Blisters are misunderstood, and bad advice is everywhere. In this Blister Prevention Office Hours episode, we’re busting blister myths and setting the record straight.
Blister Myths About Causes
🦄 MYTH 1: Friction blisters are caused by rubbing
✅ TRUTH: Nope! They’re caused by shear—repetitive stretching and distortion under the skin.
🦄 MYTH 2: Something has to rub your skin to cause a blister
✅ TRUTH: Not at all! It’s actually the bones inside your foot moving that creates the problem, while your skin surface doesn’t move.
🦄 MYTH 3: Blisters are caused by your shoe rubbing your foot
✅ TRUTH: How could it? Your sock is covering your foot the whole time.
🦄 MYTH 4: Blisters happen because your foot moves around in your shoe
✅ TRUTH: The real issue is your bones moving inside your foot—not your foot moving in the shoe.
🦄 MYTH 5: Rubbing is the problem
✅ TRUTH: Not always! In fact, rubbing is often the solution (that’s how lubricants like Vaseline work).
🦄 MYTH 6: Friction is rubbing
✅ TRUTH: Friction is a tricky word—it also means the opposite: the force that resists rubbing. That’s the definition that matters when it comes to blisters.
🦄 MYTH 7: Reducing friction means reducing rubbing
✅ TRUTH: Actually, it means rubbing will happen sooner. Your skin surface will start moving with your bone earlier during each step.
🦄 MYTH 8: Friction blisters are a burn
✅ TRUTH: Rubbing doesn’t produce enough heat to burn the skin
🦄 MYTH 9: Blisters are a superficial-to-deep wear injury
✅ No, that’s an abrasion. The blister injury is a tear underneath the skin surface.
🦄 MYTH 10: Blisters are mainly caused by pressure
✅ TRUTH: While blisters often occur at bony prominences, it’s the movement of the underlying bone, coupled with high friction force preventing the skin surface form moving in sync with the bone that causes friction blisters.
Blister Myths About Preventions
🦄 MYTH 11: Tape is the best way to stop blisters because it stops rubbing
✅ TRUTH: Blisters aren’t caused by rubbing. Tape spreads out shear force, but it doesn’t eliminate it.
🦄 MYTH 12: Compeed is the best way to prevent blisters
✅ TRUTH: Compeed (hydrocolloids) are no more effective than tape at blister prevention.
🦄 MYTH 13: Callouses are a good defense against blisters
✅ If blisters were a superficial-to-deep wear injury, maybe. But since they’re also caused by shear, callouses just show where you’re more likely to get a blister.
🦄 MYTH 14: Bigger shoes will prevent blisters
✅ Shoes that are too big and loose can cause blisters too—especially on your toes, since your foot slides forward.
🦄 MYTH 15: You can train your feet to stop getting blisters
✅ Your skin does adapt over time, but only to a point. For some people, that adaption is enough. For others, it’s not enough.
🦄 MYTH 16: If you’re still getting blisters, you didn’t train hard enough
✅ TRUTH: Training helps toughen skin, but it’s not a magic fix for everyone.
🦄 MYTH 17: Friction is bad and should always be reduced
✅ TRUTH: Friction isn’t inherently bad—it actually provides traction which is a good thing.
🦄 MYTH 18: You should reduce friction all over your foot to prevent blisters
✅ TRUTH: Nope! You only want to reduce it where necessary (your blistered or blister-prone areas) so you don’t mess with the efficiency of your gait.
🦄 MYTH 19: Reducing friction is the only way to prevent blisters
✅ TRUTH: There are many ways to prevent blisters, including the use of materials to absorb or spread shear load, or stabilising bones and activity modification.
🦄 MYTH 20: Blisters are inevitable in [insert sport or activity here]
✅ TRUTH: Nope! Blisters are 100% preventable in every sport or activity.
🦄 MYTH 21: If you’re getting blisters, your shoes don’t fit properly
✅ TRUTH: Shoe fit matters, but it’s not the whole story.
Blister Myths About Treatment
🦄 MYTH 22: Compeed is the best blister treatment
✅TRUTH: Compeed (hydrocolloids) are only good for one kind of blister—deroofed blisters. They often make intact and torn blisters worse.
🦄 MYTH 23: Blister treatment is all about what bandage you use
✅ TRUTH: Dressings help, but they’re just first aid. If you want to stop a blister from getting worse and stop it from hurting, you need to reduce shear—just like you would to prevent one in the first place.
🦄 MYTH 24: You should never pop a blister
✅ TRUTH: Sometimes it’s actually better to lance a blister—you just have to do it the right way. And don’t worry, it’s painless!
Need Help?
👣 Learn more at Blister Prevention Pro – website for podiatrists and health professionals
👣 Enrol in Blister Prevention University – course for podiatrists and health professionals
👣 Send your patients/clients to Blister Prevention – website for the general public
📱 Pathomechanics of friction blisters on the feet – video for podiatrists and health professionals
