DID YOU KNOW THESE FUN FACTS?
By Desiree Gagne, MA, OTR/L
Here is your daily dose of fun foot facts! You have a total of 26 bones, 33 joints and more than 100 muscles, tendons, and ligaments in each foot! In addition, each human foot contains about 250,000 sweat glands! When you walk, each time your heel lifts off the ground it forces the toes to carry one-half of your body weight.
You may feel that sometimes one shoe fits better than the other. This is because one foot is usually larger than the other. It’s actually rare to have feet that are the same size. If the difference is noticeable, buy shoes for the larger foot.
WHAT HELPS?
Walking has many great health benefits including the strengthening of bones and muscles, improved mood, balance, and coordination. One-quarter of all the bones in the human body are in your feet. When these bones are out of alignment, so is the rest of the body. It’s essential not to neglect your feet.
Good footwear is very important. Flat shoes such as flip-flops do not adequately support the foot and can lead to problems in the future. Also, avoid shoes that do not have enough space in the toe box. In other words, do not wear shoes that cramp your toes.
More fun foot facts:
75% of people will experience foot problems in their lifetime.
Women have four times as many foot problems as men and their love for high heels is partly to blame.
Did you also know that the average person will walk around 115,000 miles in a lifetime? That’s about 8,000-10,000 steps a day. To put that into perspective – 115,000 miles is more than four times around the Earth!
It is important to take care of your feet. Keep them dry, warm and comfortably protected in shoes that support healthy, happy feet.
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DISCLAIMER:
This article is intended to provide general health information and is not intended to provide individual-specific medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment.