Alcohol-Related Foot Burning: Understanding Nerve Damage & Symptoms

Long-term and excessive alcohol consumption can cause damage to the nerves in your feet, which can result in burning feet, according to Footneuropathy.net.

Effects

• When you are experiencing peripheral neuropathy in your feet, in addition to the burning sensation, you may also experience tingling, tickling and the feeling of pins and needles.

Identification

• When damage is done to the nerves that carry information to the spinal cord and brain--which can occur if you have consumed excessive quantities of alcohol over a long period of time--this leads to pain in your feet, loss of sensation or strange sensations, and an inability to control your muscles.

Considerations

• A condition called Wernicke-Korsakoff syndrome (a neurological disorder) can develop in malnourished alcoholics, which can result in foot burning. This condition is also called cerebral beriberi.

Thiamine Deficiency

• Beriberi is thiamine deficiency disease in the brain, according to Neurology.health-cares.net. Thiamin deficiency impacts the muscular system as well as your nervous-, gastrointestinal- and cardiovascular systems.

Additional Factors

• Burning feet can be caused by other factors than alcohol including a trapped nerve, gout, smoking, diabetes, athlete̵7;s foot, an allergic reaction and dampness in your shoes or socks that when subjected to friction leads to the burning sensation.