Foot care
From Burnwiki, a Burning Man Wiki & Brain Dump
Wanted: Better info on treating playa foot
Keep your feet happy, and you can walk all day and dance all night. The playa is tough on feet though.
General Foot Care
- Bring lots of socks, and change them frequently. A good rule of thumb is two pairs per day. Running or hiking socks are particularly good. Heavy socks will do well at night, when temperatures can drop into the 40's.
- Clean and moisturize your feet at least once a day. Baby wipes, hand sanitizer, and moisturizer work well for this.
- Avoid going barefoot, wearing sandals, flip-flops, or other open shoes. If you get a lot of playa dust on your feet, you run a risk of getting playa foot, so be extra diligent with your foot care.
Blisters
If you walk or dance a lot, there's a good chance you'll develop blisters. Try and catch them early and treat them well. If you're a hiker, you will be familiar with this sort of prevention and treatment:
- Pay attention to "hot spots" on your feet. These are areas that are getting chaffed and will turn into a blister if not treated. This is the best time to intervene with a moleskin or gel pad.
- Moleskins are a great way to treat both hot spots and blisters. They're sheets of adhesive pads that can be cut into a specific shape and applied.
- Sticky gel pads are a newer (and a little pricier) way to treat hotspots and blisters. They're gel-like pads with an adhesive side. They tend to be more comfortable than moleskins, but despite claims, tend to pull off more quickly.
- To avoid blisters, wear well broken-in shoes or boots. New shoes and boots will almost always cause blisters until they're broken in.
Playa Foot
"Playa foot" is the highly technical term for feet with dry painfully cracked skin. This is caused by the dry alkaline playa dust, which both dries out the skin and alters it pH. If you go barefoot or wear open footwear, you need to take a few extra steps to keep your feet feeling good:
Preventing Playa Foot
- Be extra diligent with your foot care.
- Wash your feet in something lightly acidic - a foot wash with vinegar or lemon juice will do very well. This will help to restore your skin to the correct pH. A number of camps offer foot washes, so this can be a pleasure rather than a chore. As of 2009, vinegar is out and Seltzer Water (carbonic acid, a mild, odorless acid) is in. Seltzer Water is inexpensive, found in any grocery store and is safe enough to drink. Dr. Bronner's soap contains Citric Acid, another mild acid which is a playa staple.
Treating Playa Foot
- Continue to treat your foot/feet with vinegar and moisturizer, and keep them dust free.
- Try Sally Hansen "18 Hour Cracked Heel Creme."
