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Home Treatment Tips for Bunions
Home Remedies for
Decreasing Bunion Pain on Your Own
We have strong feelings about how bunions should best be treated. First,
you should try all conservative treatment before considering surgery.
Surgery should be your last resort. Second, you should see a good
podiatrist for treatment if you have bunions. Although there is a lot
you can do on your own to decrease the pain associated with bunions, to
slow or stop the bunion from getting bigger, you need more sophisticated
treatment. For example, if prescribed correctly,
custom orthotics have
been shown to decrease the forces that cause bunions.
If you
cannot see a podiatrist right away, however, here are some bunion self
treatments that you can do on your own to decrease bunion pain.
Try our 12-step plan to eliminate bunion pain. Try the plan for 2 months, if you
still have pain, then see a podiatrist.
-
 Use
an arch support in your shoes. This will act to transfer force off
of the area of the bunion. OTC arch supports will not work as well
as a quality custom orthotic, but will help. The best that we have
found for transferring pressure off of a bunion is the
PowerStep Medical Grade Orthotic,
-
 Instead of slippers, use a sandal with an arch support to wear
around the house. This will act to decrease pressure on your big toe
joint. We recommend the
Wave Flip-flop Sandal – available here for its superior arch support.
-
 Use a
Sandal Gel Toe Spreader when you are wearing your
flip-flops. Soft Silicone Spreaders with built-in slit for
sandals/thongs. It wraps around the thong to reduce friction and
enhances walking comfort in thongs, flip flops, and sandals.
-
 Wearing the correct socks can help reduce bunion pain. Socks help
in two ways. First by reducing friction on the bunion and second by
providing cushion. Cotton is a poor choice for people with bunions
because of high friction. Because it has low friction, no seam over
the bunion and cushions the bunion from shoe pressure, our favorite
sock for bunions is the
Juzo Silver Sole Sock. Available in white
and black.
-
 Use a pad over the bunion deformity. The pads we have found our patients
like the best is the
Bunion Care Gel Sleeve. A less expensive pad are
the
Silicone Bunion Shields.
-
 Use a separator between your first and second toes to prevent them from
abutting against each other. The best separators are made of silicone.
Try the
Gel Toe Separator.
-
 Use a
Bunion Splint at night
to prevent the first toe and second toe from pushing against each
other. These reduce pressure between the toes. There is no evidence
they provide long-term straightening of the toe.– but there is no
proof of that in the literature.
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Ice the bunion for 10 minutes each evening.
-
 Use a topical pain reliever such as
Orthogel Cold Therapy Relief Gel
during the day.
-
 Find a shoe store with well trained shoe fitters to fit your
shoes. You can find a list of shoe stores on our Shoe List. A good
shoe fitter will not only lead you to the best fitting shoes, but
can often modify the shoe to fit difficult to fit feet. If you don’t
have a good shoe store nearby, these
Orthofeet Shoes for Women and
Orthofeet Shoes for Men work great for bunions as they have extra
room in the toe box and are easy to stretch. Both casual and
athletic shoes are available.
-
 Stretch your shoes over the bunion deformity. You can stretch
them yourself with a
ball and ring shoe stretcher.
-
 For very large bunions use a stretchable shoe: These Women’s Stretchable Shoes and Men’s Stretchable Shoes have a unique design that combines suede leather and spandex, which is both elastic and breathable. It stretches to conform to the contours of the foot, accommodating foot deformities, and eliminating pressure on bunions and other prominences. Provides exceptional comfort for feet with bunions, tailor’s bunions, hammertoes and bony prominences.
For Women
For Men
A home remedy will not get rid of your bunions. But you can use self
treatment to decrease pain.
For more information on bunions see the following pages:
Bunion Information
Bunion Surgery
Don’t let your bunions or big toe pain get worse. Early treatment can
prevent future problems. Call today for
an appointment in our Seattle office.
All pages on this website © 2005-2010
Douglas Hale, DPM & Lawrence Huppin, DPM
Foot and Ankle Center of Washington, Seattle
The material provided on this web site is for informative purposes only.
If you need specific medical advice, please contact the office for an appointment.
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