Going Bare May Lead to Healthier Feet

(MYFOX NATIONAL) – If you want stronger feet, ankles less susceptible to injury, better posture and no foot odor or athlete's foot, take off your shoes.

Since 1994, the Society for Barefoot Living has been encouraging people to live a barefoot life. A new study shows that barefoot runners have better-developed feet and suffer far fewer injuries than those who run shod.

This particular study is recent, but the theory that going barefoot is better for the feet, balance and posture is not a new idea at all. In the 1960 Olympics, Ethiopian runner Abebe Bikila set a new world record for the marathon, finishing in just over two hours. As is common for Ethiopian runners, who have since gained a reputation as some of the world's best, he ran his marathon barefoot.

Even for the many of us who are not Olympic runners, studies have shown that going barefoot lessens or outright eliminates problems ranging from fallen arches to athlete's foot. In his now out-of-print book Take Off Your Shoes and Walk , published in 1961, podiatrist Dr. Simon J. Wikler advocated going barefoot as much as possible.

Wikler's research showed that children who were allowed to go barefoot frequently had denser foot muscles, greater flexibility in the hips and toes, more agility overall, and fewer deformed toes than children who were regularly made to wear shoes.

Comparisons of the feet ( images here ) of people in countries where going barefoot is the norm with those of people raised to wear shoes show marked differences. Adults who have rarely or never worn shoes in their lives reap the same benefits as frequently barefoot children.

Dedicated barefooters cite these and other benefits of barefoot living. They say that going unshod makes them more aware of not only their feet, but of their whole bodies. Many say it gives them greater connection to the earth and makes them feel more spiritual.