Women know high heels aren't good for their feet, and they don't deny that they're uncomfortable. But the fact is, women would continue to wear high heels, even though they did not think them comfortable. Mark it up to the price of beauty.
Despite what you're willing to tolerate as a lover of heels, you may be underestimating the damage that high heels can cause, beyond just having sore feet at the end of the day.
Not surprisingly, doctors of podiatric medicine (foot doctors) and orthopaedic surgeons see no value in high heels, which they generally define as pumps with heels of more than two inches.
You know those lovely curves you get with high heels? "It's not a normal anatomical position," says Teisha Chiarelli, a podiatrist in Glendale, Ariz.
Physicians say high heels are "biomechanically and orthopedically unsound," citing medical, postural and safety faults of such heels, according to the American Podiatric Medical Association. Among the litany of problems to which stilettos and their sister heels contribute are knee and back problems, disabling injuries in falls and shortened calf muscles, not to mention an awkward, unnatural gait.
Uncovering women's footwear problems
While most high-heel fans aren't so willing to totally abandon their high pumps, studies indicates that many might be willing to make some adjustments - to a point.
A study by the American Podiatric Medical Association, 39 percent of women still wear high heels daily. This is down from the 60 percent who wore high heels back in 1986. This same study showed that 42 percent of women would wear uncomfortable shoes and that 73 percent had shoe-related foot problems.
