Movement is afoot: Proper-fitting shoes can ease pain in feet

Kimberley McGee

Monday, July 9, 2001 | 8:36 a.m.

For Heather Huntsman, it started with a dull ache in her left foot hours after slipping on her favorite pumps.

Her feet were telling her something was painfully wrong.

She had suffered from bunions a painful bump of bone on the first joint of the big toe on both feet since she was a child. She had always bought wide shoes to relieve the pressure, but in January she'd had enough. The 25-year-old office assistant had the bunion on her right foot surgically removed.

That's when the trouble began.

"I never noticed that my feet hurt when I wore heels, Huntsman said. "Now the right foot feels fine, and the left one aches within three hours and for two days after.

Ah, shoes, glorious shoes.

Sandals, high heels, sneakers, cross-trainers, pointy-toed heels and stilettos.

Huntsman, an avid shoe collector, has enjoyed them all. But as is the case with most of the shoe-wearing public, she didn't realize that there is a dark side to these apparently innocent fashion accessories.

Foot faults

A 1999 survey by the American Podiatric Medicine Association found that more than 2 million people receive treatment for plantar fascitis (a common cause of heel pain) in the United States each year. The sharp pain in the heel is generally the result of a bad gait that places too much stress on the heel bone and the attached soft tissues.

The APMA also found that eight of 1,000 males suffer from bunions, compared to 38 of 1,000 females. Women are also more prone to calluses and corns than men by more than 50 percent.

But proper footwear can even the score, said Dr. James Fausett, a Las Vegas podiatrist and member of the APMA.

"There are just some shoes that will not support the foot, in fact a lot of shoes," Fausett said.

Shoes women may want to avoid, especially if they are overweight or must stand for long hours, are high heels, for obvious reasons. But sandals or any flat shoe that has no arch support can also cause undue pressure on the foot's sensitive network of nerves and muscles.

"If it's too high of a heel, it throws pressure on the ball of the foot and you can get nerve problems on the toes," Fausett said.

He has noticed clients don't necessarily know that when purchasing shoes they should opt for a little extra room. Feet tend to swell during the day. Las Vegas' heat increases swelling, especially in people over age 40, he said.

"That's especially common in working women here," Fausett said. "They put on a stylish shoe to go to work in the morning and by the afternoon the shoe is too tight and they end up with corns, blisters."

Fausett practiced in California for more than 20 years before he opened his practice in Las Vegas three years ago.

"It's totally different here," he said. "Especially because of all of the hotel employees who have to be on their feet."

Nearly 25 percent of his clients have injuries caused by working while on their feet all day. They come to him only after they have pushed themselves to the point that the ailment cannot, or will not, be ignored.

"They are afraid to take care of it because they could lose their job," Fausett said. "So they push it until they can't walk."

His recommendation? Shell out the money for a good pair of shoes that fit.

Fashion and fit

"We have people come in all the time who are surprised they can get a comfortable, stylish shoe," said Mary Hager, manager of Desert Birkenstock at 2370 E. Serene Ave.

Birkenstocks are still made with the trademark "foot bed" that cradles yet supports the foot. But style has been added to the colorful sandals, and recently Birkenstock went into the Baby Boomers' boardroom with a line of professional dress shoes for men and women.

"A good shoe is good for the posture, good for the feet, and people are understanding that," Hager said. "It's amazing what people don't know about their own feet. They think foot pain is normal."

Customers will shell out anywhere from $50 to more than $200 for a comfortable pair of shoes at Hager's store. But what about all those shoes that people tend to have stacked in their closets?

"You don't have to throw away your closetful of shoes," said Paul Plummer, owner of the Good Feet shoe store at 5310 W. Sahara Ave. "But you don't have to be in pain anymore either."

For those who can't give up the cute pair of black pumps that pinch or the tan sandals that flip-flop more than they should, Plummer said shoe inserts can give the shoes -- and your feet -- new life.

Inserts, ranging in cost from $50 to $500, raise the arch for support, offer comfortable toe cushions to relieve high-heel pain on the ball of the foot and can give the posture a lift.

"No foot is perfect," Plummer said.

Customers at Good Feet are asked to give a foot imprint, which is a blue-chalk outline of their footprint. The imprint is evaluated to see if the foot leans to one side, if the arch sags or if the toes curl. Specific inserts are then suggested to correct for these minor imperfections that can eventually cause serious back pain.

Showgirls often buy transparent inserts that they can wear undetected by the audience. Positioned inside their pantyhose, the insert offers support to the feet, makes them stand up straighter and cushions constant blows to the toes from dancing in high heels, Plummer said.

"People come to me because they are in pain," Plummer said. "They want to get up in the morning and go to work without crawling out of bed in pain because of their feet."

In the long run, it pays to listen to what those barking dogs may be telling you.