For many people, orthotic inserts are a perfect way to help displace some of the pressure on their feet and provide extra support in areas that we need it most. Not only can orthotic inserts help protect against some common foot conditions, but they can also help reduce your risk of other health issues that are caused by how stress is handled by your feet. In today’s blog, we look at five health conditions that orthotic inserts can help prevent and treat.

Orthotic Inserts Can Help With These Conditions

We’ll start with some of the more foot-focused conditions that orthotic inserts can help treat, and we’ll work our way to other areas of the body whose main issue is rooted in how your feet displace stress.

1. Plantar Fasciitis – Plantar fasciitis is a condition we’ve talked about in depth on the blog in the past, and it stems from inflammation to the thick band of tissue that runs from the underside of your heel to your toes. This is known as the plantar fascia, and when it becomes inflamed, it can be quite painful, and it’s oftentimes hard to effectively treat because you stress the area with each step you take. Orthotic inserts can be a great way to help protect the area, and they are often paired with rest, anti-inflammatory medications and physical therapy for best results.

2. Flat Feet/High Arches – Orthotic inserts are also great for people who are dealing with pain that’s caused by a flat foot or high arches. When our arch design is on the extreme side, either very high or completely flat, certain areas of the foot handle an excess amount of stress. Over time, this can break down areas and lead to degenerative changes in the foot. Orthotic inserts help to reshape the foot and shift how stress is displaced on your foot, no matter your individual shape.

3. Heel Bursitis – Inside your heel are fluid-filled sacs called bursas that help to lubricate structures and facilitate movement, but if they become inflamed, they can do their job and pain can set in. Oftentimes bursitis of the heel is caused by overuse or strain from a misalignment of the foot. Orthotic inserts can be a perfect solution by helping correct alignment issues and taking some of the strain off of your feet.

4. Diabetes – Foot orthotics won’t cure your diabetes, but they can really help to prevent some issues that are common among diabetics. Because people with diabetes oftentimes suffer from peripheral artery disease due to their diabetes affecting the health of their blood vessels, a healthy blood supply to the extremities isn’t always a given. Poor blood supply can delay wound healing and leave you at an increased risk for an infection. Orthotics can help make sure stress is displaced appropriately in your feet so that certain areas aren’t prone to ulcers or blisters, which can provide an opening for bacteria to enter the body.

5. Back and Hip Pain – Finally, if you’re dealing with back or hip pain, it may be worthwhile to examine your feet and see if they are contributing to the issue. If one leg is slightly longer than the other, or your foot shape is altering your gait, this could put extra stress on your lower back or hips. Over time, this stress can lead to degeneration, inflammation and pain. Correcting your gait with the help of orthotics can help treat back and hip pain that are caused by an issue with your feet.

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For their study, researchers conducted a meta-analysis of 11 trials involving contoured orthotics and seven studies of shock-absorbing insoles, involving a total of 3,200 people. When comparing the insoles to injury risk, researchers found that contoured foot orthotics were linked to a 28 percent reduced risk of walking or running injuries and a 41 percent reduced risk of stress fractures. On the flip side, shock-absorbing insoles were not linked to a statistically meaningful reduction in overall injuries or stress fractures.

“By pooling the results of all available trials on this topic we found that foot orthotics were effective for preventing shin pain and some stress fractures of the foot and leg (metatarsals, tibia and femur) as per previous studies, but we also found that overall injuries were reduced,” said lead study author Daniel Bonanno of La Trobe University in Melbourne, Australia.

Orthotic Inserts And Injuries

Orthotic insoles are often used by professional athletes, weekend warriors and amateur exercisers in order to take pressure off their feet, but this research shines a light on which inserts you should reach for. In most circumstances, contoured foot orthotics are designed to optimize foot function by helping shift weight distribution and foot pressure with each step. Shock-abosorbing shoes, for the most part, tend to be flatter and designed to reduce the force created by the impact of the foot striking the ground. They both are grounded in good intentions, but it appears that contoured orthotics do a better job of reducing your likelihood of injury.

