Forefoot disease Common forefoot diseases, such as hallux valgus and interphalangeal neuroma, are generally related to excessive pressure. High heels make the human body heavy. It has moved forward, and the stress on the soles of the feet has doubled, which will inevitably lead to diseases in the long run. Once these two diseases are formed, the walking ability will be greatly affected, and it is even difficult to wear shoes normally. There is no better solution than surgery.
Flat feet. The relaxation of plantar aponeurosis is an important cause of flatfoot. The plantar aponeurosis is located at the sole of the foot and maintains the stability of the arch like a bowstring. The higher the heel, the longer the back arm of the arch, and the greater the tension (pulling force) on the plantar aponeurosis. If the tension is too high for a long time, the plantar aponeurosis will relax, the arch of the foot will be reduced, and serious flat feet will be caused. The relationship between heel height and tension on plantar aponeurosis can be clearly reflected from the structure of sole. Many shoes have a steel plate in the center of the foot (equivalent to the plantar aponeurosis), which is called "hook heart". It is used to reinforce the soles of shoes. The higher the heel, the higher the strength requirement of the steel hook core, otherwise the sole will be easily pulled off, and there is no need to use the hook core for shoes without heels. The higher the heel height, the more the sole needs steel hook reinforcement, and the plantar aponeurosis cannot be reinforced. Isn't that terrible?
Ankle injury. Ankle injury is commonly known as "ankle sprain", and it is common to sprain your ankle in high heels. When normal people walk and exercise, their ankles often turn inward, which is why the outside of shoes is always worn first. People themselves are constantly adjusting this rotational force to maintain balance, but after wearing high heels, their adjustment ability will be weakened, which is easy to cause sprains. Moreover, the higher the heel, the greater the potential energy of turning inward and the more serious the injury.
Low back pain and cervical spondylosis. The main cause of low back pain and cervical spondylosis is excessive curvature of the spine, because the spine is connected by multiple vertebrae, and the contact surfaces of the two vertebrae are almost flat. When the posture is tall and straight, the vertebrae contact face to face, and the force is scattered, which is not easy to be damaged; When the spine bends, the contact surface between vertebrae becomes smaller, the force tends to concentrate, even to a point, and the pressure increases rapidly, which is easy to damage the vertebrae. High-heeled shoes make people's center of gravity move forward excessively, which will inevitably lead to the pelvis leaning forward, the curvature of the spine increasing, and the stress on the lumbar and cervical vertebrae concentrated, which is easy to form injuries. Such injuries accumulate over time, which will eventually lead to low back pain and cervical spondylosis.
Specious middle heel shoes
For a long time, middle-heeled shoes have always been considered to be the most beneficial to health, without any adverse effects, and they have become completely different poles from high heels. In the footwear industry, it is regarded as the golden rule, and designers try their best to make their products meet the standards of middle heel in order to sell well. For health reasons, consumers usually choose middle heel shoes. Those women who are afraid of high-heeled shoes have a soft spot for middle-heeled shoes that can also sway. In this way, middle heel shoes will naturally become the mainstream products of footwear.
However, this theory is sometimes puzzling. Both middle-heeled shoes and high-heeled shoes add a heel at the back end of the sole. Although the heights are different, it is difficult to draw an absolute boundary. For example, 3.5 cm high heels, some people think it is high heels, some people think it is medium heels, and later there is a transitional title of "medium heels". Since there is no absolute boundary, how can it have the opposite effect? High-heeled shoes are the enemy of health with shortcomings, but are middle-heeled shoes just a little shorter a perfect health angel? If you look at it with suspicion, there will be more problems.
The core of the health theory of middle-heeled shoes is to make the soles of the feet stress evenly. It seems simple to explain: high heels make the big hands and heels exert pressure on the soles of the feet, which is naturally unhealthy; And flat shoes, the bearing capacity of the heel is greater than that of the sole, which is also inappropriate. Only the middle heel shoes can make the stress on the feet uniform, so they are the best.
In fact, as long as you look at the anatomical map of the foot, you can know that the structure of the foot is obviously uneven, the calcaneus is thick and the muscle ligaments are strong; The bones, muscles and ligaments of the forefoot are much weaker. From the point of view of human mechanics, calcaneus is approximately vertically superimposed, with stable structure and smooth gravity conduction; The bones of the forefoot are almost horizontally arranged, and the load must be maintained by the strength of muscles and ligaments. They are elastic structures, easy to deform and not suitable for bearing. In short, no matter from which point of view, the load-bearing capacity of the front foot is far less than that of the rear foot, so it is unreasonable to let the front foot and the rear foot bear the same pressure-uniformity does not mean rationality. It will definitely damage the weak parts, which is also the reason why foot diseases often occur in the forefoot.
