Keep That Callus

Keep That Callus

First off, a callus is a thickened and hardened part of the skin or soft tissue, esp. in an area that has been subjected to friction. In regards to nail technology, most calluses that are seen in the salon are found on the bottoms of the heels, and sides of the feet and toes. Many common calluses are also found on pressure points on the bottoms of the feet. I always get 
them on the backs and edges of my heels. 

Sometimes, we notice that calluses cause us agitation or pain, and thus we wish to reduce them. Have you ever gone into a discount nail salon and seen one of these tools used on your feet?

At some nail salons, your pedicurist might offer to shave your calluses with a credo blade (that handheld device that looks like a cross between a razor and a vegetable peeler seen above). But, however tempting the allure of callus-free feet may be, I suggest you turn down the offer immediately!

You see, in most states, having a pedicurist shave your calluses is Illegal. (In Virginia it is!) Shaving calluses is seen as "removing living tissue" and can (and should) only be done by a doctor or podiatrist. If your discount salon is using one of these tools, check with your states regulations. If shaving calluses is illegal, then your pedicurist is either:

1. Untrained and/or not licensed
2. Unaware of the states regulations and not licensed
3. or blatantly disregarding this regulation to up her sales. 

Many discount salons will try to talk you into callous shaving because it is an additional service and charge. At the discount place I was going, they never even ask, they just shave away and throw the hidden charge into my total. 

As well, to even be completely sanitary, the blades should be changed between each client - and often they never are. Which means even if they clean the the tool, there could still be traces of skin and blood on the blade. If you do allow this tool to be used on you at the salon, make sure you ask your technician to change the blade and re-clean the tool in front of you. 

When you go to discount salons and they shave all of your callus off at once, your feet literally freak out! The more you cut and shave off your callus, the worse they grow back. Your body reacts to your callused skin being removed as it would to any other skin injury—by growing new tissue. Not to mention: Calluses protect our feet from daily wear and tear—think high heels and friction caused by walking or jogging.

But I can buy one of these tools at my local drug store, how can it be so bad? 
You are allowed to remove as much of your own personal living tissue as you want. It is your body and when shaving your own calluses, you should personally be able to tell when you have removed enough to make you feel better. But unless you are a doctor, who is trained to remove living tissue from the human body, you should never use a tool like this on someone else. This is for your on safety as well as the person's who is having the callus removed. As a nail tech, if I were to use a tool like this and cut you and make you bleed, it would be my liability.  

Now, please do not get callus shaving confused with Callus Reducing or Callus Removing services. Many nail salons offer callus reducing services that help reduce the amount of callus on your feet. This service is usually done over a matter of weekly visits and is done by filing off a thin layer of callus at a time until you have a light amount of callus left to continue protecting your sweet feet. 

These services are considered safe as long as the file being used is disposable or the file pad is replaceable and the handle is cleanable. However, anyone who is an athlete should absolutely never remove calluses unless it is recommenced by a doctor. For athletes, calluses actually help level their performance.

If you have a callus that is bothering you, talk to your doctor or podiatrist and let them guide you in the right direction for your foot care! It's their job and it is what they are specifically trained to do. As a licensed nail tech, that is always what we should tell you to do. If a tech ever treats you or diagnoses any nail ailment, know that they are untrained to do so and that you should seek the proper information from your doctor.  

Be Radiant!
Amanda