Category Archives: feet

Cold feet!

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It’s amazing to me where my mind goes sometimes. As I was driving to work I passed the Norton reservoir and noticed that the ice has melted in the recent warm spell. (January Thaw). Out in the middle were about 5 or 6 swans. Made me cold just to see them but then I wondered, why aren’t their feet cold?

swan-family-2a

 I thought it would be a short , easy answer to share but even the short answer I found on Askanaturalist.com wasn’t so short.

Let me see if I can give you the Reader’s Digest Condensed version.

 Warm blood flowing from the body into the legs and feet passes close to the veins carrying the cold blood back to the body. This warm blood starts warming the cold blood and in doing so loses some of its heat so by the time it reaches the feet it’s cooled off. This keeps the feet just warm enough to avoid frostbite.

 This also reduces heat loss to the outside environment. When we go out without a hat we lose a lot of heat from our head but since the blood in the duck’s feet  has already cooled , it doesn’t lose much heat to outside air, water etc.

DWParkbirds 030a copy

Literally “pretty cool”.

 To take it a bit further, are they uncomfortable at all in the cold?

It seems that the answer is no. Since their feet aren’t “cold” they can sit on that ice with their feathers all fluffed out and be quite content. We know those feathers are warm. That’s why we have down comforters, down sleeping bags and down winter coats. We think their feathers are pretty warm too!

 If you want to read the more extensive version with the details about the arterial blood and venous blood heat exchange, here’s the link. They have nifty diagrams too.

042210_1418_whydontduck21http://askanaturalist.com/why-don%E2%80%99t-ducks%E2%80%99-feet-freeze/

Plantar Fasciitis

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Anyone out there watch the Big Bang Theory?

If you do you know Leonard has a catch phrase “I just can’t catch a break” because every time he starts to make headway with Penny he is interrupted.

Well lately I think that should be my phrase.

I was really optimistic about this summer. It’s the first time in 2-3 years that I was really feeling good. I have some fun mini trips planned and I was just really upbeat.

So what happened you ask? Last weekend I was out doing a doggy photo shoot. I felt great. No joint pain, no muscle pain. I finished the shoot, came back home and had lunch. Then after lunch I went to take a step and I swear it felt like I’d stepped on a golf ball!

The doctor diagnosed plantar Fasciitis and did not give me a prognosis. It’s a week today and I’ve felt the pain spread and grow and now begin to subside. It’s more like a tender bruise now instead of throbbing constantly.

So here I sit on a beautiful Saturday doing laundry because it was the first day all week I could walk well enough to carry the laundry down the stairs to the laundry room.

Here’ a little of what I learned:

 

Plantar fasciitis is a cause of pain under the heel. It usually goes in time. Treatment may speed up recovery. Treatment includes rest, good footwear, heel pads, painkillers and exercises. A steroid injection or other treatments may be used in more severe cases.

Heel - plantar fascia

Plantar fasciitis means inflammation of your plantar fascia. Your plantar fascia is a strong band of tissue (like a ligament) that stretches from your heel (calcaneum) to your middle foot bones. It supports the arch of your foot and also acts as a shock-absorber in your foot.