Plantar calluses are extremely common, and not a cause for concern unless certain problematic symptoms arise alongside them. READ MORE Limit yourself as much as possible from wearing shoes that alter your weight distribution such as high-heeled or high-arched shoes. If your job requires you to wear this type of shoe, try to take some of the pressure off your feet by walking to and from the office in well-fitting, comfortable shoes or trainers. Try to decrease heel height as much as possible. Tape the bent and painful toe to a neighboring straight one (called "buddy taping"), or use straps and splints to keep a hammertoe in its correct place. Wear correctly fitting shoes with toe boxes that are high and wide enough to allow your toes to spread. Gently apply pressure to the callus and see if you can rub off a layer of the callus or if it’s able to completely detach from your skin. If the callus is resistant to coming off, repeat the soaking or try another time. Never vigorously rub your skin with sandpaper. Tea tree oil

Tea tree oil is an antibacterial, antifungal, and natural antiseptic. Place a few drops of tea tree oil in a basin full of warm water, and soak your callus until you feel the skin begin to soften and lift. Don’t soak in this remedy for more than 15 minutes, as the tea tree oil is very strong and can damage your skin layer if you’re exposed to it for too long. Soak your feet in warm water and Epsom salts to reduce inflammation. Then, gently nudge the skin away from the nail bed with a cotton swab and smooth the nail's corner with a new fine emery board. If you have calluses on your feet or elbows, try using a pumice stone to rub them off gradually after soaking the area in water. Other things that may help include baking soda, tea tree oil, and Epsom salt. Shoe inserts. If you have an underlying foot deformity, your health care provider may prescribe custom-made padded shoe inserts (orthotics) to prevent recurring corns or calluses. Dori Price has over 15 years of experience researching and writing skincare stories, combining her first-hand knowledge of the market with the expertise of top industry professionals, including dermatologists and aestheticians. As an avid exerciser, she has experienced calluses firsthand and loves testing out the different ways to safely remove them. She is an expert in all face and body skincare product categories, from epilators to dermaplaning tools, toners to serums, and more.Corns and calluses. American Orthopaedic Foot & Ankle Society. https://www.footcaremd.org/conditions-treatments/toes/corns-and-calluses. Accessed Feb. 16, 2022. This callus remover from Silk'N allows you to customize your usage, with two different pumice rollers — one coarse and one fine-grained. “It was very easy to use, effective in smoothing feet and reducing calluses," shared one tester. "It was much easier to use than a foot file and more effective.” This professional use only formula provides an effective, instant softening treatment for calluses, toe nails and cuticles, dry keratinized skin, hyper-keratosis and fissures/rhagades. Removal method: There are two main ways to remove dead skin when it comes to callus removers. Mechanical or manual methods involve physically removing dead cells with the use of abrasive tools such as foot files, scrubs, and pumice stones. On the other hand, chemical methods include topical creams, gels, and peels that use active ingredients to induce the shedding of skin layers. Before you try anything else, you might want to treat the callused area to a 20-minute soak in warm water. After towel-drying your skin, see if you can gently rub a layer of the callus away with just your finger. Over the course of several soaking sessions, you may be able to completely remove the callus one layer at a time. A simple warm-water soak is the first remedy recommended by the American Academy of Dermatology. Non-medicated callus pads

Epsom salt is regarded as an exfoliator. This treatment is especially helpful if you’re trying to relax after working with your hands and get rid of a callus at the same time. The fine grains of the salt dissolve to relax your muscles and soothe your skin. Mixing 2 to 3 tablespoons in a basin or bowl of warm water before soaking your callus may make it easier to peel off.

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A pumice stone can be especially handy when you have a callus on the bottom of your feet or on your elbows, where it’s hard to see. After soaking your callus thoroughly, apply the pressure of the pumice stone to your callus and rub in a circular motion. Don’t try to get the whole callus off at once. The idea is to rub the skin away over the course of a few applications of this remedy. UK mainland only. Surcharges apply to the following locations The Channel Islands & Isles of Scilly

Everyday activities can take their toll on your hands. Learn how to restore their softness and keep them soft. READ MORE While some electric devices take a few uses to really get rid of calluses, Amope's tool received the highest score for removing calluses after just one use in a Good Housekeeping Institute test. Plus, it stood out amongst the others as the easiest to clean after use. "This device worked very well right away," shares one tester. "It was so easy to use and really did a great job. My feet are so smooth now!” Another shares that "it was easy to to remove the file and clean." This particular model comes with an extra-coarse roller head, but regular and ultra-course heads are also available from the brand. Footlogix is the world’s first and only Pediceutical Foot Care line made with pharmaceutical-grade ingredients. It uses Dermal Infusion Technology to actively penetrate ingredients faster and deeper into the troubled epidermis of the feet. A very serious allergic reaction to this drug is rare. However, get medical help right away if you notice any symptoms of a serious allergic reaction, including: rash, itching/swelling (especially of the face/ tongue/throat), severe dizziness, trouble breathing. Shahmoradi Z, Assaf F, Al Said H, Khosravani P, Hosseini SM. Topical pyruvic acid (70%) versus topical salicylic acid (16.7%) compound in treatment of plantar warts: A randomized controlled trial. Adv Biomed Res. 2015;4:113. doi:10.4103/2277-9175.157833James WD, et al. Dermatoses resulting from physical factors. In: Andrews' Diseases of the Skin: Clinical Dermatology. 13th ed. Elsevier; 2020. https://www.clinicalkey.com. Accessed Feb. 16, 2022. Then, apply a moisturizer with salicylic acid, urea, or ammonium lactate twice a day to the area to gradually soften tough skin. Slight burning, skin redness, and peeling may occur. These effects are expected. If any of these effects worsen, tell your doctor or pharmacist promptly. Boules M, Batayyah E, Froylich D, et al. Effect of Surgical Weight Loss on Plantar Fasciitis and Health-Care Use. J Am Podiatr Med Assoc. 2018;108(6):442-448. doi:10.7547/15-169 For softening hard skin, corns and callouses before they are removed by the practitioner using instruments.