Shoes You Should Not Use!

Wear shoes with a wide fit to avoid squishing your toes.  Prolonged use of heels can lead to the appearance of bunions.

Most women know that it’s quite uncomfortable to wear high heels too often. Yet, regardless of this discomfort, many still wear them daily. Keep reading to find out about which types of shoes you should not use.

Frequent use of heels that are very narrow and more than 3 cm high has been proven to be very damaging to the health of our feet. It can cause the appearance of bunions, a permanent deformity of the bones of the feet that is quite painful.

The studies were conducted by researchers at Rey Juan Carlos de Madrid University, in collaboration with CEMTRO Clinic, and were presented at the World Congress of Podiatry held in Rome, Italy.  Dr. Rubén Sánchez Gomez, who is the author of the study and also a member of the podiatry service of the well-known clinic in Madrid, says that until now, it had been known that overly frequent use of heels that were too narrow could cause serious deformities in thebones of the feet. However, it had not been discovered that heels of regular height were also the cause of bunions.

How Did They Come to This Conclusion?

Approximately eighty women underwent this study to arrive at this conclusion.  None of them had suffered any foot deformity prior to the study.  The study involved shoes with really high heels, others without a heel at all, and none with a terribly narrow heel.

It was observed in the study that in women who increased the height of their heels, the phalange bone next to the hallux and the first metatarsal deviated from their normal positions.

After the women who underwent this study stopped wearing high heels, the toe returned to normal, firmly demonstrating that those women who wear heels higher than 3 cm tall and in a frequent manner, may develop a deviation of the bones and over a long period of time, possibly into a permant deformity.

What Happens to Women Who Use This Sort of Footwear Their Whole Lives?

Almost 60% of women over fifty years of age are suffering from frequent and acute pains in their feet caused by bunions, a deformity that can lead to inhibiting proper mobility, and also serious lower back problems. This can greatly affect one’s quality of life, and in most cases, causes insecurity and oftentimes can lead to depression.

What Happens in the Foot?

The frontal part of the foot has the function of supporting up to 57% of the body’s weight.  With 4 cm heels, this percentage increases considerably, leading to an increase of up to 75% when the heels are increased approximately 2 cm.  With the increase of the load on the front of the foot, it is also common for stiffness to appear in the central region of the foot, which is very painful and cause an inability to move with freedom.

With the aim of preventing these painful deformities, it is recommended that you avoid using narrow heeled shoes, as they do not have the capacity to keep the toes comfortable and without being squeezed. They cause pain and force the big toe to deviate from its normal position.

When the deformity of the bones of the feet has solidified, there is no way to fix it. One can only resort to natural treatment to help relieve some of the pain, as the deviation and the loss of mobility cannot be recovered by any medical treatment. However, in certain cases, there are some surgeries that can help alleviate this malady a little.

We can conclude that it is better to not use this type of footwear, although it’s true they can make us look very stylish and elegant. But we also have to be aware that they can cause big problems, affecting the health of our feet.