Flat feet is a pathology of the foot, in which there is no normal physiological bending. This leads to pain, an ugly gait, the development of diseases of the spine. If untreated, flat feet will bring its owner many complications. No wonder with this diagnosis they do not take into the army. This article describes ways to remove flat feet at home and, if possible, mitigate the discomfort and pain associated with it.
Why does flat feet occur?
Depending on the omission of the longitudinal or transverse arch of the foot, orthopedics distinguishes two types of disease. When the muscle-ligamentous apparatus is weakened, the normal shape of the foot is disturbed. The severity of the arches is lost, the foot settles, flattened.
Longitudinal flatfoot is most often caused by congenital defects of the foot or uncomfortable, poor-quality shoes that the child is forced to wear. Cross flatfoot can be caused by excessive physical exertion, bone disease, uncomfortable shoes, and obesity.
Symptoms of the disease
The symptoms characteristic of the chronic form of the disease are as follows:
- acute pain in the joints (can also be caused by arthritis or osteochondrosis, not always the cause of such discomfort is flat feet);
- drawing pain in the lumbar region;
- clubfoot and other gait pathologies;
- valgus;
- proliferation of the foot in breadth;
- pains in the muscles of the hips, lower legs, lower back arising from movement, and later on when standing, the pain disappears after a night's sleep;
- shoes are deformed and worn out already two months after purchase;
- defects in the structure of the fingers on the foot.
The main problem of people with flat feet is an uneven gait and pain in the lumbar region. Due to the incorrect position of the foot, the entire musculoskeletal system is disrupted. To prevent this, preventive and therapeutic measures should be taken regularly from early childhood. Is it possible to remove flat feet in adults? This is much more difficult to do than for babies and adolescents. In adults, the bone apparatus can hardly be corrected, you can only mitigate the manifestation of pain and discomfort, which brings flat feet.
Who is more likely to suffer from the disease
List of people who are more likely to suffer from the disease:
- hairdressers, sellers, sales managers - all those who are forced to stand on their feet for more than four hours in a row;
- amateur athletes;
- unprofessional marathon runners;
- lovers of weightlifting, who exercise in inappropriate shoes for this;
- obese and overweight people.
If sports achievements or a place of work are the trigger in the formation of foot pathology, then it is better to abandon your ambitions for the sake of health. Most professions where you have to stand for many hours in a row are not suitable for all people. Only a person with very healthy legs - joints, cartilage and muscle tissue - can stand on his feet all day. And modern employers often put their workers in rather harsh conditions that preclude the possibility of sitting down and relaxing for at least half an hour.
Separately, it is worth mentioning amateur weightlifters. Working with extremely large weights (squats with a barbell over 100 kg and other similar exercises for the legs) is often performed with not quite the right technique. Sometimes it’s not even a matter of ignorance of the technique, but low-quality shoes and the individual characteristics of the athlete (for example, disproportionately long or short legs). As a result, chronic diseases develop - flat feet, arthritis, osteochondrosis.
Flat feet in children: treatment features
Any orthopedic surgeon will confirm that in children under seven years of age, flat feet is easiest to treat. Bones, joints, ligaments, cartilage are in a growth stage. How to remove flat feet in a child? The following recommendations should be followed:
- Do not save on shoes - buy only orthopedic correct shoes and sneakers. It is advisable to purchase complete anatomically correct insoles for them. This is one of the main conditions for the formation of a healthy foot.
- Prevent the child from becoming obese and overweight. This creates an unnecessary load on the foot.
- Do not allow the child to lift and carry objects heavier than two kilograms. Optimal sports - swimming, gymnastics, barefoot football on the grass.
- Perform special exercises in therapeutic gymnastics, if necessary, once a year, make an appointment with an orthopedist to control the disease.
Is it possible to get rid of flat feet forever?
This is only possible in childhood and sometimes in adolescence. How to remove flat feet in an adult? If this is possible, then only in the very early stages of the disease. In this case, you will have to abandon almost any physical load on the legs. Women should stop wearing stilettos and heels. Regularly, you should perform exercises of the complex of therapeutic gymnastics, attend physiotherapy.
Only with meticulous implementation of all these recommendations can we reduce the intensity of pain in the foot and lower back, and in some cases even completely return the foot to a healthy anatomical shape.
