How to Ease Foot Pain

The Solution for Foot Pain

How to Ease Foot Pain

The average person takes anywhere from 5,000 to 10,000 words a day, putting over 1,000 pounds of force on your feet every twenty four hours.

While our feet are usually used to it, we stand, walk, run and put them into shoes each and every day.

A shocking eighty percent of adults in the United States suffer from foot problems at least once in their lives, and over twenty percent of adults will suffer foot pain that is consistent and constant throughout their lives.

The human foot is actually much more complex then we give it credit for.  The foot consists of twenty-six bones.

When you add both of your feet together, that’s nearly twenty five percent of all the bones in your body.

There are also thirty-three joints and nineteen muscles in each foot. The tendons in your feet will stretch in between muscle and bones, thus moving your feet as your move. And all told, there are over one hundred ligaments in each foot as well.

Now that you see how complex the foot is, it’s pretty easy to see why it can be so easy to injure, or at least have pain coming from your foot.

Why Do We Feel Pain in our Feet?

The truth is that the pain we feel in our feet doesn’t come from our feet. It comes from the lower leg. We move our feet every day, but it’s caused by the muscles that are in the lower part of our leg.

These muscles get their exercise even when we perform simple exercises like walking, jogging or just standing still.

It’s not hard for these muscles to become tired, and when they do, they can’t properly support our feet. This is the root cause of the pain that develops in our foot.

Common Foot Pain Problems

There is a very wide variety of foot pain problems. The heel is one of the most prevalent parts of our feet, so it’s no surprise that it can be easily injured or be the source of pain.

This is called plantar fasciitis: heel pain that can result from just walking and standing. Related to plantar fasciitis are heel spurs, which is a small growth of bone as a result of its attempt to heal after fatigue and stress. Heel spurs will usually require surgery to have the ‘spur’ removed.

Neuroma is the condition of having a pinched nerve, which happens when the nerve becomes compressed.

Usually you will feel most of the pain in between your toes if you have a pinched nerve in your foot.

Tendonitis is where the tendons in your foot become inflamed, and if it is not treated, it can easily turn into a much more serious problem.

A fracture is an example of foot pain that results from injury. Foot fractures almost always result from physical activity like sports or exercise.

All it takes is for there to be a quick, strong pressure on a bone in your foot and it can fracture. In order to confirm the fracture, you will have to have an X-ray examination take place.

A sprain is very similar to a fracture, except that it happens to your ligament. An ankle sprain is where a ligament in your foot becomes torn, and is one of the most common types of foot injuries there are.

If you do have an ankle sprain, you will have to keep the weight off of your foot for a prolonged period of time. You’ll also need to apply ice to the affected area, and elevate your leg in the air to decrease the swelling and inflammation of the tendons that is sure to result.

If the sprain is serious enough, you may have to undergo surgery.  At the very least, you will usually have to wear some form of brace or cast for a set period of time.

The Primary Solution?

Okay, so we get the point that foot injury and pain is a major problem among adults in America today and that there are many different kinds of foot pain and injuries that can happen. But what’s the common denominator?

You should always rest and devote some time each day, even if it’s only five or ten minutes, to elevating your legs in the air one at a time to eliminate the stress in your foot.

You may also want to take medication prescribed to you by your doctor, even though these medications can come with some side effects that you should always check into first.  But what’s the primary cause of foot pain in adults today? The answer is shoes.

Yes, shoes.  We put our feet into shoes or some type of footwear nearly every day. But shoes are more important than we think.

You shouldn’t buy shoes just because they look cool or fancy, rather, you should buy shoes that have good cushioning and arch support.

A bad shoe will gradually lose its shape overtime after having your foot put into it every day, and this will in turn cause your feet to become painful and eventually turn into serious medical problems.

To make sure that you buy good toes, make sure that the shoes are not too tight. They should be both long and wide enough to accommodate your foot so that you can wiggle your toes.

Before buying any pair of shoes, just walk around the store to see if they still feel comfortable. They should be secure but not too lose or tight.

Also when looking for a good pair of shoes, make sure that they have plenty of cushioning and good arch support for your foot.

You will usually be able to tell this just by walking in them, but if you still aren’t sure, you can ask someone at the store to find anything out more you can about the shoe.

2 Comments

  1. Hi I follow your site it’s give me lots of info. I’ve had a kidney transplant it’s 6yrs now but this past 12 months I’ve developed pains in between my toes on both my feet and hands. My arms ache as well right up into my shoulders and into my neck. I’ve been to docs and to the hospital now they are saying it’s muscular and nerve endings that’s causing the problem. I’ve only been told to take pain killers but they aren’t good for my condition can you help please as the pain is very intense ty

  2. Do you recommend wearing any type of insert in your shoe, or avoiding certain shoes all together. I don’t wear heels or flat shoes very often. I pretty much live in my trail shoes, hiking shoes or runners, but it doesn’t seem to make a noticeable difference, I still get sore feet. Could it be the support in the shoes adding to it?

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