Does anybody knit socks for somebody with diabetes? If so, what yarns do they find comfortable? I’m thinking about knitting socks for somebody that suffers from a lot of severe swelling in their feet, as well as somebody that spends a lot of time on their feet, so they have to be cool and comfortable (something with cotton as opposed to wool, maybe?)
Are socks a long knit because they use smaller needles and thinner yarn? I’ve never knit them before, and I’d like to, but I don’t want to get discouraged with the project if they take too long.
Socks can take longer than you might think if you use regular sock yarn. Most sock yarn labels say you can use between size 1 and 3 needles although a lot of people will tell you that size 3 is too large and some people go down to a size 0 for socks.
You can make socks out of heavier yarn but if you do they may be too thick to wear with shoes although they might be worn with slippers, adjustable sandals or perhaps boots.
Despite the findings of the doctors I have never heard of anyone making a satisfactory handknit sock out of acrylic yarn. Since the article mentions that the socks evaluated were commercial I’m assuming they were machine made socks rather than handknit. Acrylic doesn’t breathe and doesn’t have good insulating abilities. If it’s cold your feet will be cold too. If it’s hot your feet will be hot too. If your feet sweat the acrylic will not absorb the moisture the way wool does. Acrylic also doesn’t hold its shape the way wool does so the socks will be more likely to bag and fall down. In yarn your best bet would be the superwash merino.
My husband has diabetes and he cannot wear store bought cotton (or any other material)socks because of the sensitivity of his feet. I knit him a pair of socks using Austerman yarn with aloe in it. He loves them and they really help his feet. The aloe soothes. It lasts for 40 washings.
Size 0 is small. The wooden ones look like toothpicks. Ask me how I know. I wound up breaking one. I use two metal circular needles now for socks so I can’t break them. Most of the time I use size 2 though because I find I can get the same gauge with size 2 circs as I used to get with size 1 dpns.
Well, I’ve knitted socks with acrylic 2 times, and although I prefer cotton, it isn’t as bad as everyone says. Acrylic does hold shape, at least, good enough to keep my socks on my feet in boots, so that’s pretty good. If your feet sweat it will get really smelly, but that’s with all manmade fiber. (I’ve got some coolmax walkingsocks and believe me, the smell from those socks is as bad as from acrylic socks) The acrylic does keep my feet warm in winter, altough last winter wasn’t really cold here in the Netherlands.
So although I’d never wear acrylic socks whole day, they can be good when someone doesn’t have sweaty feet and is allergic to wool (I think wool is still the best for socks, to bad I can’t use it)
yup my husband has diabetes and I make his socks. I use Gloss from knitpicks This yarn is really soft when knitted up. The down side is I have to wash by hand. I wasn’t thinking when I bought the yarn:pout: I don’t mind washing them, it is the drying time that is a bummer. He wants to wear them all the time.:happydance: which makes me happy:hug: I am going to try the Essential Tweed this time around. It has the same as gloss but it is a superwash. I also use the Pure and Simply sock patterns for his and my socks :flirt: love there patterns really easy to follow. So good luck in making your socks and let us know how they turn out.
I’m diabetic and have foot and ankle swelling problems so I knit my socks large. I make sure the patterns are “stretchy” (lots of ribbing is good) and I like wool, even in the summer cuz the circulation in my feet is not so good and I am always cold. I love my knitted socks! I have one pair from Austermann Step and the addition of the aloe is nice.
I’m glad this thread was revived because I didn’t see it the first time. The Knitty article is so interesting. My mother is diabetic, but I didn’t realize how important foot care is, and never thought about socks being a problem. This thread has given me a lot of good information that I want to share with my mother. Thank you!