Look at the second advantage of the so-called middle heel shoes, which is to slow down the impact and protect the spine and brain. The disease caused by vibration is called vibration disease, which makes the function of the nerve medical system decline, the conditioned reflex is suppressed, the nerve endings are damaged, and the vibration and pain functions are obviously reduced. It is characterized by numbness, soreness and pain in the arm and a sense of walking. In severe cases, the arm skin will be pale and blue, the hands will be weak and the muscles will atrophy, and the consequences will be more serious. But vibration disease is an occupational disease, which is the result of human body being stimulated by high-frequency mechanical vibration for a long time. It is very common for motor vehicle drivers, such as tractor drivers, to have a vibration frequency of more than 50 times per second, and the high gear can reach 100 ~ 200 times. This kind of vibration and the vibration caused by people's own movement are two completely different concepts.
In order to avoid the panic of vibration disease, the Technical Committee of the International Organization for Standardization (ISO), Chapter 4 108 (Machinery and Vibration) specially studied the influence of vibration on human health, and finally came to the conclusion that "walking and running are natural sports modes of human beings. Especially related to the work done by muscles, it can be considered that vibration stress should not have harmful consequences under normal circumstances. In order to obtain an indication of the vibration characteristics of the human body in a straight posture, it is beneficial to compare the human body reaction caused by vibration when walking or running. " Since this kind of vibration is beneficial, why should middle heel shoes be prevented?
Interestingly, the earliest installation of heels on soles was not for walking, but for riding. When nomadic people ride horses, their heels can make their feet firmly stuck in the mirror, and they can stand up and use weapons in battle, which has obvious advantages. With the conquest of various places by nomadic people, shoes with heels gradually spread and were widely accepted. This is for practical needs and the only credible function of the heel.
In terms of its effect on human body, there is no difference between shoes and high heels. According to scientific classification, middle heel shoes and high heels should be collectively called heel shoes. If high-heeled shoes are particularly harmful to the human body, then middle-heeled shoes are moderately harmful, especially to developing teenagers and middle-aged and elderly people with declining physique.
After the problem of middle heel shoes was clarified, at present, the foot disease known as "civilized disease" has been solved. Although the injury of middle heel shoes is not as obvious as that of high heels, it will eventually lead to diseases over time. What is even more worrying is that this influence is still intensifying. In recent years, sports shoe manufacturers have introduced new middle heel sports shoes. Under the temptation of the theory of middle heel health, more and more people turn to wear middle heels for physical exercise, which is very dangerous. I hope that the presentation and clarification of this issue can arouse people's rational thinking.
Middle heel shoes and high heels are collectively called high heels. Compared with the function of human body, there is no essential difference between them.
Son of nature flat shoes
Because the higher the heel, the greater the harm. So, are flat shoes or barefoot without high heels completely harmless? A large number of medical practices show that barefoot is more beneficial to foot health than wearing shoes, but the skin is easily damaged. Flat shoes can obviously make up for this deficiency, but also keep the mechanical state of barefoot, which is also the most natural and natural state of human beings, in line with the mechanical structure and movement laws of the human body.
However, in recent years, many articles have criticized flat shoes, arguing that wearing flat shoes is too heavy to hurt the heel, and the poor shock absorption function of flat shoes will affect the health of spine and brain. Like the health theory of heel shoes, this is also without scientific basis.
In fact, when barefoot and green flat shoes stand, although the stress on the heel is greater than that on the sole, it conforms to the mechanical structure of the foot and will not damage the heel. Theoretically, it has been analyzed. Now let's look at the actual situation. Foot injuries caused by excessive exercise are clinically called "marching fracture" and "marching foot". It is named after soldiers who often walk. This disease is more common in running, walking and gymnasts, textile workers and porters. Its main damage is the metatarsal bone of the forefoot (especially the second and third metatarsal bones) and its surrounding soft tissue. This also proves from practice that the bearing capacity of the heel is much greater than that of the sole, because the forefoot is always damaged first. If you wear high heels, the forefoot injury will undoubtedly appear earlier and more serious. The heel is much stronger than we thought. Most of the injuries are caused by accidents such as accidental injuries or falling from a height, accompanied by multiple fractures such as spine and pelvis, and are not sports injuries. People who often wear high heels and occasionally wear flat shoes may have heel pain, which is more obvious for patients who stay in bed for a long time. This is the result of long-term insufficient heel load and atrophy of sole fat pad, which will soon disappear after adaptation.
Let's look at the disadvantages of shock absorption. The research conclusions of authoritative organizations have confirmed that the vibration generated by human movement is not harmful to health, but beneficial. When we engage in strenuous exercise and heavy physical labor, the vibration is definitely much greater than our daily life. Don't we all wear flat shoes? If wearing flat shoes really damages the spine and brain, how should early humans who walked barefoot survive?
