Is it just aging, or could it be neuropathy?

Living in Bluffton and Hilton Head has a way of keeping people moving. There are beach walks, grocery runs, church on Sundays, dinner with friends, chasing grandkids and at least one person in every neighborhood who still insists they can outwalk everybody else before breakfast.

So when your feet start feeling strange, it is easy to explain it away. “Maybe I’m just getting older” is what a lot of people say at first.

Then their feet start tingling a little. Maybe there is some numbness, or burning shows up at night. Or maybe balance feels a little off. Perhaps they feel like they are walking on marshmallows, rubber or thick socks bunched up under their feet even when they are barefoot. Instead of thinking “neuropathy,” they think, “Well, I guess this is just part of aging.”

But here is the truth:

Getting older may increase the chances of nerve problems, but numbness, tingling, burning or losing normal feeling in the feet is not something to casually shrug off as normal aging. Peripheral neuropathy can cause gradual numbness, tingling, burning pain, the sensation of wearing socks when you are not, loss of coordination and falls.

It usually does not show up all at once like a marching band coming through the living room. It creeps in quietly. A little tingling here. A little numbness there. Some nighttime burning. A little less confidence on stairs. It is easy to blame on age, bad shoes, “poor circulation” or sleeping funny.

Until one day, you realize you are watching every step as though you are crossing a wobbly dock in flip-flops.

Peripheral neuropathy happens when nerves outside the brain and spinal cord are damaged or stop sending clear signals. Instead of normal information, the nerves may send too much signal, too little signal or the wrong signal altogether. That is why a person can feel numbness and burning at the same time, which sounds contradictory until it happens to you.

And here is something else people do not always know: Sometimes the bigger problem is not pain. Sometimes it is the loss of normal sensation.

If you cannot feel the ground properly, balance becomes more difficult. Walking on uneven surfaces, stairs, grass, sand or in dim light can suddenly feel less automatic. Neuropathy can also cause loss of coordination and falls.

So no, not every odd foot symptom means neuropathy. But it is not wise to assume it is “just aging,” either.

The Lowcountry is too good a place to spend your time staring at the floor and negotiating with your toes. If you have numbness, tingling or burning, or if your feet feel like they are walking on marshmallows, your body may be trying to tell you something. It may be time to get evaluated for peripheral neuropathy. Start early, before a small problem turns into a bigger one.

Dr. Kenneth Horup, DC is a Chiropractic Physician at Discover Specific Chiropractic, Certified in Neuropathy.