Can flip-flops lead to back pain?
It's finally summer here in Coeur d'Alene, and people everywhere are pulling out the shorts and the sandals. A popular choice of footwear, for those young and old, seem to be flip-flops. Maybe that is why more people have been calling our clinic with complaints of lower back pain.
Can flip flops cause back pain?
A team of researchers from Auburn University found that when people walk in flip-flops, they alter their gait, which oftentimes results in pain from the foot up into the hips and lower back. People wearing flip-flops take shorter steps than normal and their feet hit the ground with less vertical force than people wearing athletic shoes. The rest of the body must compensate which can put added stress on the arch, heel, legs, hip and lower back. "People think that with flip flops you're going to have foot pain, but flip flops actually change the way your foot strikes the ground and because of that, there are altered mechanics at the knee, the hip and the back. Your back will often take the brunt of those unnatural muscle movements," says Annie Malone, a physical therapist at Athletico, an outpatient rehabilitation provider in Chicago.
Although most cases of back pain resulting from flip-flop wear can be eradicated by simply wearing more supportive footwear, Malone says that in extreme cases, patients can get herniated disks in their spine. A herniated disk means the disk bulges and touch nerves in the spine causing pain and irritation that radiates down into the legs and feet.
Should you stop wearing flip-flops immediately?
It depends on what you are doing in those flip-flops. If you are walking around the pool or beach, or going someplace where you won't be doing a lot of walking, flip-flops are fine. However, if you will be doing a lot of walking or even standing for longer periods of time, footwear with more stability is a better choice. Everything in moderation!
Dr. Wayne Fichter, DC, is the head doctor at Disk and Spine Northwest and can be reached at (208) 215-3261.