Shoes with reasonable heels
So, is there a kind of shoes beneficial to human health in mechanics? Based on the previous analysis, everyone will naturally think of shoes with high front and low back. Let's call this kind of shoes negative heels for the time being. In fact, heel shoes are no longer an idea. They have appeared in the market for several years, but they have been unknown.
There are many varieties and manufacturers of negative heel shoes, and the following three are representative: American ground shoes, fitness shoes shoes and Beijing body training shoes. The functions of these three kinds of shoes are basically the same-correcting the posture of the human body and straightening the spine.
Ground sports shoes originated from the feeling of a yoga instructor. When she traveled in the border, she found that the locals were particularly tall and strong. In her observation, she paid special attention to the footprints left by the local people on the beach: the heels were particularly deep. So I made a kind of shoes with high front and low back. It feels tall and straight after wearing it, and it has the wonderful effect of "lotus seat" in yoga practice. Walking also feels very comfortable, as if enjoying "walking barefoot on the beach". Ground sports shoes have become very popular in the United States, with more than 500 sales terminals nationwide and exported to many countries and regions. The upsurge of walking fitness in western countries also provides a broad market space for floor shoes.
The inventor of fitness shoes is a senior female supervisor of a Hong Kong footwear international trading company. She found that the soles with high front and low back can not only keep a straight posture, but also significantly reduce weight. This has also aroused great interest of scientists. For the purpose of scientific research, Professor Hong Youlian from the Department of Sports Science of the Chinese University of Hong Kong (currently vice-chairman of the International Society of Sports Biomechanics) and Dr Li Jingxian, scientific director of the Human Sports Laboratory, co-chaired the research and testing of fitness shoes. Through photographic records, electromyography, energy consumption, breathing. Six items were tested by speed monitoring, plantar pressure analysis and other equipment and means. Studies have confirmed that fitness shoes with high front and low back can really straighten the trunk, strengthen the back muscles and help correct the standing and walking posture. The "slimming effect" has also been fully confirmed, so fitness shoes is also called "slimming fitness shoes". At the same time, I accidentally found that "when walking in these fitness shoes, the change of human posture reduces the impact force when the foot touches the ground", which undoubtedly has a protective effect on the foot.
The developers of physical training shoes are good at theoretical research, conducted in-depth research from many angles and published many academic papers. Physical training shoes, as the name implies, are used to beautify the body. The body image of ballerinas is undoubtedly the most perfect, especially their trunks are much taller than the average person. People in the industry call it "unnatural posture", which is the first condition to become a ballet dancer and the highest realm of human beauty. Ballet body training requires that the feet must be spread outward, and 180 "is" I "shaped and heavy. After moving to the heel, people will form an unusually tall and straight posture. The principle of action of body-building training shoes is the same, because the front of the sole is high and the back is low, the center of gravity of the human body is forced to move back to the heel, and the body straightens immediately. In this way, people's standing and walking in daily life have the significance of physical training, and physical training has become a part of life. This method has been popularized as an educational material in the dance field, and the body training shoes are welcomed by body lovers (especially postpartum women), and are called "lazy body training method". Friends who have never touched this kind of shoes, if interested, can also verify it through two small experiments: keep your body straight (for example, standing against the wall) to see if the center of gravity is in the heel; Stand barefoot or wear flat shoes, put a book 2 cm thick on your front foot, and feel whether your posture is higher than usual.
Physical training shoes also have medical significance. As we all know, the root cause of low back pain and cervical spondylosis is excessive curvature of the spine, and correction is the most fundamental treatment. Fitness training for healthy people is the treatment for patients with low back pain and cervical spondylosis. The rehabilitation function of physical training shoes can also be explained by "walking backwards" in a popular way. Surgeons usually advise patients to "walk backwards" (walking backwards), which has been proved to be effective in practice. Like the principle of physical training, the function of walking backwards is also to weigh people. Move your heels back. But walking backwards is limited by many conditions, such as road conditions, and it is easy to fall. It is precisely because of these hidden dangers that the backward movement is difficult to last and the effect is naturally limited. Physical training shoes solve this problem, limiting the center of gravity of the human body to the heel for a long time, so that even if you walk forward, you will have the rehabilitation effect of walking backward. This latest low back pain treatment method is called "low back pain pedicure" in the medical field.
Some people may worry that walking backwards or wearing high heels is harmful to heel health. In fact, this kind of worry is unnecessary. Take a ballet dancer for example. Although there are many movements in ballet, there are only five feet, which are called five postures. Each foot position requires the foot to be completely outward (that is, horizontal). At this time, almost all the weight of the whole body falls on the heel, which is more stressful than wearing negative heels, and at the same time, it is necessary to exercise vigorously. Even so, the ballet dancer's heel will not be damaged. In the history of ballet for hundreds of years, there is no record of heel injury. So this kind of worry is unnecessary, and the tall and straight people focus on their heels.