In a March 8 story for the on-line magazine of the fashion firm Net-A-Porter, Sarah Jessica Parker revealed that she could no longer wear high heels.
I went to a foot doctor and he said, 'Your foot does things it shouldn't be able to do. That bone there... You've created that bone. It doesn't belong there."
She told the magazine that for a decade, working 18 hour days, she almost never took her heels off. A couple of slips due to less expensive footwear and "the chickens have come home to roost", as she says in the piece.
The physical effects of wearing high heels have been known for some time. A study in the British journal, Lancet, from May, 1999, suggested that those mechanics may predispose women to degenerative changes in the knee, including osteoarthritis. Another study, published in the Journal of Applied Physiology in March, 2012, found
that long-term high heel use may compromise muscle efficiency in walking and are consistent with reports that HH wearers often experience discomfort and muscle fatigue. Long-term HH use may also increase the risk of strain injuries.
An article on WebMD quotes a survey by the American Podiatric Medical Association that reveled that 73 percent of women have experienced shoe-related foot issues. Fashion was important to those surveyed, as 42 percent of the women would wear a shoe they liked even if it caused them discomfort.
Nightline covered cosmetic surgery on the feet in Dec. 2010. Toe shortening, fat injections and even amputation of the little toe are all part of the price that some women are willing to pay to wear high fashion shoes. The American Orthopaedic Foot & Ankle Society opposes these types of procedures, warning of the potential for complications. They offer some tips for those who choose to wear high heels on their site.
Comments