Summer is here and that means many of you ladies will be rocking those beautiful summer sandals and high heels. Before we start, let us just say that we (speaking on behalf of the females in the Sole Motion team) do wear high heels. We wear them because we don’t suffer from any foot pain, we’re fully informed on the effects on our feet and know how to minimise the risks (also, because they make us look fabulous!). We understand that your feet are the foundation of your bodies movement and posture, so the shoes that support these foundations greatly impact the rest of the body.

Perhaps that’s where some women go wrong – they generally know that high heels aren’t the best for your feet but they have no idea what that means, what the effects are, or how to make sensible choices. Hence, we thought we’d bring you up to speed on what regular heel wear means for your body so you can be informed and make the best decisions this summer!

The Impact of High Heels is Progressive

 If you wear heels for a day, you may not experience any pain and you may think that you’re one of the lucky ones who doesn’t get any negative consequences from wearing heels. The truth is, the impact of heels is progressive, meaning the real damage and changes accumulate over time (apart from blisters, of course). That’s why ill-fitting footwear is one of the main causes of the development of bunions. This is important to understand because it means that while wearing high heels for the odd dinner or formal occasion can be very much acceptable (we’re assuming you don’t suffer from any lower limb pain or conditions), wearing heels every day for work and expecting to get away with it is another story – and essentially impossible to ‘get away with’ long-term.

The Effects On Your Body

We came across and really like the image below (thanks Marlene Reid & Family Podiatry Center) to show the effects of wearing heels daily on your feet over time. Through the years sore feet will progress to deformities and bumps of the toes such as bunions, as well as Haglund’s deformities (bony bump on the back of the heel) and many others. Years of putting great pressure on the front of the foot and overloading it will manifest into pain and damage to the forefoot structures. This could present as a capsulitis, bursitis, neuroma, plantar plate disruption, metatarsalgia or various other forefoot conditions. Unfortunately, just like the damage took time to develop, it will take time to heal, and that means time without heels.

Moving forward many more years and over your lifetime, you’ll start to get chronic changes and damage. Structures like the Achilles tendon can become stiffer and shorter because of its regularly contracted position in heels. Other muscles can weaken, such as those around the ankles and hip joints, which affects the integrity and stability of your whole body. This can easily result in back and neck pain, as well as the overuse of so many other structures. Joints such as the ankle, knee, and the forefoot joints (among others) can also become arthritic. At this point, it will become all about managing and easing the pain, as arthritis (and other conditions) cause permanent changes and damage to the joints.

Our Recommendation For Heels This Summer

 If you’re going to be wearing heels this summer, here are a few of our recommendations:

1. Do not hesitate to come in to get your feet checked if you start experiencing any pain. Often patients ignore those little niggles that are actually an indicator that something much greater is developing. Instead of stopping it in its tracks, patients ignore it in the hopes that the niggle will go away. When it doesn’t, it can take weeks if not months of recovery.

2. If you start to see changes in your feet, such as the formation of bumps on bunions, come in and see us. Bunions are difficult to treat in the later years when they become rigid and fixed but can be very much treatable in the early stages while they’re still flexible.

3. Limit the time spent in your heels. If you’re going to wear them, wear them occasionally and not for an excessively long period to try and minimise the damage.

4. Alternate the heel height and the footwear. Wear lower heels when possible to reduce the strain on your feet. Opt for wedges instead of stilettos for better pressure distribution and because the platform reduces the height and incline.

For tips on choosing the most comfortable heels, check out this blog: https://solemotionpodiatry.com/win-with-comfortable-shoes-melbourne-cup-2017/

We hope you have a fantastic summer and stay healthy and happy! To book an appointment, call our expert team on 1300-FX-FEET