Flip Flops Bad For Your Feet
Posted June 9, 2008 12:00 pm.
This article is more than 5 years old.
Sure they let your feet breathe and work with your summer wardrobe, but the truth is that as much as you love your flip flop sandals, they could be doing you a lot more harm than good.
And even though nothing says summer like the popular footwear, your body could end up paying for it when cooler weather prevails.
U.S. researchers have studied the way people walk in flip flops and found that their strides were shorter as toes constantly flexed to keep the shoe on the foot.
“If you’re gripping, you’re not absorbing shock properly,” said podiatrist Dr. Stanley Sweet. “Arch pain, knee pain, low back pain.”
Which isn’t to say you have to do away with your favourite sandals altogether. Dr. Sweet recommends advice that could easily be applied to all things in life: enjoy them in moderation.
“There isn’t much stability with it and a lot of people end up spraining their ankles,” he said.
After all, summer won’t be much fun and neither will selecting footwear if you spend several weeks of the season laid up in bed nursing an injury a more supportive shoe may have helped you avoid.
