Overview
Dead, dry, or loose skin on the feet is the way of natural exfoliation and shedding. The skin builds up on foot due to the lack of moisture if you constantly wear shoes/ socks or due to the friction of walking or running. The problem may worsen if you don’t exfoliate or scrub your feet. Dead skin on the foot heel is dry, cracked, or hanging. It’s painless unless it’s a result of athlete’s foot, eczema, or another type of infection. In that case, see your doctor for treatment. Otherwise, you may remove dead skin for cosmetic reasons or because it’s more comfortable.
The exfoliation process is about removing dead and dry skin cells from the outermost layer of the skin. It can be done at home with the help of a natural exfoliator. and an exfoliator tool to help with the process. Human skin naturally sheds dead skin but aging slows down the exfoliation process. Soaking feet in a homemade foot bath can also help to remove dead skin from the feet. Adding essential oils such as peppermint oil and lavender oil can allow the body to detox gently.
Importance of Skin Exfoliation
Regular skin exfoliation can leave your skin soft, smooth, and supple. It helps prevent dryness, flakes, and skin imperfections. After exfoliation, healthy skin will be able to shine through. One should strive to exfoliate the dead skin two to three times a week. Oily skin may require frequent exfoliation.
Here are some DIY foot scrubs for removing dead skin.
Baking Soda Foot Scrub
Ingredients
3 tbsp baking soda
2 drops lavender essential oil
1 tbsp water
Method
Add all the ingredients into a bowl and mix to create a thick paste.
Apply the mixture to feet and massage for 10 minutes.
Wash it off with warm water.
Benefits
Baking soda foot scrub relieves aches and pain, improves blood circulation, brightens the skin, removes impurities, and also fights toenail fungus. It is a great scrub that instantly rejuvenates rough feet.
Brown Sugar Foot Scrub
Ingredients
1 tbsp brown sugar
1 tbsp olive oil
2 drops of peppermint essential oil
1 tsp baking soda
Method
Combine all the ingredients in a bowl to get a thick paste.
Apply this mixture to your feet and scrub for 10 minutes.
Leave this scrub on your feet for at least 15 minutes
Wash it off with warm water.
Benefits
It deeply nourishes and exfoliates the foot skin. The peppermint essential oil gives feet a fresh sensation and the brown sugar with olive oil exfoliates and moisturizes the skin.
Sea Salt Foot Scrub
Ingredients
1 cup finely ground sea salt
3 tbsp Avocado oil
1 tbsp jojoba oil
5 drops lavender essential oil
3 drops peppermint essential oil
Method
Put Sea Salt in a mixing bowl
Add in avocado oil, jojoba oil, and essential oils
Add the essential oils last and put them right on top of the oil. It incorporates well into the salt mixture.
Mix until the sea-salt is coated well with oil.
Take a generous scoop with fingers and rub all over feet. Use it on dry feet or while in the shower. Rub for 3 minutes and then rinse clean.
Store in a glass container or metal container.
Benefits
It works wonders on dry and cracked feet! Avocado oil and jojoba oil are easy to absorb. The main benefit of a foot scrub is its exfoliating power. Exfoliating skin is necessary because it helps to remove dead skin from the surface, loosens and removes calluses on feet, detoxifies, and improves the overall tone of the skin. Sea salt combined with a super nourishing oil, like avocado oil, jojoba has a potent exfoliating and moisturizing power. The oil in the scrub gets easily absorbed after the top layer of dead, flaky skin is removed. A foot scrub is most beneficial when prefaced by a natural foot soak. The foot soak helps to soften and moisturize the skin so the scrub can easily do its job of sluffing away dead skin.
Coconut oil foot scrub
Ingredients
1 cup of salt
1/4 cup coconut oil
1 tbsp castile soap
10 drops peppermint essential oil
Method
Pour all the ingredients into a small bowl.
Stir until well combined.
Transfer the mixture to an airtight bottle.
Fill a container with warm water and add a tbsp of the scrub into the water.
Soak feet in the water for 10-15 minutes.
Remove feet and place about a tbsp of the scrub onto the feet. Massage the scrub into the feet for several minutes, focusing on the heals and other areas where dry skin is most prominent.
Let the mixture sit on the feet.
After a few minutes place the feet back into the warm water.
Rinse and dry.
Apply whipped body butter to restore and moisturize.
Benefits
Castile soap has antibacterial properties that prevent the skin from drying out. Castile soap is prepared from plant oils that are safe for sensitive skin types. Coconut oil has antibacterial, antifungal, and moisturizing properties. It will help to clean the feet and make the feet soft, making it easier to remove the dead and dry skin. You can also add olive oil, almond oil, grape seed oil, or any other plant-based oil. Peppermint oil is refreshing, cooling, and soothing. When added to the foot scrub, it soothes tired, achy feet. The fresh minty scent brings freshness to the feet.
Almond oil and mint foot scrub
Ingredients
1/4 cup of table salt
3 tbsp of almond oil
2 drops of peppermint oil
Method:
Take a bowl and add in all the ingredients.
Mix well to get a homogenous mixture.
Wet your feet with lukewarm water and apply the mixture.
Massage gently for 15 minutes
Wash it off with water.
Benefits
If you want to feel fresh, use mint. You can add mint oil in your scrub to make a refreshing foot scrub. Almond oil and mint scrub will not only moisturize your feet and smells divine but will also treat cracked heels. Almond oil moisturizes the skin and makes it soft.