For many women, high heel shoes are a staple in daily, professional, and formal wardrobes. Since heels can be found in a variety of heights, colors, styles, and price points, women can wear them in a variety of settings without sacrificing their personal style.
Wearing heels everyday, however, may be more than just a fashion statement. Numerous studies done on women who wear high heels frequently found that these shoes, while they may liven up an outfit, may be doing serious damage to feet and ankles.
Wearing High Heels May Be Bad for Your Feet
"Women do love their high heels, but if you wear them all the time, significant foot pain and other problems can ensue, either as a direct result of the heels or exacerbated by them," says Dr. Morris Morin, who directs the podiatric medicine division of Hackensack University Medical Center, told Good Housekeeping.
Wearing high heels frequently can cause a variety of issues, most notably being pain in the toes or the heel of the foot. When women wear heels, says running coach Jenny Hadfield, their weight is forced forward onto their toes instead of being evenly distributed throughout the foot. Additionally, high heels constrict the natural shape and movement of the foot and shorten calf muscles, which also causes pain.
High heel shoes can also cause bunions, or bony protrusions at the base of the big toe, to become aggravated by rubbing against the inside of the shoe. WebMD also says that women who have bunions may also have a bone in their feet that is displaced, and when wearing heels, the pressure and friction from the shoe may cause additional pain. Women who wear pointy-toed heels are at a higher risk due to the shape of the shoe's toe box.
In more extreme cases, frequently wearing high heels can lead to a shortening of the Achilles tendon, which according to WebMD, causes a condition called Achilles tendonitis. This occurs because the tendon shortens when feet are placed in the position needed to wear high heels for extended periods of time. When feet are held in this position for long periods of time over many months or years, the tendon begins to shorten. Surgery is needed to correct the tendon's length and restore it to its proper position.
Another more serious condition caused by wearing high heels frequently is metatarsalgia, which is caused by large amount of pressure being put on the ball of the foot over the course of time.
When women wear high heels, their weight is balanced on the ball of the foot instead of being evenly distributed. The thick layer of fat that cushions feet while walking is worn away due to prolonged pressure. This causes the bones in the balls of women's feet to be subjected to more and more pressure and rubbing while standing or walking, which can cause severe pain and other foot problems.
How to Prevent Foot Pain from Wearing High Heels
Even though high heels may make women feel better in the short term, the pain that comes from wearing high heels on a frequent basis can make anyone want to abandon the shoe for a long time.
Doctors and researchers all agree that the best way to avoid pain from wearing high heels is to wear them as little as possible. Switching to flatter shoes with more support for feet and ankles is ideal for every day use and to wear while commuting to and from places and events where women plan on wearing high heels.
If avoiding the shoes at all costs is not an option, women should try wearing shoes with a small heel for every day wear and saving the stilettos and spike heels for special occasions. Women may also want to purchase padded inserts to put in high heel shoes to provide extra cushion for their toes while wearing these shoes, especially in environments where women have to do a lot of standing and walking in heels. Hadfield also recommends strengthening the feet by performing exercises barefoot and regularly massaging feet, calf muscles, and hips to release the tension in the muscles that wearing high heels creates.
Wearing high heels can do different things for an outfit, but the same shoes can also cause serious problems for women's feet, legs, backs, and hips. By paying attention to one's body and wearing high heels wisely, it is possible to continue wearing a beloved pair of high heels and avoid pain and injury at the same time.
Sources
- Bouchez, Colette. "Foot Pain and High Heels" Good Housekeeping, accessed 20 April 2011.
- Bouchez, Colette. "Tips to Avoid Foot Pain from High Heels" WebMD, accessed 21 April 2011.
- Hadfield, Jenny. "High Heels and Running: The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly" Runner's World, published May 2010, accessed 21 April 2011.
- Shaw, Gina. "The Worst Shoes for Your Feet" WebMD, accessed 20 April 2011.
Ashley Anderson - Ashley is an Ohio-based writer and editor with specializations in higher education, writing, and social activism.
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