by Kimberley Heit

Created on: June 23, 2009

High heels are a bit like chocolate, in moderation they have many benefits, but too much, or inappropriate wear can lead to many pitfalls. Some of the most common pitfalls include; spinal problems, corns and bunions, leg cramps, burning feet, ankle sprains or breaks and arthritis.

Spinal problems

When a woman puts on a pair of high heels she throws her weight onto the balls of her feet. This alters the alignment of the spine and long days in heels often lead to back pain. Regular usage can lead to further prolonged spinal problems.

Corns and bunions

When women wear high heels for extended durations they put extra pressure onto the balls of their feet, because they are thrust forward. The feet try to protect themselves by growing extra skin to form a protective covering. This appears as on the outside of the skin as a corn. Bunions develop when the pressure continues on the front section of the feet. A bunion is a lump or bump on the inside edge of the foot around the big toe. They also often cause the big toe to angle inward with the joint jutting out. They can become extremely painful, red and swollen.

Leg cramps

Every time our feet hit the floor, double our body weight impacts through them. When you are wearing heels, particularly stiletto styles, this can be very jarring on the legs.

With constant wear the ligaments in our legs can actually shorten and make it uncomfortable to wear flat shoes.

Burning feet

If you also spend a lot of time standing or walking on hard surfaces, you are likely to suffer from burning feet after several hours wear. Models have even taken to having Restylane injections in their feet to try and minimize this problem.

Ankle sprains or breaks

Women effectively have to teeter around on high heels, working much harder to keep their balance. Many a woman has sprained her ankle trying to perform an inappropriate task in her high heels. Stilettos are often the worse culprits, but even wearing more stable wedge style heels can be a problem because they can be quite heavy.

Arthritis

Repeated, long term use of high heels can cause degenerative changes in the hip, knee and ankle joints. This can cause arthritis pain.

All of these pitfalls mean that high heel usage should be restricted to special occasions. The time you wear them for should also be limited to small bouts when you are standing or walking. After wearing high heels for several hours consider rolling your feet over a foot massage, do a series of calf stretches and then put your feet up.

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