While our eyes are windows to our souls, our feet could be windows to our overall health. We rely on our feet to maintain our posture and balance to support our entire body. However, many of us view our feet as the least important part of our body. Although we use our feet very often in our daily life, we typically take them for granted. We don’t give them the attention that they deserve and when we encounter mobility issues from foot problems, our quality of life is impacted.
Below are some examples of how your feet can affect other parts of your body or how the well-being of your feet is connected to your overall health:
Imbalance due to foot issues can lead to poor posture that could result in more frequent falls.
Foot conditions such as plantar fasciitis or stress fractures may result in a walking pattern to avoid hurting your feet even more. This can affect your posture and balance, putting stress on other parts of your body that can lead to back and knee pains over time.
When your feet do not have enough arch (flat feet) to absorb the loading shock of daily activities (e.g., walking, standing, etc.), there is additional pressure on joints causing joint pains.
Problem in your feet, for example when you start to get a tingling sensation/numbness in your toes when you have diabetes can indicate the onset of peripheral neuropathy