Healthy Footwear
for good healthy feet
If you want healthy feet then obviously wearing healthy footwear will go a long way to reaching your goal.
Some will go as far as saying that going barefoot is the best.
However some notable shoe manufacturers design their shoes so that plenty of room is allowed for the toes in the length and the width of the shoe yet still supporting the heel and the instep.
This greatly decreases the risk of deforming the feet which can happen by using tight fitting shoes.
Healthy footwear, by using good natural materials like leather, can keep the feet from overheating.
The natural fibers can absorb sweat and as long as the shoes are adequately ventilated they can protect the feet from harmful foot disorders and infections like;
Athletes foot,
Toenail Fungus,
Ingrown Toenail
Verrucas
Foot corns
Hammer toe
Cracked heels
The fact is though we can not go barefoot as much as some of us would like to.
Walking barefoot over some man made surfaces can be really bad for your feet yet walking over some natural surfaces like a sandy beach or a grassy field can be very good for foot health.
The natural surfaces acting as a massage and defoliator reducing the risk of other potentially harmful
foot conditions.
The worlds oldest surviving pair of shoes is about 9,000 years old.
Yet anthropologists believe humans first wore shoes about 40,000 years ago.
This is based on evidence from skelletons where the small toe gradually became weaker and turned in.
In other words we have been doing damage to our feet for quite a few years now.
A renown anthropologist with interest in the evolution of the human foot has studied and compared the feet of a tribe of African Zulus with that of Europeans, the results clearly showing a marked difference.
The shoe wearing Europeans had the most unhealthy feet whilst the Zulus, who cover vast areas running and walking, and are mainly barefoot, had really good healthy feet and
healthy toenails.
| His conclusion being, most commercially available footware is not good for the feet. |
The average adult walks around 6km per day, so in a lifetime it is probably equivalent to walking 4 times around the world, quite a distance.
It is estimated that around 70% of Americans will suffer or experience some form of serious foot problem within their lifetime with improper or poor fitting shoes being responsible for; unhealthy toes, ingrown toenails, foot pain, knee pain, and even back pain.
With 26 bones and 19 muscles in the foot healthy footware is not just an option, it is a necessity.
When buying shoes always have them fitted or have your feet measured correctly, our left foot is not always the same size as our right.
See
Shoe sizes
It goes without saying that healthy footwear is not necessarily without style.
There are many good quality shoe manufacturers that produce well designed comfortable and stylish shoes and use quality, natural materials too.
Check out some of the good footware specialists
Clarks shoes, www.clarks.com
Simple, www.simpleshoes.com
Birkenstock, www.birkenstockusa.com
Planet shoes, www.planetshoes.com
It is important the shoe fits right with plenty of room at the toe for them to work properly.
Crunched up toes leads to crunched up or ingrown toenails and all kinds of foot problems including bunions and corns.
If in doubt always consult a professional foot specialist.
Always ensure that children have quality footwear and that they fit with plenty of room for the toes and the heels are well supported, check out our page on
childrens toenails
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