up the space your blood needs to move freely. Your feet hurt because they’re not receiving proper blood blow. Cuts and sores take a long time to heal or may not heal at all, which can lead to dangerous infections.
- This problem with plaque buildup is called peripheral arterial disease, or PAD.
- Smokers are four times as likely to develop PAD as non-smokers.
- Smokers are also at high risk for developing Burger’s disease, another condition that affects the blood vessels, causing feet to feel cold or to tingle and burn.
- If you’re a smoker who needs foot or ankle surgery, you have an increased risk of blood clots and other difficulties throughout the healing process.
Our experienced podiatric surgeons, Dr. Craig B. Frey, Dr. Megan L. Oltmann, Dr. Jim Swienconek, Dr. Rachel Robinson, and Dr. Courtney Yoder strongly encourage our patients who smoke to give quitting a try. Plan to make November 17 your Day 1, with help and guidance from the American Cancer Society.
For treatment of smoking-related foot problems, call Foot & Ankle Associates of Cleveland in Solon, Ohio at (440) 903-1041 or contact us online to schedule a consultation. We offer a modern office with the latest technology for podiatric patients in Portage, Geauga, Cuyahoga, and Summit Counties, proudly serving our patients from Solon, Aurora, Bedford, Chagrin Falls, Hudson, Macedonia, and Twinsburg.