MANY of your readers with diabetes may be unaware of the importance of looking after their feet.

People with diabetes should have their feet checked at least annually and should be taught how to look after their feet themselves, but in many cases this is not being provided in the NHS.

Around 130 diabetes-related amputations take place every week in this country alone, mainly as a result of foot ulcers and around 80 per cent of these are avoidable with proper foot care.

We want to try to reduce the risks of foot damage and amputations in people with diabetes, so we have a booklet called Diabetes – Looking After Your Feet.

This is designed to help people to look after their feet, to know what to look for and when to seek treatment to keep their feet healthy and avoid foot ulcers.

If foot ulcers are left untreated they can eventually lead to amputation, which drastically changes a person’s quality of life.

There is a shortage of podiatrists in the NHS and many of the annual diabetes checks, which include assessments of the feet, are being carried out in primary care by health professionals who, through no fault of their own, are not receiving the training they need in order to carry out full foot checks.

We hope that if people have more information on how to look after their feet, the number of amputations will reduce.

Readers can obtain a free copy of Diabetes – Looking After Your Feet by contacting IDDT by phoning 01604 622837 or by emailing jenny@iddtinternational.org.

Jenny Hirst, InDependent Diabetes Trust, Northampton