 Everything you always wanted to know about feet, but were afraid to ask. Check out the most interesting facts, we found out about feet, foot health, foot care and shoe fitting. The leg and the foot are the levers that enable us to get around. The foot in particular, while not a particularly attractive part of the body, is nevertheless a highly complex one. Undestanding how this complex structure...
...operates is essential when producing the lasts on which our shoes are made. 3 out of 4 Americans experience serious foot problems in their lifetime. The foot contains 26 bones, 33 joints, 107 ligaments and 19 muscles. 1/4 of all the bones in the human body are down in your feet. When thesebones are out of alignment, so is the rest of the body. Only a small percentage of the population is born with foot problems. It's neglect and a lack of awareness of proper care - including ill fitting shoes - that bring on problems. Women have about four times as many foot problems as men. High heels are partly to blame. Walking is the best exercise for your feet. It also contributes to your general health by improving circulation, contributing to weight control, and promoting all-around well being. Your feet mirror your general health. Conditions such as arthritis, diabetes, nerve and circulatory disorders can show their initial symptoms in the feet - so foot ailments can be your first sign of more serious medical problems. Arthritis is the number one cause of disability in America. It limits everyday dressing, climbing stairs, getting in and out of bed or walking - for about 7 million Americans. About 60-70% of people with diabetes have mild to severe forms of diabetic nerve damage, which in severe forms can lead to lower limb amputations. Approximately 56,000 people a year lose their foot or leg to diabetes. There are 250,000 sweat glands in a pair of feet. Sweat glands in the feet excrete as much as a half-pint of moisture a day. Walking barefoot can cause plantar warts. The virus enters through a cut. The two feet may be different sizes. Buy shoes for the larger one. About 5% of Americans have toenail problems in a given year. The average person takes 8,000 to 10,000 steps a day, which adds up to about 115,000 miles over a lifetime. That's enough to go around the circumference of the earth four times. There are currently more websites on the Internet having to do with foot fetishes than with foot health.
http://www.foot.com/ (23/04/2008) |
