Fashion is something that changes over time, but some trends endure. Take the high-heeled shoe.
However, the struggle between looking stylish and keeping your feet healthy is an issue. Forcing your feet into these shoes can lead to a variety of long-term problems that affect how you walk.
For foot problems stemming from high heels, residents of the Lower Pacific Heights area of San Francisco and those residing in San Jose, California, can get help from Dr. Andrew Harrison and our experienced medical team.
While you might look good in high heels, forcing your feet into awkward positions can damage your feet. This can lead to many problems, including the following:
High heels also impact how you move and other parts of your body. Here are some more impacts of wearing high heels:
Gait is how you walk, and high heels comprise several parts of that process. To start, you don’t push off the ground properly, so your hip flexor muscles have to do more work. That affects other parts of your lower body.
High heels impact your posture by creating more pressure on the forefoot, forcing your body to change how it moves to compensate. Your lower body shifts forward to keep balance, and your upper body leans the opposite way as a countermeasure.
High heels make it difficult to navigate different surfaces, and moving quickly means stressing the balls of your feet more to keep balance while moving.
Wearing high heels means shifting that position in the lower and mid back, leading to alignment issues and back pain.
Wearing high heels can cause knee arthritis. If you already have arthritis, high heels will worsen it.
High heels affect ankle mobility, forcing the calf muscles to shorten and tighten.
You don’t have to put away your high heels for good but try to wear them only on special occasions. If you have more questions or are experiencing foot pain, make an appointment with Dr. Harrison and our team today.
