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High heel injuries cost UK £29m

Marie Claire Health News: Woman Wearing Black Stilettos

Slipping on a pair of stilettos could leave you with more than sore toes, as new figures reveal injuries from high heels cost the UK £29million a year to correct.

Twisted ankles, bunions and ingrown toenails are just some of the injuries that lovers of high heels risk every time they pull on their favourite platforms.

The new report found women living in Liverpool and Manchester were most likely to suffer, with 45% wearing sky-high heels every day.

The study, by specialist shoe producer MBT, found the cost of operations and medical treatments to correct foot problems can leave sufferers with bills of thousands of pounds a year – with the total bill for the country hitting £29m.

Bunion removal is the most expensive operation, costing up to £4,000 per operation. We spend £10.5m on this procedure every year.

Bunions are enlarged big toe joints, with the toe slating inwards, often caused by wearing pointy shoes. Posh Spice Victoria Beckham is a celebrity sufferer.

The most common operation was toe straightening, which can cost £1,200 every time. Britons spend £10.4m on having their big toes straightened every year.

Other procedures including big toe joint replacement, removing trapped nerves and treating ingrown toenails.

Apart from injuries caused by wearing the shoes, the report also found that 42% of the 1,000 women surveyed had suffered an accident in their heels, such as falling over or twisting their ankles.

Emma Supple, consultant podiatrist for the MBT Academy, urged women to think about a 'balanced diet' of flats and heels when it came to choosing our shoes.

'We need to mix and match our choice of footwear to allow our bodies time to recover,' she said.

Thursday 2 October 2008


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