A lot of women are self-confessed shoe lovers, and with the growing popularity of high heels in the fashion industry, with a lot of colours and styles and to choose from, more and more women have jumped into the bandwagon, as wearing high heels gives the illusion of taller height, and apparently makes them stand and walk with poise. That is if they are used to wearing them.

But did you know that those “killer heels” are actually killing your chances of staying pain-free for life? Wearing high heels can do a lot of damage to your feet, calves, knees, hips, back, and tendons. Habitual wearing of these shoes can cause permanent physiological damage.

How the Damage Starts

The moment you wear your stylish stilettos, you tend to elevate your heel and your entire weight is placed on the ball of your foot. This compromises your posture and stability as it throws your hips, shoulders, back, and spine in out of alignment. To compensate for the instability, you unknowingly arch your back and you tend to walk with shorter strides.

High Heels and Pain

The longer your back is bent, the more pressure you put on the nerves of your back. This can cause sciatica. It is a nerve entrapment condition which can cause numbness from the back down the feet.

Long-term use of high heels can also cause pressure to your Achilles tendon, causing it to tighten and shorten. Wearing high-heeled shoes on a daily basis can cause permanent damage to the tendon.

Other damages that develop with long-term use of high heels are ankle injuries, Haglund’s deformity (a bony enlargement at the back of the heels), metatarsalgia (pain in the balls of the feet), hammertoes (a condition where the toes become permanently bent), bunions, and Morton’s neuroma.

Whether you are a teenager or an adult, if you wear high-heeled shoes for an extended period of time, and on a daily basis, or if you have the type of job that requires you to wear high heels, you are at risk for these injuries, especially when you spend your entire day standing up or walking.

If you are already suffering from these injuries, chiropractic care will definitely be beneficial for you. Staying in style, for most women, is important but is it worth the health risk?

Sources:

High Heel Horrors
High Heels: Worth The Health Risk?
The Real Harm in High Heels