Kick Foot Pain Now!

Why you're hurting -- and how to get back on your feet.

The Belle of the Ball -- With Bunions

"My feet are a size 10," says Athena Tsembelis, 40. "For a long time, they were 8 1⁄2, then they started swelling from all the years I've spent trying to stuff them into shoes made for Cinderella. I wanted to be the belle of the ball and wear dainty glass slippers, so I continued to buy shoes that were too narrow, too high and too much money." Tsembelis's choice of shoes cost her more than money: She eventually needed surgery to remove a painful bunion from her left foot. And she may need surgery for her other foot as well.

It's not just Cinderella wannabes whose feet are aching. Men suffer too. Noah Tannen, 33, for example, recalls a painful plantar wart that grew to the size of a quarter. "I'm not sure if it was caused by back-country skiing in rental boots or playing Ultimate Frisbee in wet cleats one cold Seattle winter," he says. But he had to have it frozen and shaved off.

One in six Americans is plagued by foot trouble, caused mostly by ill- fitting shoes, according to the American Orthopaedic Foot & Ankle Society. And overweight men and women put added strain on their feet simply by walking. What's worse, pain that starts with the feet may not end there. "Your feet to your knees to your hips to your back to your neck -- it's all part of the same thing," says Johanna Youner, DPM, a podiatric surgeon who warns that high heels, for instance, can throw the spine out of alignment. She adds that flip-flops or flat shoes that don't offer arch support can cause knee pain, because "your knees will sag inward, your hips will be problematic and other parts of your body will not be in great alignment." And that can lead to even more serious orthopedic problems later on.

So how you treat your feet can mean the difference between tripping the light fantastic and chronic conditions that require more than an over-the-counter remedy.

• • Walking
• • Common Problems

• Your Foot Friendly Guide
• Make strides toward better foot health with our comprehensive collection of feet-friendly websites.
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• Keeping Your Feet Happy
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• Savvy Tips for Wearing Sandals
• Get your feet ready for sandals this summer.
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• Blister-Proof Your Feet
• Prepare your feet for summer's adventures.
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• Give Yourself a Foot Massage
• Massaging the feet can bring relaxation to your entire body.
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• Sneaker Shopping Secrets
• Choose the right pair of sneakers for you.
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• Kick Athlete's Foot
• Don't let athletes foot run your life. Try these tips for relief.
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“ Pull a large pair of rubber gloves over your woolen ones. They can keep your gloves dry for shoveling snow or making snowballs. ”

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After enlisting in the 82nd Airborne Division, I eagerly asked my recruiter what I could expect from jump school. "It's three weeks long," he said. "What else?" I asked. "The first week they separate the men from the boys," he said. "The second week, they separate the men from the fools." "And the third week?" I asked. "The third week, the fools jump."

-- Robert Gardinier