Understanding Flat Feet
With a lot of people suffering from flat feet, it is important that you understand what flat feet is and its implications.
In case you don’t know, flat feet is also known as fallen arches and it simply means that you either have very low arches or not at all.
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While most people have a gap beneath the inner part of their foot when they are standing, when you have flat feet you don’t have this gap.
One of the things that you need to know about flat feet is that you may have it and you may not need any treatment at all. After all, this is a condition that should only be treated in case you feel discomfort.
Flat Feet Symptoms
While there are many different symptoms of flat feet, the most common is foot pain. This is usually the result of strained connecting ligaments and muscles.
Besides, since you will need to put more pressure on your hips and knees, you may also start to feel pain on these joints.
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One of the things that you need to know about flat feet symptoms is that you may experience them in other parts of your body rather than just on your foot. You may experience pain and even swelling on the inside of your ankles, lower back, lower legs, knees, hips, calves, and on the arch of your foot.
Another common symptom that many people with flat feet experience is stiffness of their foot.
Diagnosing Flat Feet
As we mentioned above, there are a lot of people who have flat feet but who never experience any symptoms. However, when you experience one of the following symptoms, you should schedule an appointment with a podiatrist as soon as you can:
- pain in your lower limbs, ankles, and in the feet
- when one or both feet are becoming more flat
- when flat feet recently developed
- when your feet are feeling stiff, rigid, heavy, and unwieldy
- when you don’t see an improvement in your symptoms after wearing well-fitted, supportive shoes.
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What Causes Flat Feet
The truth is that flat feet can be caused by a wide number of factors including:
- foot or ankle injury
- genetic factors, when one of your parents has flat feet, for example
- dysfunction, damage or rupture of the posterior tibial tendon
- weak arches
- arthritis or rheumatoid arthritis
- nervous system or muscle diseases such as muscular dystrophy, cerebral palsy or spina bifida
- tarsal coalition which is a condition that causes your bones to fuse together unusually
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Another key aspect that is important that you are aware of is that people suffering from diabetes or people who are obese are more prone to develop flat feet. Besides, this condition tends to be very common during pregnancy.
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Notice that flat feet can also develop with age. After all, since you spend your entire life on your feet, it is normal that your posterior tibial tendon tends to become weak over time. Since this is the primary support structure for the foot arch, you can develop flat feet easier.
