The foot contains 26 bones, 33 joints, 107 ligaments and 19 muscles.
1/4 of all the bones in the human body are down in your feet. When these bones are out of alignment, so is the rest of the body.
Women have about four times as many foot problems as men. High heels are partly to blame.
Walking is the best exercise for your feet. It also contributes to your general health by improving circulation, contributing to weight control, and promoting all-around well being.
Your feet mirror your general health. Conditions such as arthritis, diabetes, nerve and circulatory disorders can show their initial symptoms in the feet – so foot ailments can be your first sign of more serious medical problems.
Arthritis is the number one cause of disability in America. It limits everyday dressing, climbing stairs, getting in and out of bed or walking – for about 7 million Americans. By 2030, the number of people with arthritis (adults 18 years and older) is expected to rise to 67 million.
About 60-70% of people with diabetes have mild to severe forms of diabetic nerve damage, which in severe forms can lead to lower limb amputations. Each year, 82,000 people lose their foot or leg to diabetes.
There are 250,000 sweat glands in a pair of feet. Sweat glands in the feet
excrete as much as a half-pint of moisture a day.
Plantar warts are caused by a virus which may invade the sole of the foot through cuts and breaks in the skin. Walking barefoot on dirty pavements or littered ground can expose feet to this sometimes painful skin infection.
The two feet may be different sizes. Buy shoes for the larger one.
About 5% of Americans have toenail problems in a given year.
The average person takes 8,000 to 10,000 steps a day, which adds up to about 115,000 miles over a lifetime. That’s enough to go around the circumference of the earth four times.
Neil Armstrong stepped on the moon first with his left foot.
Every time you step forward, you use 54 muscles.
There are currently more websites on the Internet having to do with foot fetishes than with foot health.
There are two general types of misaligned feet. Pes planus, (flat flexible feet) and pes cavus, (rigid high arched feet).
The flexible flat foot is commonly named the over-pronator. This arch of this foot type collapses towards the ground upon standing. This creates excessive collapse of the feet, and will subsequently create excess movement up into the legs and knees.
The rigid high arched foot, called a supinator, has a high arch contour even when weight bearing. This foot type tends to have poor shock absorption and cushioning, and can lead to various joint pains.
As a person’s income increases, the prevalence of foot problems decreases.
One of the evolutionary theories about the origin of sweat on the palms of your hands and soles of your feet is that it came from the response to fear by providing better grip to climb in trees when fleeing predators.
About 5 to 10 per cent of all running injuries are inflammations of the fascia.