List of the most effective treatments
How to remove flat feet in children and adults, a list of effective measures for the disease will tell:
- daily exercise of physiotherapy exercises;
- wearing special orthopedic shoes;
- regular swimming in an open pond or pool;
- taking painkillers.
Not all methods are equally effective; an individual approach is needed to remove flat feet. Exercise will only help if done regularly. If you do them from time to time - there will be no sense. Moreover, the pain can intensify, and you will have to take an increased dosage of painkillers.
What sports are allowed with flat feet
It is necessary to exclude axial load on the spine and minimize the load on the leg muscles. How to remove flat feet with the help of sports? It is optimal to regularly practice swimming, callanetics, yoga, Pilates.
The following exercises are prohibited:
- squats with a barbell on the shoulders;
- deadlift;
- Romanian craving
- traction of the upper block behind the head ;
- running on the ground or on a treadmill;
- classes on an ellipsoid;
- any plyometric exercises.
The foot load should be minimized. How to remove lateral flat feet if a person is professionally involved in weightlifting? Completely get rid of it does not work, if you do not eliminate the load on the feet. To alleviate the pain, you will have to lead a different lifestyle in which there is no place for exercises with a barbell and dumbbells.
Long walks with flat feet
The question of how much you can walk is of interest to almost all orthopedic patients. The most important point is the anatomically correct shoes. In extreme cases, at least medical insoles should be purchased. At the same time, walks are not permissible with a quick step at a distance of about two kilometers.
If it is not possible to purchase orthopedic shoes, you should refrain from long walks. Almost guaranteed, they will provoke increased pain and worsening.
Physical therapy classes
Exercise will only help if done regularly. If you do them from time to time - there will be no sense. Moreover, the pain can intensify and you will have to take an increased dosage of painkillers. How to remove flat feet on x-rays to get a commission at work? This is impossible: if the disease is present, it is impossible to fake the results of radiography.
Below is a list of recommended exercises:
- The starting position is to sit down and stretch your legs forward. In this position, try to reach the feet with your fingertips, this will stretch the lumbosacral spine and the back surface of the legs.
- Stretch a thick rope on the floor and walk barefoot along it so that the surface of the twine cuts into the bare foot. You can do the exercise in front of the TV. The optimal lead time is about fifteen minutes.
- "Bicycle": lie on your back, lower back, head and shoulder blades firmly pressed to the floor. Raise your legs up and simulate their movements when riding a bicycle.
- Pour small pebbles into the container and stomp on it barefoot for ten minutes. Pain should not be too intense: do not choose too large pebbles.
If you have the opportunity to walk barefoot on sand or earth - you definitely need to do this. How to remove flat feet with exercises and walks? The main condition is to do this regularly. In adults, this will help reduce the intensity of pain and discomfort, and children and adolescents can get rid of the diagnosis forever.
The importance of wearing quality shoes
The modern shoe industry offers many high-quality and stylish shoes. Lovers of hairpins will have to give them up, but it’s possible to find a pair with a rather high heel. The main thing is that the arch support was performed physiologically correctly. Many people with flat feet sew their own shoes to order.
Can orthopedic insoles remove flat feet? Indeed, a high-quality insole is able to turn shoes from anatomically incorrect to quite acceptable. But only she does not replace orthopedic shoes. Adults with flat feet have to buy special shoes and insoles throughout their lives, not in order to get rid of the disease, but to at least reduce the intensity of the pain caused by it.
Ways to relieve pain associated with flat feet
The most effective methods to remove flat feet have been described above. But what if the diagnosis is already present, the foot is fully formed and the patient suffers from pain and discomfort? Ointments and pills will come to the rescue.
Ointments for pain caused by flat feet should effectively relieve unpleasant sensations in the cartilage and bone tissue, in the joints. They quickly penetrate through the layers of the epidermis into the tissues of the diseased joint and do their job. Of course, you can use tableted drugs - "Ketorol", "Nise", "Nurofen", "Diclofenac", but with constant use they can lead to impaired liver function. Therefore, it is better to opt for warming and analgesic ointments, such as Doloron, Viprosal. With a tendency to swelling and varicose veins of the lower extremities, it is worth trying Troxerutin.