How to Use Detox Foot Pads
If you have just heard about the detox foot pad (or detox foot patches) or stumbled upon them while surfing the internet and are now wondering what these things are, don’t worry, we are here to guide you and answer all your questions.
Detox foot pads are adhesive patches that you paste on the soles of your feet for detoxification and which remove toxins and heavy metals from your body and give you a refreshing feel.
Contents
How Are These Detox Pads Made?
The manufacturers of detox foot pads indicate that many natural substances and antioxidants are used in their manufacturing.
Some of these ingredients are listed below:
- bamboo vinegar powder
- dextrin
- vitamin C
- plant fiber
- onion powder
- ginger powder
- chitosan
- wood vinegar powder
- germanium
- tourmaline
- wormwood
- rose
- lavender
- pyroligneous acid
The number of ingredients used in each detox foot pad varies according to the manufacturer and their type, such as kinoki foot pads.
Health Benefits of Detox Foot Pads
The manufacturers claim that detox foot pads are good for foot care and work in many beneficial ways for human health. From a simple treatment for poor sleep quality to treating problems of the liver and kidneys by detoxifying the blood, they claim a long list of benefits. Some of these benefits are listed below:
- Foot pads remove toxins from the body.
- They can relieve back and joint pain.
- They can help with insomnia and depression.
- Improving sleep quality and resetting the night sleep cycle.
- They treat foot pain and body aches.
- They treat and relax sore feet.
- These can be helpful in weight loss.
- They benefit many other internal organs, such as the brain and heart.
- Overall, they improve the body’s health.
How Do These Detox Foot Pads Work?
The ingredients of these foot pads are said to have many beneficial effects on one’s mental health and sleep quality. The pads work by drawing out toxins from the whole body through the skin and sweat of the feet. These include:
- harmful substances
- chemicals
- toxins
- heavy metals
- waste products
Apart from these, certain ingredients may provide other benefits to the body. For example, wood vinegar powder has natural antimicrobial properties.
How Do Foot Detox Pads Work?
Detox foot pads are some skin patches you paste upon your feet for the sole purpose of detoxification, as the manufacturers claim, for removing toxins and heavy metals from your body and giving you a refreshing feel.
The ingredients of these foot pads are said to have many beneficial effects on the human body’s health, mental health, and sleep quality. They absorb through the skin and sweat of your feet into the blood circulation of the whole body and help get rid of toxins.
Who Should be Using Detox Foot Pads?
The manufacturers suggest using foot pads for those with foot problems and other sectors of the population, especially those with medical problems such as high blood pressure, diabetes, body aches, sleep problems, etc.
Who Should Not Be Using Detox Foot Pads?
Detox foot pads are not recommended for young children and infants. Furthermore, people with the following conditions should avoid the use of these pads:
- those with skin diseases such as psoriasis or scabies
- have a rash of some kind on their feet
- are known to have allergic reactions
- those who have chronic infections in their feet
- have cuts or open wounds on their feet
- have sensitive skin
How to Use These Pads
Instructions on how to use a detox foot patch are easy to follow:
- First, wash your feet with soap thoroughly before going to bed, and dry them with a towel.
- Take a pair of detox foot pads and peel the paper off like a bandage.
- Then paste them on your feet with the central part on your soles and the sticky tape around them.
- You can wear the socks over them so they don’t slip off while asleep and keep your feet warm.
- Enjoy good quality sleep with these detox pads on your body.
- Remove the detox foot pads from your feet in the morning.
- Rinse your feet with warm water and wipe them clean.
- Repeat this routine every other night and morning.
Precautions:
Develop any symptoms such as a rash, itching, pain, changes in your skin color, etc., or generalized body symptoms such as an allergic reaction, fever, headaches, and nausea. You should immediately remove the detox foot patch and consult a nearby doctor.
Possible side effects:
For some people, the ingredients in the detox foot pad may be harmful, and they will receive no health benefits from it. For example, pyroligneous acid may overly sensitize your skin, and other organic ingredients may induce a rash and inflammation.
Do Detox Foot Pads Work?
After summarizing the information about detox foot pads provided in advertisements, online shopping stores, and pamphlets, let’s come down to the real question that is probably uppermost in your mind: do these foot pads work as they are supposed to?
