| The sole of your shoe wears the most rapidly at the | | | | better it feels and how the toes line up straighter. |
| ball of your foot, and your shoe may get a hole in it | | | | The metatarsal bar will also help your arch. It is an |
| at that point. This is the point of greatest stress | | | | inexpensive device, and any good shoemaker knows |
| when we walk. We make it even worse by wearing | | | | how to fit one. Fix several pairs of shoes. An insert in |
| footwear designed for fashion rather than function. | | | | the shoe can do the same thing. Cut the insert so |
| And, unfortunately, this area is where the metatarsal | | | | that the sore place is not supported by the insert. |
| bones join the toe bones. A great proportion of the | | | | These inserts have the advantage that they can be |
| arthritis that affects the foot occurs at these joints. | | | | transferred from shoe to shoe. |
| The consequences arthritis in the forefoot are major | | | | Good shoes are critical to the problems of foot pain. |
| and adverse. With every step we place weight on | | | | Don't wear shoes with pointed toes. Women should |
| this area, and it is difficult indeed to walk without | | | | avoid high heels. They throw additional weight on the |
| using the forefoot. Even a small problem can make | | | | forefoot. Look for a wide toe box in a shoe. You can |
| walking difficult, and then the other muscles, tendons, | | | | a lot in the store by walking around before buying; |
| ligaments, and bones begin to lose strength. Serious | | | | don't go home with a purchase that isn't comfortable |
| attention is required because your careful work at | | | | no matter what the salesperson says. Try the |
| home can pay major dividends. Even people with | | | | athletic shoe department for casual shoes. These |
| major arthritis will find that attention to local factors | | | | shoes are excellent for arthritis and should be more |
| can make all the difference. | | | | widely used, they are comfortable and less |
| The basic principle is quite simple. The idea is to move | | | | expensive. Look for shoes with a good heel wedge |
| the weight-bearing burden away from the painful part | | | | support, a nylon upper that will spread in the toe |
| so that the inflammation can subside and the part | | | | box, and laces that run through guides rather than |
| can heal. The metatarsal bar, a strip of sole leather | | | | eyelets so that they adjust smoothly. Shoes with air |
| that the shoemaker can sew or glue onto the | | | | cushions seem particularly satisfactory for many |
| outside of your shoe about an inch behind the | | | | people. |
| contact point where you are wearing out the sole, is | | | | If your problem with pain in the forefoot occurs at |
| an important device to shift your weight. When you | | | | night, you will need something to raise the covers off |
| check your area of greatest pain against the area of | | | | the foot. A pillow under the covers at the bottom of |
| greatest wear in the shoe, you will find that they are | | | | the bed is the easiest solution, a side-lying L-shaped |
| at the same place. Press on your foot about an inch | | | | piece of wood may be better for tall people. |
| behind the sore place and you will note how much | | | | |