Bunions and Sexy Shoes

Sexy, stylish shoes have long been a hallmark of ladies' fashion, especially since skirts rose provocatively above the ankle. But if you have a bunion on your big toe, then those beautiful shoes may be a big problem, especially if they have pointed toes and a heel higher than two inches. In fact, shoes like that are probably causing you a lot of discomfort. If you have a bunion, just putting your foot into one of those darling shoes can make you wince with pain.

Nevertheless, many women will endure a great deal in order to conform to a certain image, or to look a certain way. My great-aunt, who in many ways was a very bright and intelligent woman, told me once that back in the 1950s she seriously thought about having her little toes removed so they wouldn't be such a "nuisance" when she wore her high heels. I don't know if any doctor would have really obliged her, and was too astonished and repulsed to ask her how far she went in pursuing this "option." But my earliest memories of her always included beautiful clothes with perfectly matched high heels and, of course, just the right jewelry...along with her constant complaints about foot pain. Eventually, bunions on both feet made wearing her pretty shoes too difficult. Since she was too vain to wear wide shoes that "looked dowdy", her life became more and more restricted. The value our culture places on glamour and sex appeal is extreme, and often seems to overshadow common sense. I know my great-aunt was not alone in being very attached to a certain image of herself and in preferring to suffer than to take off a stylish shoe with a heel that made her legs appear longer and sexier.

Unfortunately, bunions do not go away; in fact, if you just go into denial and try to ignore a bunion without taking measures to change your footwear, the bunion is very likely to get worse...and worse...until the pain is so unbearable that you have no choice but to do something. And the first "something" you have to do is change your shoes. Away go the pointed shoes, away go the stiletto heels. Actually, away go any heels higher than two inches. Thanks to a force called gravity, heels higher than two inches create too much downward pressure on your forefoot, and especially on your toes. And pressure is the very thing you need to avoid if you have a bunion.

Other physical problems result from long-term wear of high heels, such as back pain, but right now we're talking about foot pain and bunions. Visit Bunions on Feet if you want to learn more about bunions and what you can do for bunion relief.

Pointed toes are another characteristic our culture associates with sexy shoes. But the fact is that if your toes are continually squished together, you are in danger of developing a bunion. It just isn't okay with Mother Nature for toes to be crammed together in such a way that each toe is denied enough space for its rightful alignment. The big toe takes the brunt of this pressure, and after a while the big toe may start leaning over toward the other toes, and then an unsightly and painful bunion shows up on the side of the foot.

It is true that genetic factors, such as flat feet or abnormal bone structure in the foot, set the stage for the development of bunions. However, people with these genetic conditions do not automatically develop bunions. Statistics indicate the vast majority of people with bunions are women, perhaps as many as 80% - 90%. And it is women who wear the high heels and pointed shoes; shoes that definitely aggravate those genetic conditions, and compound the likelihood of bunion formation. The current generation is not unlike that of my great-aunt; sexy shoes are an ongoing temptation, and probably a worse one. How often do you see teen-age girls at the mall in blue jeans and high heels? Pretty often.

So, ladies, I suggest we do our feet a favor. Let's go easy on the high heels and wear them only on special occasions...if at all. We can do with a little less glamour, anyway, and a lot more comfort...and common sense!