We have found two different opinions to answer this question.
What Does the Scientific Evidence Say?
Scientific research has not discovered any proven benefits in foot pads. Furthermore, there is no scientific evidence supporting their benefits, such as the removal of toxins and improvement in the quality of sleep.
What Do Consumers Say?
In contrast to the evidence above, some people firmly believe that a foot pad can draw toxins out of the body. In addition, many consumers of these detox foot pads have given positive feedback regarding their beneficial effects. For example, people with general health problems improved their overall body health after using detox foot pads, such as improved sleep and relief from body aches and sore feet.
Why Does the Color of the Detox Foot Pad Change?
People who support the use of these pads claim that the color of the patch changes when they remove them in the morning, suggesting they draw the toxins out of the body.
However, it seems it is not toxins but the sweat on your feet that changes the color of the patch. This has been demonstrated by applying tap water to an unused patch that changes color.
How Often Can You Use Detox Foot Pads
Complete detox can, of course, not be achieved in a single day. As per many manufacturers, the optimal usage is about three months.
When used regularly every night for 90 days, you can feel the significant effects of the detox foot pads.
However, some believe using the pads in increments of ten nights produces results.
Another key is to look into the color. As it starts fading off each passing day, it indicates the detox process is ending.
Plus, the usage also varies per individual and their body requirements.
What Toxins Do Foot Pads Remove
As per the detox foot pads manufacturers, these foot pads remove many toxins from the body through the soles of the feet.
These include
- Harmful substances
- Heavy metals
- Chemicals and
- Other metabolic wastes.
Although we have natural detox systems in our bodies, i.e., the liver, sweat glands, and kidneys function to eliminate harmful waste from the body, at times, we need to boost the system to speed up the process.
Once these toxins are removed, we find relief, and many of our body ailments ease off, too. For instance (as per the manufacturer’s claims), headache, fatigue, depression, insomnia, high blood pressure, etc., are very much positively affected by the removal of these toxins.
Detox Foot Pads Side Effects
The detox foot pads have gained immense popularity for a reason. While they still don’t have any scientific backing about their effectiveness, they do not have any significant side effects.
However, for some people, the ingredients of the detox foot pads may act as harmful substances. They may not get any health benefits from it.
For example, pyroligneous acid may overly sensitize your skin, and other organic ingredients may induce a rash and inflammation.
So, to be safe, here are some recommendations.
- Avoid using the pads on sensitive skin. People with sensitive skin may develop allergies or irritation from the ingredients used in the pads.
- Extensive usage may cause dehydration due to the loss of fluids via sweating.
- Sweating can also lead to an electrolyte imbalance in the body.
Natural Detox Foot Pads Instructions
Instructions about the use of detox foot patch are easy to follow and given as such:
- Wash your feet with soap thoroughly before going to bed and wipe them with a towel.
- Take a pair of detox foot pads and peel the paper off just like a bandage.
- Then paste them on your feet with the central part on your soles and the sticky tape around them.
- You can wear the socks over them so that they don’t slip away while you are asleep and to keep your feet warm.
- Have a good quality sleep with these detox pads on your body overnight.
- Remove these detox foot pads from your feet in the morning.
- Rinse your feet with warm water and wipe them clean.
- Repeat this routine every other night and morning.
Conclusion
Most of us who follow a sedentary lifestyle tend to try to find an easier way to solve our problems. But, unfortunately, most of the time, the products on the internet are sold to us based on this very idea with some deceptive advertising of big claims with no scientific evidence to support them.
However, the views of a consumer may differ from the research evidence. So, it is safe to say that if there are no known hazardous side effects of a product, there is no harm in trying one. However, since many consumers claim that these foot pads have helped them detoxify, get some sound sleep, achieve body freshness, and get rid of painful feet, why not try them?
Dr. Adil MBBS is an experienced medical writer and has successfully delivered various scientific meetings and materials. Combined with a passion for writing, he has honed a well-rounded perspective on the scientific knowledge that applies to his clients’ needs. He is passionate about using scientific storytelling to inspire change in clinical practice and improve the quality of patient care.