Numbness in Toes

"About four days ago, I woke to numb toes on my feet. The numbness lasted for three to four hours during the day, however, it subsided afterward. Again, when I was about to go to bed the same day at night, I experienced numbness in my toes. It is now occurring quite often and I'm really worried about it. I don't know what is the exact cause of this numbness is. I'm busy in my sister's wedding preparations and I don't want to be away from all the fun even for a day. I phoned my doctor and scheduled an appointment with him. Though I'm working normally, still I preferred to get it checked by the family doctor. I don't want to miss the dance bash on the wedding eve". ~ Shelly

Like Shelly, many people complain of numbness that occurs frequently. Such a feeling in fingers is like that of a needle being pricked in the toes and hands. Some people describe numbness as a burning sensation, while others call it to be a loss of sensation around the toes, fingers and feet. It is medically called Toe Paresthesia and it can occur due to various medical conditions.

Causes
It is caused due to some health conditions that affect the body. There are various causes for numbness and tingling in toes. Some of the causes of this condition have been discussed here.

Diabetic neuropathy
Diabetic neuropathy is a condition, which is caused due to diabetes and it affects the functioning of the nervous system. The most common symptom of diabetic neuropathy is the numbness in the feet. The numbness and tingling in toes can be caused due to the problems of nervous system. Similarly, the conditions of diabetic peripheral neuropathy can cause problems of numbness.

Multiple Sclerosis
Multiple sclerosis is a condition that affects the nervous system and in this condition, there is a problem in communication between the nerve cells and spinal cord. In the advanced stages of this disease, the person loses control over the coordinating muscles and so, it leads to numbness in the toes and fingers.

Some other possible causes are as follows:

• Sitting cross-legged for a long time
• Sciatica
• Spondylolisthesis
• Spinal tumors and infections
• Restless legs syndrome
• Leprosy
• Polyarteritis nodosa

As we can see, the toe numbness causes are various and the numbness in toe and legs can surely be related to some problems that can are internally affecting the body. The treatment for numbness in toe has been discussed further.

Treatment
The treatment for this disease involves getting control of the medical conditions that are causing the numbness. For example, in some cases like that of multiple sclerosis, it is very difficult to treat the disease and so, some level of numbness will always be there. For other diseases, curing them is the only option to control the numbness. There are various home remedies that can help one in curing issues related to numbness of toes. For instance, massaging the toes and legs with mustard or olive oil at least thrice a week before going to bed, can help in the treatment of this problem. One must lessen the intake of foods containing large amounts of starch and increase the intake of vitamins and minerals. Since alcohol consumption leads to increase in sensation of tingling limbs, its consumption must be avoided or limited.

In some toe numbness cases, the person can feel dizziness while standing in a line for a long time or can find it difficult to concentrate. If any of these symptoms are observed, then immediate medical intervention is necessary. An expert doctor will find out the root cause of the numbness in toes and based on that, he will suggest ways to treat the numbness. As a part of the diagnosis, the doctor will try to find out if the person has any symptoms of arthritis or if there are vitamin deficiencies in the body. Sometimes, inadequate diet leads to weakness in the muscles and body parts causing pain. It is also possible that in several cases the reasons behind toe numbness is limited to simple causes like wearing badly fitting shoes or lack of movements in the legs. Sedentary lifestyle, as we all know affects our overall health and so it must be avoided.

Numbness can also be caused during the recovery period of some serious bone surgeries and in this case, it can be treated with the help of physical therapy and an orthopedic expert. With the help of physical exercises and occupational therapy, numbness in toes and fingers can be cured.