Flat feet are a common health problem that affects millions of people all over the world. In most cases, you don’t even know that you suffer from it! A ‘normal’ foot should have an arch at the bottom that creates a little bit of space between your foot and the floor. So, your heel should be touching the floor, as should the front part of your foot, but there should be a nice rounded arch between. 

With flat feet, that arch disappears. While this might not seem like that big of a deal, it can have grave consequences on your physical health. Here are some common problems that arise when flat feet go untreated:

Chronic foot pain

The biggest symptom of flat feet is that you always suffer from pain in your feet. This increases when you walk a lot, and it just feels like a tightness that won’t go away. This happens because you don’t have an arch, so your foot isn’t working properly. Different muscles kick it to do jobs they shouldn’t have to do. As a result, you get pain and soreness from the overuse of these muscles. Thankfully, you can relieve pain by getting orthotics made. Places like Healthy Steps Pedorthist make these all the time, basically giving you things to put in your shoes that mimic the arch. It should make this chronic pain a thing of the past. 

Knee problems

When your feet are flat, they tend to fall inwards. Once someone points this out to you, you’ll see exactly what it means. It’s like your ankle has rolled inwards, which creates huge problems for other joints in your body. By rolling the ankle, it causes your knees to turn inwards as well. This puts increased stress on the joint, causing a host of potential knee problems. If you often get sore knees or your knees have painful clicks, it’s possibly caused by your flat feet. 

Hip problems

But wait, the joint issues don’t stop there. What do you think happens to your hips if your ankles and knees are messed up? It messes up the way the femur (thigh bone) lies in the ball and socket joint at your hip. This causes all kinds of pinching sensations and grinding, usually associated with a hip impingement. To make matters worse, a lack of arches in your feet also means the feet can’t absorb shocks as well as they should. So, every step you take will generate a force that has to be absorbed by other joints. This goes up your legs and into your hip, further causing pain. 

Basically, flat feet are a cause for concern. This is one of the most underrated health problems as so many people suffer from it, yet do nothing about it. If you suffer from knee or hip pain, and you can’t figure out why, take a look at your feet. See if they’re flat, and you just might realize what’s been causing your paint this whole time.