Foot Problems Associated with Shoes

[Sid]

Bunions

Wearing shoes that are too tight or cause the toes to be squeezed together is also a common factor, one that explains the high prevalence of the disorder among women.

Nerve Compression (previously known as Neuromas)

Improper footwear that causes the toes to be squeezed together is problematic.

Corns and Calluses

Corns often occur where a toe rubs against the interior of a shoe. Excessive pressure at the balls of the feet—common in women who regularly wear high heels—may cause calluses to develop on the balls of the feet.

Ingrown Toenails

Ingrown toenails may be caused by the following: … Shoe pressure; crowding of toes

Hammer Toes

Wearing shoes that are too tight and cause the toes to squeeze can also cause a hammer toe to form.

Haglund’s Deformity

Sometimes it's called “pump bump” because the deformity often occurs in women who wears pumps. .... Wearing shoes with a firm, rigid back may also contribute to the development of Haglund's Deformity.

The effects of habitual footwear use: foot shape and function in native barefoot walkers

Habitually shod Indians wore less often, and less constricting shoes than Western people. Yet, we found significant differences with their habitually barefoot peers, both in foot shape and in pressure distribution. Barefoot walkers had wider feet and more equally distributed peak pressures, i.e. the entire load carrying surface was contributing more uniformly than in habitually shod subjects, where regions of very high or very low peak pressures were more apparent. ... The evolutionary history of humans shows that barefoot walking is the biologically natural situation. ... Current data suggests that footwear that fails to respect natural foot shape and function will ultimately alter the morphology and the biomechanical behaviour of the foot.

Shod versus unshod: The emergence of forefoot pathology in modern humans?

The Sotho and European groups presented with notably greater frequencies of pathological changes followed by the Zulu group and then the pre-pastoral [habitually unshod]. Conclusions: The pathological lesions found in the metatarsals of the three recent human groups generally appeared to be more severe than those found in the pre-pastoral group

Hallux valgus in a historical French population: paleopathological study of 605 first metatarsal bones.

The increase in the prevalence of hallux valgus over time suggests an influence of changes in footwear. The heeled shoes and boots made of stiff leather that men wore in premodern times probably promoted the development of hallux valgus. However, the prevalence of hallux valgus in women in western industrialized countries today is even higher than that in our historical population of older premodern individuals, suggesting an extremely deleterious effect of contemporary female footwear.

The influence of footwear on the prevalence of flat foot. A survey of 2300 children.

Flat foot was most common in children who wore closed-toe shoes, less common in those who wore sandals or slippers, and least in the unshod. Our findings suggest that shoe-wearing in early childhood is detrimental to the development of a normal longitudinal arch.

Foot pain: Is current or past shoewear a factor?

In our study of community dwelling older adults, past shoewear among women was a predictive, statistically significant factor for hindfoot pain... In women, we found an increased risk between foot pain at the hindfoot location and shoewear.

Revisiting the Tailor’s Bunion and Adductovarus Deformity of the Fifth Digit

Consequently, constricting shoes are the main source of discomfort. With continuous pressure over the prominent fifth metatarsal, a bursa can develop as a result of chronic irritation to the area.

AU study shows wearing flip-flops can lead to orthopedic problems

"We found that when people walk in flip-flops, they alter their gait, which can result in problems and pain from the foot up into the hips and lower back. Variations like this at the foot can result in changes up the kinetic chain, which in this case can extend upward in the wearer's body."

 

[Barefoot TJ]

Stickied! Thanks again.