For many of us, flip flops are the perfect summer shoes, and a true blessing for our feet on those dreaded days when the weather is hot and we still have to run errands or just do a lot of walking outside. Light and comfortable, we can easily find a model and color that suit our style and the time of day. However, researchers show that flip flops are not the ideal pair of comfortable shoes we all believe them to be - on the contrary, podiatrists say that this playful brand of summer footwear can lead to aches and pains all over our bodies and cause more damage, overall, than the ever-incriminated high heels.

The problem with flip flops, says one researcher with the American College of Sports Medicine, is that they make our feet feel very exposed. In other words, when we wear flip flops, we unconsciously alter our gait and put more strain on our legs, for two main reasons: to avoid stubbing our toes as we walk, and to effectively keep the flip flops on. A subsequent study showed that flip flops make us walk in an altered, uncomfortable way and since they are lightly built, it also means that they do not absorb shock very well, walking in flip flops causing us to develop painful overuse injuries.

"The major shock absorption occurs back on the heel, and if the surface between the heel and the ground is not supported it does not allow the heel to absorb shock as well as it should. Which means the foot works harder than it should and people tend to develop overuse injuries such as tendinitis, or in this case, lower leg, knee, hip and back problems", claims Dr. Rock Positano from the Hospital for Special Surgery in New York. Researchers don't advise us to give up wearing flip flops completely - however, it would be a very good idea to give up walking in them for a long time and only use them around the pool or when we know we won't be spending too much time on our feet.