Do high heels give you leg problems?

[Skirted-UK]

Has anybody experienced problems with their legs or feet which they think might be caused by wearing high heels? There is an interesting article on the BBC News website which say's that wearing high heels does not damage your knees, see this link and early articles on the same subject.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/health/3143240.stm

I have worn high heels with long straight skirts for over 30 years now, I am certain that high heels have shortened the tendons on my calf muscles but I'm not sure if they are the cause of my knee pain. If I walk a lot in high heels and a straight skirt I sometimes end up with aching knees. Another problem that I sometimes get is that I wake up in the middle of the night with server cramps in my thigh muscles. I am not sure if this is caused by walking a lot in a straight skirt / high heels, or a combination of both. All I can say for certain is that wearing them makes me walk differently and puts a strain on muscles that I don't normally use for walking.

[Bubba136]

I imagine if a person is severly overweight, wearing heels could cause problems with their knees.

[Ionic]

I saw the same news report and mentioned it on another thread. They made the point that being overweight was a general problem for your knees rather than the heels themselves. [also with great shots of fancy designer shoe shops and fine true 5" high heels.] I've damaged my knee joints slightly combining skiing with being slightly too heavy (no twisting or wrenching injuries just wear behind the knee cap and possible mistracking of the patella). /I

[new_look]

was an article in The Sun today, said high heels proven not to damage knees of women, but the problems are linked with being overweight. was slightly annoyed how the paper outlined that w'women' can now be ok to wear heels. It seems us lads would benefit by a good word from the tabliods.

[Firefox]

Well I wouldn't expect the tabloids to put forward any concept which requires any intelligent thinking or lateral thought to absorb. Not to say many tabloid readers aren't clever. They are. But tabloid readers are either those too thick to understand anything else, or the educated ones who fancy a quick light read and take most of what is said with a pinch of salt. It's agreed we could do with a good word though I don't think it's going to happen

[Laurieheels]

It's good that the causes of any physical discomfort are examined. However, I should mention, that there are times when things are genetic, or just bound to happen for some reason. We age, our parts wear out, and maybe some parts are not up to genetic standard code and wear out a bit faster. There may be a link, but I think the best option is to mention it to a doctor, without mentioning the heels, and see if there are other causes that can be found. Mentioning the heels, naturally, just lays the blame upon the shoes. Best to look at all options, right?

[new_look]

i do read the sun and as yo usaid fox it is for a light read for the not so thick bank workers like myself (here i go again) but it seems to be the type of stuff most people take notice of anditd be nice to see something in there to break down the barrier for the lads that wanna do what they want

[genebujold]

The "no pain no gain" philosophy is true only to a point, namely, the point at which you stop talking about muscle conditioning and start talking about repetitive stress injury to the joints. I love workouts, and enjoy the burn. But I hate the joint pain, as it's just another nail in the coffin of your ability to walk without pain twenty years from now. So, if it really hurts, quit! Or at least modify things so it no longer hurts.

[Anita C.]

After 30+ years NO PROBLEMS in heels. Flats? That's another story.

[Slim]

Joint and leg pain is a problem, thats why I stopped joging about 25 years ago and started walking. I now walk 6 to 8 miles a day and its been very successful (bike rideing is also very good). Something I ran into about a year ago may shed some light. For years I have seen pictures of people squating flat footed (heels on the ground). I have never been able to do this and though most people couldent. At a vacation gathering I mentioned this and found I was the only one out of 10 who couldent. Well, one young woman had some trouble but could do it, me, I can't get my heels any closer than 3 or 4" from the ground. I have always been this way.

[TallSwede]

Heels does not give me leg problems (except when being without them for long walks, that is...), instead they diminish my back problems. TallSwede

[High Surprise]

No no no... They do nothing but give my legs definition. I can guarantee you, I have the strongest legs between non high heel wearers and myself.

[JeffM]

