High heel are not all that good after all
ANI | May 23, 2011, 01.10pm IST

A study has revealed that wearing high heel shoes with small toe box can lead to various foot problems.

According to a recent study, 39 per cent of women said that they wear high heels every day, and 75 per cent of those women say that they experience regular shoe-related foot pain and suffer from bunions, arthritic big toes, calluses, hammertoes, and plantar warts.

"Many women wear shoes to work every day that look great but they are simply too small," said Dr. Pedro Cosculluela, an orthopedic surgeon with The Methodist Hospital in Houston.

"The biggest problems we encounter are related to the height of the heel and/or the narrowness of the toe box," he added.

The narrow toe box makes it hard for many women to properly fit their entire foot into the shoe. This poor fit can lead to toe deformities in many women. These include bunions, hammertoes, and calluses.

"As the deformity worsens, the big toe loses its ability to properly carry the load, which can lead to increase pressure along two through five. This can, in turn, lead to pain and cause hammertoes and cross-over toe deformities," said Cosculluela.

"This, and other foot problems women experience because of poor shoe wear, do not happen overnight. It's a gradual process that can happen over a period of years," added Cosculluela.
Cosculluela adds that the frequent use of high heels is associated with the development of tight calf muscles. This can lead other painful foot problems such as plantar fasciitis, flat feet and Achilles tendonitis.

MY THOUGHTS

I've given them up - those high heels that put too much pressure on my feet and my legs.