Do you often feel a tingling sensation or numbness in your feet and toes? Do you often get a feeling of pins-and-needles feeling in your feet? Such symptoms are medically known as paresthesia. Paresthesia is a very common problem that typically lasts for a short or transient period and is often caused by blockage of blood flow to the nerves of your feet due to prolonged immobility in a particular position. Repositioning yourself usually relieves the pressure on your nerves and relieves the feeling.
If repositioning or even walking around doesn’t relieve the tingling sensation and if the sensation persists for a long time, or is accompanied by other symptoms like pain, weakness, balance problems, or a change in your vision, then you might be suffering from a medical condition called peripheral neuropathy (a type of nerve damage). While Vitamin B deficiency is the commonest cause for peripheral neuropathy and paresthesia, there are several other health conditions that may contribute to this neuropathy.
Discussed in this health article are a few common causes for peripheral neuropathy. It is important that you seek medical attention for peripheral neuropathy and address the underlying cause.
Diabetes - Peripheral neuropathy is one of the commonest complications of diabetes. Almost half of people with either type 1 or type 2 diabetes have complaints of peripheral neuropathy.
Tarsal Tunnel Syndrome (TTS) - TTS is a condition caused due to a damaged or compressed tibial nerve leading to pain, tingling or numbness in the foot.
The tibial nerve may be compressed or damaged due to several causes such as flat foot, swelling caused by an ankle sprain, arthritis or diabetes.
Pinched nerve - You may get numbness in the toes or a feeling of pins-and-needles feeling in your feet if any of your major nerves to your legs is pinched due to conditions like low back pain, injury, arthritis, sciatica, or stress from repetitive movements at work or the gym. A pinched nerve typically causes typical pain and tingling that shoots down your legs and into your feet.
Hypothyroidism - Hypothyroidism or an under-active thyroid gland causes multiple muscles, joints, and nerve problems including peripheral neuropathy. Along with tingling in the feet, you may also experience non-specific body pains, muscle cramps, and other symptoms such as fatigue, feeling cold, constipation, and depression.
Aging spine - With progressing age, your spine weakens and there may be narrowing of the spaces between your spine causing a condition called spinal stenosis. Spinal stenosis exerts pressure on your nerves that could cause tingling in one or both of your feet.
Multiple Sclerosis (MS) - MS, is a medical condition affecting the central nervous system and tingling or numbness in the legs and arms are the initial symptoms of MS.
Excessive alcohol consumption -Excessive alcohol consumption leads to alcoholic neuropathy, one of the commonest side effects of alcohol abuse. Alcoholic neuropathy typically causes weakness and pain in the legs and tingling numbness in the feet.
Chemical exposure - Exposure to industrial, occupational, or environmental chemicals (toxins) such as lead, mercury or arsenic can lead to peripheral neuropathy. Additionally chemical exposure may also cause symptoms such as weakness and difficulty walking.
Autoimmune disease - Although less common, autoimmune diseases such as rheumatoid arthritis, GB (Guillain-Barre Syndrome), Sjogren’s syndrome can cause tingling in your feet.
Pregnancy - The growing baby in the uterus can cause pressure and compress nerves in your legs and lead to pins and needles in your feet and toes.
Medications - Many medications come with peripheral neuropathy as a side effect. Particularly the ones prescribed for treating autoimmune diseases, high blood pressure, seizures, infections, and alcohol use disorder, and drugs used for certain cancers, HIV and AIDS.
A word of caution - Do not ignore a persistent tingling or numbness sensation in your feet that doesn’t seem to go away with changing the position. Consult your healthcare provider and get the underlying cause diagnosed and addressed at the earliest.
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