I saw this article about health and high heels and thought it was familiar. It is the one referred to by Skirted UK. I will post it again because it also refers to corsets. Debunking the Main Health Risk of High Heels Roger K writes: Here’s one version of many stories that summarize a recent medical article debunking the main health risk of high heels; similar summaries are found on the web in 161 locations. (Type “Journal of Epidemiology and Community Health” and “high heels” into Google.) This story has relevance to the issue of the supposed unhealthy effects of corsets (and girdles) for the following reasons. First, just because there’s a plausible (“stands-to-reason”) connection between a garment and a health problem, and just because there is also a greater incidence of a health problem in the sex that wears the garment, doesn’t mean there is a necessary problem with that garment. (An example is the causative relation people used to think existed was that between wearing a tight hat-band (which only men did regularly) and going bald. Another example is scoliosis (twisted spine); because it affects roughly eight times more girls than boys, it “stood to reason” to anti-corset physicians in the 19th century that corsets were the cause.) Second, just because specialist-doctors are quoted as condemning a garment (as many foot doctors have condemned high heels) doesn’t mean that they have any real insight into the matter. They may well be just going along with the crowd and endorsing the popular and plausible connection that everyone else is making. (Victorian doctors were notoriously unanimous and emphatic in blaming masturbation for causing insanity, for instance.) Moreover, he may be merely expressing the prejudices of his society’s elite. Items which are related to body modification have undertones of paganism and/or frivolity and/or sensuality, all of which are on the no-no lists of “respectable opinion,” whether Christian or rationalist (which encompasses most of feminism). Here’s an excerpt from the Washington Times’ report on the study that supports my contentions, with selected words boldfaced: This conclusion treads heavily on conventional medical wisdom of the last 250 years or so, which has blamed high heels for sore backs, corns, sprained ankles, abnormal gait, ingrown toenails, shortened calf muscles and hammertoe. Oxford University public-health studies professor Ray Fitzpatrick, who directed the research, dismissed such beliefs as "clinical speculation. Perhaps there was also a nonspecific belief that there's something unnatural about high heels," he told the London Times yesterday. Mr. Fitzpatrick was also dismayed by how little research had been done on high heels and a health link. Now here’s the study-summary itself: High Heels Could Be Good For Your Knees, British Researchers Find September 29, 2003 London (dpa) - Dedicated followers of high-heeled fashion could be doing their knees a favour, even as they scrunch up their toes and bend their spines, according to new British research into arthritis of the knee. The worst damage to knees is done by being overweight and doing heavy cleaning work, such as scrubbing floors, according to a study by Oxford Brookes University , published in the Journal of Epidemiology and Community Health Monday. So many women suffer from arthritis of the knee joint that doctors speculated that wearing high heels might trigger the condition, but they found being overweight before the age of 40 was much more likely to increase the risk in older women. About two per cent of over-55s suffer from knee osteoarthritis and the condition is twice as common in women as it is in men. In the survey of 111 women aged 50 to 70, 29 had varying degrees of knee pain. Ray Fitzpatrick, a professor at the university, said 55.2 per cent of the women with knee arthritis had worn eight-centimetre heels regularly compared with 67.1 per cent of the healthy women. "Several factors were significantly associated with osteoarthritis of the knee, including previous knee injury, heavy smoking and being overweight. But wearing high heels was not one of them," he said. "If anything, wearing high heels seemed to be associated with a reduced risk." Return to LISA's Main Page Jeff

[Anita C.]

I've been wearing Stilettos for 37+ years and am experiencing NO leg, foot, knee or back problems.

[JeffM]

How about any back problems from wearing a corset, during or after the event, does it cause any. The article was copied from a corset site with of course their concern being medical reasons why you shouldnt wear corsets versus why it is ok to wear a corset. Jeff

[Anita C.]

I wear my corset when I'm entertaining, primarily. No back problems there, either. It pulls me in 6", 7.5" with assistance! There are some gowns I cannot wear without it.

[Firefox]

Foot problems are more likely than leg problems, but the former are usually caused by wearing shoes which are too tight rather than just heels. I've been wearing heels (3-5") regularly in a size 40/41 for nearly 20 years now and have had no problems. I put that down to regular alternation of heel heights. Selection of correct shoes or mechanical stretching of shoes to fit (not by feet stretching). Easing up if I have been going too high too long. Granted I am a shoe fanatic, which is rare for a male in day to day wear, but the numerous female shoe fanatics approach it with the same knowledge. A large selection of shoes to chose from, suiting the shoe to the occasion, caring for your feet, being sensible within the demands of your body.

[Ionic]

Can you sing in a corset? /I

[Anita C.]

Yes, I can & do sing corseted. No real problems. I MUST have a seat with a back when I do sit. The corset DOES make me walk, ahem, differently. This new walk is accentuated when I'm in my Stilettos, as one can imagine.

[jo]

Yeah, Yeah! We're all imagining.

[Skirted-UK]

Yes, I can & do sing corseted. No real problems.

I MUST have a seat with a back when I do sit.

The corset DOES make me walk, ahem, differently. This new walk

is accentuated when I'm in my Stilettos, as one can imagine.

Do you find wear that wearing long tight skirts with high heels has any adverse effect on your legs. ?

[Anita C.]

No, not really. When I do wear a tight, long skirt while corested with my stilettos the walk & movements are very restricted. Some find this kind of sexy it is difficult with walikng up steps to the stage and sitting requires a bit of coreography and practice so as to not look awkward.

[genebujold]

Having worn heels for many years, and as a sufferer of joint trauma, I would highly recommend you enroll yourself in a local Yoga class. Yes, chuck the spiritulistic nonsense out the door, but do attend the stretchging! It's the most wonderful thing for countering a number of maladies.