If you read my last post What Are Diabetic Slippers Anyway then you should know what separates normal everyday slippers from the therapeutic kinds. In many cases there isn’t much difference. The soles should be thick; they should be comfortable and non-irritating to the skin; they should be sturdy enough to protect the feet from stubbed and cracked toes.
In other ways their features should be at least desirable if not required. They should help keep your foot dry. They should breathe well and keep your foot warm but not too hot. Sweating a lot from the feet is not ideal even if the moisture is whisked away.
Other features however are almost always unimportant for the average foot. These are the features which typically add to the price tag of good diabetic slippers.
The Cost Of Diabetic Slippers
Cheap diabetic slippers will probably not be very adjustable. Their construction material will not likely be high end stuff and their soles and sidewalls may not be the sturdiest. Prices on these will tend to be the lowest and they are really not much more different than picking up wide width cheap generic slippers from Wal-Mart. $10 is probably not a bad price for the cheapest of all options.
If you want reasonably good slippers however you are going to have to pony up a bit of dough. This Christmas I bought my grandmother, who is a diabetic, a pair of these house shoes by Propet. They cost me around $60 and can sell for even higher than that off-line. I even stopped by a store specializing in wide-width shoes just to see them in person. They appeared to be perfect but they were selling for around $80.
Of course there are middle ground options which can fall in the $20-$50 range. If you have fewer foot problems or less of a need for good slippers for one reason or another then these can be viable alternatives.
Finding slippers which aren’t as adjustable can help bring costs down but may make finding a perfect fit harder. Removable insoles may not be available on heaper slippers but may not be needed for all people. Similarly moisture controlling materials may be less important for some people who simply do not sweat as much. More normal materials can keep costs lower.
Is The Price Of Diabetic Slippers Worth It?
Regardless of how much you are willing to spend it’s worth noting one more time that buying something a little better is always a good choice. Diabetic slippers are a type of preventative medicine for people with diabetes. Diabetes often leads to neuropathy of the feet which can make injuries and infections much more likely. Your slippers can help protect your feet and indirectly keep your medical issues less severe and medical costs lower in the long run.
See this post for some cheap diabetic slippers for those on a tight budget or this post for a list of some of the best diabetic slippers I can recommend.
