Summer Foot Advice for Wearing Flip FlopsSummertime calls for a different wardrobe, but when it comes to sandals, are you keeping the health of your feet in mind? For advice on summer foot health Dr. Ivan Herstik, a renowned podiatrist with WESTMED in Yonkers, New York was able to accommodate some questions.
Summer foot advice for wearing flip flops
When asked if flip-flops can cause all sorts of foot injuries he responded saying, “I
wouldn’t necessarily say they’re bad for your feet. The Romans wore sandals forever. The most common thing that can happen is a toenail injury. Other than that, people can get blisters between the first toe and the second toe. Also, people get sunburned on their feet.”
In addition he mentions, “It’s almost as if you’re walking barefoot. A lot of people get glass in their feet, or cuts from stones or pebbles, which can get infected.”
Summer is Flip Flop Season in Long Beach
“People come to me all the time that wear flip-flops in the shower in the gym, and it really doesn’t protect them from getting athlete’s foot or warts. You may think it does because it’s directly on the bottom, but if you’re standing in the water, it could splash up and hit you either way.” Herstik says.
During summer people will also go barefoot so we asked what his feeling on people who like walking barefoot outdoors? “That might be OK on the grass or on regular ground, but on the dirt of the city I can’t imagine it’s good for you. They stub their toes, they get things in their feet all the time. The streets are extremely dirty, and to walk barefoot doesn’t make a whole lot of sense.”
When thinking of sandals and flip flops, the question of women wearing flats and heel pain came into question. Do women who wear high heels always have trouble wearing flats in the summer? And what really causes heel pain? Dr. Herstik was able to provide some fulfilling answers to this.
“If you only wear high heels, your Achilles tendon will shorten a little bit and it’s not going to be comfortable for you to walk flat. If you lived in heels for 50 years, you’ll have a problem. But if it’s only for a week or two, you’ll be fine. When it comes to heel pain, the best analogy I could use is it’s like chewing and biting your cheek. Three chews later, you bite it again and before you know it, you can’t chew because your cheek is swollen. You do something to your foot, and the next day you say your foot really hurts, and three days later it’s killing you, and you’ve been walking on it and walking on it. So you’re perpetuating low-grade inflammation.”
So be mindful of your feet this summer, and if you are going to wear flip flops, consider the activities you will be doing and locations where you will be wearing them. A little bit of thought and some preventative care can go a long way to ensuring your feet have as great of a summer as you do.
