Why Should You Use Orthotics In All Your Shoes?

Foot pain is known to affect 1 in 4 adults in their lifetime.

Twenty four percent (24%) of the population have foot and / or ankle pain. This can include plantar fasciitis or metatarsal problems. Pain in the feet can easily become a detriment in day to day life. Many adults rely on pain free feet for their work, travel, leisure, and fitness. Persistent foot pain can also impair mobility and balance. Once chronic foot pain begins, it may feel like you are trapped and restricted in your activities, and ultimately it can affect your quality of life.

Why is foot pain a common problem?

If we think back to a time before roads, cities, and civilization began to walk around in shoes on hard surfaces, this may be our answer. The human foot was designed to walk on soft surfaces such as grass, soil, and sand. These textures can almost mould to the shape of the foot. As gravity pulls us toward the ground, the pressure of our weight is evenly distributed across the plane of our feet. When we walk on soft ground like sand or grass there is a wide area of contact. This is not the case when we walk on hard surfaces such as a tiled floor. The area of contact between the feet and the ground is less. A similar situation occurs when we wear orthotics shoes. This is because the inside of the shoe is also flat and is not contoured like an orthotic.

What can walking on flat and hard surfaces do to our feet?

Our feet are flexible and have a tendency to turn inwards when we walk or stand. This movement when our feet turn in, is called overpronation. Over pronation causes the arches to flatten and the ankles to collapse in. This can lead to painful conditions such as plantar fasciitis or structural problems like flat feet and bunions. Most of us can cope with walking on flat surfaces as our muscles and ligaments are strong. But 1 in 4 cannot and will have pain. Problems with incorrect foot position can also have a domino effect on the ankles, knees, hips, and even the back resulting in pain or discomfort in areas distant to the feet.

How can orthotics help?

Orthotics lift the arch, cushion the sole, and evenly redistribute the pressure under the feet. Science tells us that pressure is force divided by area i.e Pressure = Force / Area. This means that if we increase the area that our foot comes into contact with, the pressure (and therefore the pain) can be reduced. When we walk on hard surfaces like a tiled floor, the area of contact is less. The smaller area of contact increases the pressure through the parts of the foot that are in contact with the floor as the weight of our body remains the same. However, as we walk on soft ground the ground gives way slightly and there is a greater area of contact. The ground giving way and molding to the shape of our feet is clearly seen when we walk on a sandy beach. The majority of foot pain can be managed effectively by providing the feet with a proper contoured surface to rest on. This is how orthotics give our feet a comfortable platform.

Orthotics and running

50% of recreational runners will suffer from a running related injury. Patellofemoral (Under the knee cap) pain is the commonest running related injury followed by medial tibial stress syndrome and plantar fasciitis. A large pronation angle and an increased pronation velocity is considered a risk factor for running related injuries. Use of an Orthotic has shown to decrease the pronation angle and also decrease the rate at which the foot pronates. Foot orthoses have thus become the cornerstone in the treatment of foot, ankle and lower extremity injuries.

 With orthotics, you can wear your favorite shoe.

Studies have shown that one of the factors that deter individuals from orthopedic footwear is the ‘attractiveness’ of the footwear. However, orthotics can be placed inside your shoe and will allow you to wear your favorite footwear and feel great while you do it! Your footwear may however need to be slightly roomier to accommodate the orthotic.

Is scanning your foot important?

A good way to see how scanning can help with pain is to compare this to fitting tires for your car. When tires are fitted we balance them and align them. Balancing and aligning the tire makes the tire last longer and provides efficiency. The vehicle becomes more fuel efficient when we balance and align our car tires. Tires cost to replace and hence we are diligent in balancing and aligning them. However, it seems that since our feet came to us for free we are not so diligent in balancing and aligning them. If balancing and aligning car tires improves efficiency and decreases wear of the tire it then stands to reason that balancing and aligning the feet may produce similar results. The art of scanning the feet is called pedobarography.

 Do our feet or our car tires travel a greater distance in their lifetime?

An average car tire travels 20,000 miles. Our feet on the other hand, cover approximately 110,000 miles in a lifetime, which is the equivalent of traveling 4 times around the globe! However, it is easy to neglect our feet when we never balance or align them, which can therefore cause problems and ultimately foot pain down the line. Scanning the feet can identify the type of orthotic that is required. Maintaining balance and alignment in our feet can be accomplished through use of orthotics.

In summary, common conditions which cause foot pain such as Plantar Fasciitis and adult onset flat feet can be successfully treated with orthotics through pressure reduction. Reducing the pressure on your feet can relieve other symptoms of pain in your ankles, knees, hips, and even your back.

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