High heels 'high risk', medical expert warns
September 17, 2008
A leading podiatry expert warns women required to wear high heels at work they are risking health problems.
Most women who wear footwear of this type show signs of damage by the age of 40, lecturer and clinician at chiropody and podiatry institute SMAE Andrew Hill claims.
Last month, the Trades Union Congress (TUC) called for the removal of retail dress codes requiring women to wear high-heeled shoes, claiming they were "not appropriate" to wear at work due to health and safety issues.
Mr Hill says thin-heeled shoes increase the risk of a wearer spraining their ankles and conditions such as bunions may appear.
While he concedes footwear which increase in height gradually to a heel are less harmful to a worker's wellbeing than a stiletto-style shoe, he states both are damaging.
"If you're either wearing heels in the day time or in the evenings, it isn't going to be doing your feet any good and the effects can happen a lot earlier," he warns.
The TUC launched a guide in August called Working Feet and Footwear which criticised retail firms and upmarket shops for requiring women to wear unsafe high heels while at work.
Most women who wear footwear of this type show signs of damage by the age of 40, lecturer and clinician at chiropody and podiatry institute SMAE Andrew Hill claims.
Last month, the Trades Union Congress (TUC) called for the removal of retail dress codes requiring women to wear high-heeled shoes, claiming they were "not appropriate" to wear at work due to health and safety issues.
Mr Hill says thin-heeled shoes increase the risk of a wearer spraining their ankles and conditions such as bunions may appear.
While he concedes footwear which increase in height gradually to a heel are less harmful to a worker's wellbeing than a stiletto-style shoe, he states both are damaging.
"If you're either wearing heels in the day time or in the evenings, it isn't going to be doing your feet any good and the effects can happen a lot earlier," he warns.
The TUC launched a guide in August called Working Feet and Footwear which criticised retail firms and upmarket shops for requiring women to wear unsafe high heels while at work.
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