Why should people with diabetes check their feet regularly?

Diabetes can impair both blood flow and nerve sensitivity in the feet. Poor circulation means that tiny cuts, ulcerations, cracks in the skin, or other minor injuries can become infected, and because of poor nerve functioning, a person with diabetes may not notice. Untreated infections can progress so quickly that the foot or lower leg may have to be amputated. There were nearly 82,000 such amputations among diabetics in 2002 alone, according to the National Diabetes Education Program, part of the National Institutes of Health.
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