High heels are beautiful to look at; they are cool, sleek and they do make your legs look really good. They also dress up any outfit and they make the wearer look captivating and sexy. But like all good things, they also have their downsides. High heels as good as they look, do have some long term consequences.
Before we dwell on the down sides to high heels let’s talk about the upsides. High heels if you do admit make you look more feminine and alluring. They also boost your self-confidence. It enhances our height by making us look taller; especially if you are a bit challenged in the height area. They also they do make you look thinner or slimmer by proportioning our body through the process of making our legs look longer. High heels also come in different styles and colours and their designs are really creative.
Photo Credit:- Google Images
High heels also accentuates our curves at the right place by altering our posture, bringing our chest forward and pushing our waistline back. We look more put together when we are wearing a pair of heels.
The muscles in our body naturally contract and relax. The calf contracts and adjusts to the angle we keep our feet in. Heels make them shorten and tighten making our legs look like we've been exercising.
Also heels make up command authority by making us look better; there by boosting our personality. It also looks good on a gown, a mini skirt or even t-shirts and a pair of jeans.
Photo Credit:- Google Images
At work place it looks very smashing on a power suit.
Now for every good side there also exists a down side. High heels are not to be worn for long periods or for hours of the day. As much as possible do try and mix it up with flats or sneakers in order to put less strain on the feet. Wearing heels do have a long time effect on the body and these effects are irreversible.
For instance if you stand or walk for too long a period on heels you can feel the strain on your feet and ankles. The advantages of accentuating the body by wearing heels only occurs if we are able to walk in them.Whether it is kitten heels or stilettos(those long, dangerously pointed heels) one needs to be capable of walking properly on these heels without wobbling or limping; thereby making making one look like a joke.
Of course you do not have to be a professional model who does catwalk on the runway, yet you will not like to fall down flat on the ground resulting in mockery form the public. If you are also not used to wearing heels it can shorten your stride; also making you unable to run or walk properly.
High heels can also do a lot of damage to the bone structure. When walking on high heels, if you do not conform to the right position it can cause an unsteady gait thus damaging the spine and the knees.
Also you can tell who wears high heels often; they usually have foot deformities which also includes bunions or hammertoe. Wearing these heels can also result in ankle injuries; for instance the ankles can end up being twisted if the straps on the heels do not fit properly by not holding it in the right place.
Wearing high heels can agitate lower back pain; also our body weight is redistributed; causing our weight to be forced on the balls of our feet resulting in pain. If we do not persist in wearing the high heels but instead we just keep ignoring the pain we will eventually end up with a health problem known as Metatarsalgia, which is an illness comes from the pain of joints and bones in the metatarsal.
The wearing of high heels also alters forces to the knees which predisposes the wearer to degenerative changes in the knee joints causing a decrease in the normal rotation of the foot, which puts a lot more rotation stress on the knee. This results in causing wearers to have a 26% rate of increase in knee joint pain as opposed to non-wearers. This percentage further increase depending on how high the heels get to be.
How you can wear this heels at a lower risk to one’s health.
Now l can go on and on to say the disadvantages but as a lady, even l am guilty of wearing them. There is a trick to wearing them and still have healthy knees and calves. Firstly always look for heels that have thicker soles as this will reduce the impact on your feet when you walk, thereby making it more comfortable for our feet without the pain.
Another trick you can adopt is that if you are going to walk, stand or travel for long period of time do bring along a comfortable pair of shoes; be it flats; ballet shoes or the stylish sneakers that now comes in various trendy colors and designs. By doing this you can look trendy and still be comfortable at the same time.
Also do try shopping for shoes at the end of the night, as this is when the foot is slightly swollen. If we will stand in them for a long time, our feet will become swollen, and we will see how it feels, so it wouldn't be unbearable and we will be more comfortable wearing them.
Also do not wear your heels for a long period of time; this means even when you are at work place, if you are not doing a presentation or having a meeting or any other official function; if you are just sitting at your desk or on lunch break, switch the heels for a comfortable pair of flats. Let there be a variation between low and high heels, limiting the time we wear them. We won't get too used to either of them, and we'll avoid the muscle ache.
Do spoil your feet with a nice feet massage and soaking them in lukewarm water. It will chase away the feeling of having our feet stuck in a painful pose we can't get out of.
So there you have it, the advantages and disadvantages of wearing heels. Heels make us look good and as ladies it is a must have in our closet; but always remember to wear them with moderation. Moderation is key,always.