How To Wear Heels Without The Pain
CHICAGO (CBS) -- For many fashionistias, forget about the diamonds; high heels are a girl's best friend.
But heels can hurt. CBS 2's Mary Kay Kleist reports on a new way to get a shot at comfort.
Some say nothing can lift your spirits like a sassy new pair of high heels. But if it seems high heels were a lot more comfortable in your 20s and 30s, than they are in your 40s, 50s and beyond, you're right.
Part of the problem is that women make less estrogen as they age. According to doctors, that causes the "cushiony" fat in the ball of their feet to thin out; without all that natural padding.
"You sometimes experience numbness, and burning pain after maybe 30 minutes of wearing high heel shoes," podiatrist Pardis Kelly said.
One option for comfort is an injectable treatment called "Pillows for the Feet". But what gets injected may surprise you: an anti-aging treatment used to plump up wrinkles.
"It's an filler that's used in the face. However, we use it in the ball of the foot," Kelly said.
Tina Dryer just wants relief.
"I just want to be pain free so I can walk," she said.
Dryer no longer wears heels, but her right foot no longer has padding. So when she walks, even in flats, she has excruciating pain.
"The ball of my foot hurts, burns," she said.
Dryer recently got the second of the two recommended off-label injections. They cost about $1,000 per foot, out of pocket.
The effects could last, on average, for more than a year.
Dryer said that she has yet to feel any real benefit after a month, but Angela Giannini, who also got the treatment, said she is once again walking on air.
"Now I have total relief and I can wear my normal shoes again," Giannini said. She has a condition that affects the nerves in her feet, making it unbearable to wear even slippers.
A few weeks ago, she chose injections over surgery, and now, "I'm definitely anticipating the holiday season," she said. "I will be wearing my four-inch heels again."
If you must wear high heels, doctors say you should take a few precautions and catch and treat problems early on. If you do, you'll not only avoid many high-heel problems, but you'll make the time you spend in spikes a happier day for your feet.
Get the best-fitting high heel possible. While this may seem like a given, stop and think: how many pairs of high heels cause your feet to slide to the front, leaving a gap big enough for a small cell phone behind your heel?
High heels that don't fit properly cause the front of the foot to fly forward, creating more pressure – and pain – on toes.
Look for narrow heels with a snug but not tight fit to correct the problem.
While a full-shoe insert can help, if you have pain in the ball of the foot, or you'll be standing in your heels a long time, invest in silicone metatarsal pads.
Wear a thicker heel for stability.
Pay attention to the "slope" or "pitch" of the heel. While some 4-inch heels will give you a straight drop down to the flatbed portion of the shoe, others will be a more gradual slope.
Wear open-toe high heels to relieve pressure on corns and calluses. See a podiatrist to have corns and calluses professionally removed and correct the problem that's causing them. But if that's not possible, opt for open-toe shoes to take pressure off inflamed areas.
