Flip Flops
November 5, 2007
Nov 5, 2007 — New York City — Ever wonder if there is more than a casual correlation to people complaining about aching feet, sore knees, and lower backs and the huge increase in daily wear of flip flops? Many of those suffering are not only middle aged boomers leading active lives, but also kids who wear slab flat flip flops as basic casual wear. For athletes, such foot problems are resulting in missed games as well as lack of peak performance due to foot fatigue and pain.
Stephen Horney, MPT, a physical therapist who often treats skilled athletes at the US Athletic Training Center in New York says, “I see a lot of problems caused by wearing unsupported footwear, like slab flip flops. And not just foot pain,†he adds, “but knee pain, too, which can often be the result of improper support.â€
Footwear with no arch support often causes knee pain first since an unsupported foot changes everything from the bottom up. A foot and arch that is not properly supported will often cause the foot to over-pronate, which can lead to mal-alignment causing problems in other joints most commonly the knee (Patellofemoral pain syndrome) but also in other joints such as the first toe (Hallux Valgus) as well as anterior hip pain.
To take a step, the foot needs to find a neutral position to gain the rigidity that is necessary for propulsion. Horney explains, “Flat footwear like slab flip flops offers no foot support at all, which means the muscles and tendons of the lower leg and foot must supply all support for any movement. This constant excessive load can lead to overuse and inflammatory conditions such as shin splints and contribute to such conditions as plantar fasciitis (inflammation of the sole’s connective tissue where it attaches to the heel), inflamed Achilles tendons, all of which have now started appearing in young people, which used to be less common.†Slab flip flops also make feet work harder to re-grip the soles with every step, which adds to wear and tear.
Horney’s contention that the huge increase in kids wearing flip flops is creating foot problems is verified by the statistics. There were some 11 million physician visits in 2003 for foot and ankle problems, including 2 million for sprained ankles and some 80,000 ankle fractures.
For the human body, everything starts with the foot. If there is no proper support, there is no way to properly support the rest of the body as you move up the chain: knees, lower back, shoulders, and neck. It’s the old song, the shin bone’s connected to the knee bone. Walking puts up to 1.5 times bodyweight on each foot. Strenuous exercise can increase the load, with an hour of jogging generating an estimated million pounds of pressure.
Despite the advances in shoe technology and the many sports models on the market, kids use flip flops as part of leisurewear as much as baseball caps and jeans. “Flip flops are part of the new uniform,†says CEO Stephen Cohodes, who started PêcheBluTM Flip Flops. “We see increasing numbers sold and estimate over 220 million pairs flip flops over $15 will be sold in the US next year,†meaning the true number is much higher if you include all the dime store pairs available.
But Cohodes points out that his patent pending PêcheBluTM is a new kind of flip flop company, one that has taken sports shoe technology and applied it to flip flops. “We added arch support, heel wells, cushioning, improved traction on both top and bottom, and a molded shape that conforms to the shape of the human foot. We wanted to make our flip flops the best of both worlds — a sports shoe base with the comfort of a flip flop strap.â€
He points out that many kids don’t see the difference between a slab flip flop and a PêcheBluTM flip flop, “They buy based on color or price, without considering the long term affect on their feet, something they would never do with their sports shoes.â€
Slab flip flops are made from rolled sheets of flat rubber and stamped out with a cookie cutter, while athletic shoes, including PêcheBluTM, use multiple molds to shape the form of the shoe to the fit of the foot. “Clearly using molds is a much more labor intensive and expensive process than stamping something out flat,†says Cohodes.
Physical therapist Horney likes the PêcheBluTM flip flops and thinks they are a vast improvement because they offer good arch support and thick cushioning. However, he cautions, “Even a really good flip flop like PêcheBluTM can’t provide the support of complete shoe and are not meant for running or sports use. As far as recreational flip flops go, these are the best I’ve seenâ€
“If you want to play touch football,†he adds, “don’t do it in flip flops. Otherwise, we’ll see you in rehab for the next six weeks.â€
There is one additional point that Cohodes wants to stress. Continual wearing of slab flip flops also can jeopardize athletic performance. He asks, “you wouldn’t play baseball with a tired arm, so why start a match with feet tired from slab flip flops, where a tenth of a second can mean the difference between first and last place?â€
His point is that athletes need to be smart about limiting foot fatigue and what they chose to wear. Clearly, he wants them to consider PêcheBluTM.
Flip flops are the oldest shoe style still worn, with designs having changed little in thousands of years from Ancient Egypt. “Modern sports competitors would never consider competing in sports shoes of the 1920’s let alone with ancient Egyptian footwear, but that is what they do wearing flat slab flip flops,†says Cohodes. “It’s time for a change.â€
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