Every woman looks great wearing high heels, and every woman feels sexy in them. High heels are adored,
cherished, desired and wanted by women. It is a compulsive addiction that is fetishized by women. Women
idolize glamorous celebrities who are highly fashionable and they are always in high heels, as it instantly
jazzes up an outfit.
Though killer high heels can create an instant uplift to an outfit, this pair of shoes brings so much
discomfort to the wearer. But the question is “Why do women wear high heels?”
I conducted a survey among my friends and in results, to it, they said they wear high heels to accentuate
their legs. High heels create an illusion of slimmer, slender and lengthen their legs. Hence, they appear
taller and lankier.
Men are also a culprit for making women suffer in high heels. In a man’s opinion, women appear sexier and
more appealingly seducing in high heels. This is due to the persona of raw sexual appeal. Women would go
to an extreme to please men. So they will wear ridiculously high heels just to impress.
A fashionista would still wear high heels though they know that there are consequences to wearing them.
This is because they have a mindset that says “Fashion has its price”. High heel wearers look like they have
tiny dainty feet. It makes them appear feminine.
Sexually enhanced posture and added height provides empowerment for high heel wearers and conveys an
autonomous and feminine message to the society. It also boasts more pronounced and curved breasts
and a fuller rounder butt. It also contracts the calves of the wearer. Wearing high heels also enhance the
backbone as it does not allow wearers to slouch. High heels emphasize all the aspects that are considered
to belong to a woman’s physical sexual attributes. It creates a level of authority, feminine power and
independence.
High heels may be something that all fashionistas or women, in general, go nuts about but it also brings
short term and many long term effects to its wearer. When a woman wears high heels, she loses her
balances as her centre of gravity is displaced and it makes her walk weirdly. It can cause a sprain or a broken
ankle.
High heels also redistribute your weight, creating unnatural pressure points and throwing your body’s
natural alignment out of whack. High heels also make you walk with your legs sprawling outwards like a
duck. High heels also generally force u to stand up straight to keep your balance while wearing it.
“Bridging” occurs when the heel is raised from the ball of the feet during the period of wearing high heels.
The lack of mid-foot support can cause arch problems. The foot that is lifted and resting on a downward slope
puts a lot of pressure on the toes especially the big toe. This symptom is known as the fore-and-aft slippage
that encourages calluses under the ball of the foot or the large toe. A woman’s stride and skin friction while
walking determine how bad a callus are. If it gets worst it turns into corns.
Another long-term side-effect would be the Achilles’ tendon, this is when the tendon is inflamed due to
pressure and rubbing of the heel cup against the tendon. Not only does it cause inflammation of the
tendon but it can also cause shortening of the tendon and hamstrings. This is thanks to the reduced angle
at the ankle. Tendons shrink when they aren’t stretched regularly. Foot deformation can occur due to
excessive usage of high heels. If you think this is just it, you are wrong. High heels are also linked to knee
arthritis and back problems. High heels can also increase neck problems and also muscle cramp around the
whole body especially the thighs and the back. High heel wearing also hurts the pelvic area and the lower
back.
High heels can lead to ugly foot development such as corns, bunions, calluses, hammertoes and claw toe.
Other than that it could also bring a negative impact towards bone injury.
High heels are the biggest leading factor of foot problem among women. Women also have a higher
tendency of getting foot problem compared to men. As women go on wearing their beloved high heels,
their foot hurts. It gets worst as women start to age.
It’s said that “Women may `wear’ slippers, `put on’ sneakers and `slip into’ loafers, but they `dress’ in high
heels”.
So to all fashion-conscious women out there, high heels do make you appear taller, sexier and more
confident but it also brings nasty long term effects. It’s all in your hands to slip into what shoe is the best
for you. But if I were you, I’d wear high heels for special occasions while the rest I’d wear flat shoes or
slightly shorter heels.
Wrote this for Frock.Paper.Scissors. A fashion magazine by QUT, Australia in 2007.
