New research documents the negative effects of high-heeled shoes

Sep 30, 2009 18:11 GMT  ·  By
Wearing high heels will certainly lead to foot pain later in life, study demonstrates
   Wearing high heels will certainly lead to foot pain later in life, study demonstrates

Women have repeatedly been told that wearing high heels on a regular basis will inevitably lead to one health problem or another. Recent studies have even shown that they’re to learn some self-control when they’re out shopping, as they often give in and buy shoes that don’t fit just because they like the model. A new research comes to sound off the alarm once more on the dangers of the killer heels, as LiveScience can confirm.

First of all, saying that high heels lead to foot pain is not news, no matter how one looks at it – for many women, it’s actually the one thing they have in mind when they’re out to purchase a new pair. Be that as it may, the heels are bad for our health and this recent study comes to document just that, the aforementioned publication says, while also to warn women they should look for shoes that are comfortable first and foremost.

“A study of 3,300 men and women found that nearly 64 percent of older women who reported hind-foot pain regularly wore high heels, pumps or sandals at some point in their lives.” LiveScience says. Contrastingly, researches did not find in men any connection between foot pain and the shoes they wore, and the reason for that was more than obvious: men didn’t wear heels (with some exceptions) and spent too little time in sandals to have reason to worry, researchers said.

Based on the findings of the study, scientists divided all shoes in three categories, according to their impact on the owner’s health. In the “poor” category, we find high heels, pumps, sandals and slippers (also flip flops); in the “average,” we can include the hard- or rubber-soled shoes and work boots; while athletic and casual sneakers fall in the “good” category. What this means is that women should be more careful when they buy new shoes if they don’t want to end up regretting all their choices later in life, researchers say.

“We found an increased risk of hind-foot pain among women who wore shoes, such as high heels or pumps, that lack support and sound structure. oung [sic] women should make careful choices regarding their shoe types in order to potentially avoid hind-foot pain later in life.” Alyssa B. Dufour, a graduate student at the Institute for Aging Research of Hebrew SeniorLife, says for LiveScience of the findings of the study.