The authors did caution people against reading too much into the study results, because they stated that the majority of the data they studied was collected from military studies, suggesting that the physical activities they endure may not be that similar to the activities performed by the average exercising adult.

However, if you are interested in getting an orthotic insert for your shoes, medical experts say you should consult with your foot doctor to ensure you get one that best matches your need.

“For athletes, and anyone in general, you need to rely on the health care professional to evaluate and decide if you are a candidate for an orthotic,” said Dr. Selene Parekh, a researcher at Duke University who was not involved in the study. “The right fitting orthotic can allow athletes to continue to participate in sports activities through some injuries, such as a fifth metatarsal stress fracture or turf toe injury, but a bad orthotic can worsen symptoms of an injury.”

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Here’s one of my personal mantras: If you want to succeed, set yourself up for failure. I came to this epiphany in the dead of night on a steep, snowy trail. We were 16 miles into the race with 50 miles to go. We never made it the whole 64 miles. And that was a good thing.

I like running races that seem crazy and challenge me both mentally and physically. The Frozen Otter is one such race. No snow shoes, no outside support, no sanity. I signed up as fast as I could. My husband decided to join me, probably to make sure I didn’t get myself killed. During training I paced out the speed it would take to go the required 64 miles in snow. It came out to just over 3mph. Anyone could keep that pace.

Shortly before the race, I had added orthotics to my arsenal as my arches had been hurting pretty badly. Dr. Silverman discovered that I had torn my fascia significantly. Once again, he was at my side, working his magic, and finding a way for me to get back up and running.

My strategy was to start in the back of the race pack. This would allow us time and space to make any adjustments and eventually use passing people as progress markers. After a brief race meeting, we discarded our thick coats and started off up the first hill. Now I had never ran in ankle deep snow on an un-trodden trail up a hill in hiking boots with a 20lb backpack and 3 layers of clothing. I soon realized I may have bitten off more than I could chew. About a half mile in I let out my first groan. My calves were on fire. Onward we went. Eventually we decided to break out our trekking poles and walk as briskly as possible.

I am not a power walker and I have no idea how these people were trekking so fast. These people were destroying us. I kept thinking we would catch them on the next hill or around the next bend but they only left behind their boot tracks. We used those to our advantage, placing our feet in their tracks, as we continued on through the rough terrain.

Every single step was precarious. My ankle twisted left and my knee went right. So much for pristine training runs on snowy sidewalks in near zero temperatures. Staying home with our feet up and drinking hot chocolate would have been just as effective. My ankles held together nicely and my orthotics were working full time. Finally we dragged our lifeless bodies into the first checkpoint. I asked a volunteer if we were far behind the other races. “Yes.” She said abruptly. Oh goodie. We were just over 7 miles in with 57 to go and it had taken us 3 ½ hours to get there. This was going to be a breeze.

So there we were, trudging along fresh out of checkpoint 1 and I knew we weren’t going to make it. A feeling of insurmountability crept over me.  We reached the 2^nd checkpoint just after sunset and found several racers huddled around the fire. This was a time when racers notoriously opt out and head for the shuttle back to the warmth of their cars. They each know that they will miss the cut off for being one of the “Frozen Few” Though every ounce of me yearned to end the agony as I listened to racers throw in the towel, we strapped on our backpacks and headed back out. If there is one thing triathlon training has taught me, it’s to keep going in the face of physical exhaustion.

Onward we went, up hills, across clearings, through the night, fighting to keep the sleep monsters at bay. “Why do you keep going when you know you’re not going to make the course?” a voice asked inside my head. I let myself consider the question. The answer was: Because I could.

My greatest reward was not a shiny medallion for covering the entire race. The reward was pushing myself further than I ever had, overcoming mental obstacles that you can only encounter when you have pushed and gone way outside of your comfort zone. And that is a medallion you can hang around your neck forever.

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