Educational Articles

Bunions & Heredity

Posted By Marty Hughes, DC

Disclaimer:

The above content is for educational or informational purposes only and is not intended to replace or augment professional medical instruction, diagnosis, or treatment. Read full disclaimer here.

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Comments
April 16, 2015
Sylvia Simko

Dr. McClanahan:
I was fascinated with your various videos on line. Unfortunately I only discovered all this after I had my two bunions operated on (one of them twice!). I am 75 years old. Do you think that wearing the Correct Toes and of course wearing the appropriate footwear can still help me stop or even reverse the advance and recurrence of my bunions?

April 16, 2015
Natural Footgear

Hi, Sylvia,

Thank you for your message. Dr. McClanahan is our personal foot health mentor, and we love his videos too! A lot of folks in their seventies have benefitted from natural foot approaches, including the adoption of Correct Toes and foot-healthy footwear. How you personally respond to these approaches depends on a lot of factors, including the mobility of your toes and the tone of the tissues (muscles, ligaments, etc.) acting on your toes. Here is a video (www.youtube.com/watch?v=UuDbEEAGZ94&feature=youtu.be) that discusses the possible benefits of natural foot health in older individuals.

Kind regards,
Marty Hughes, DC

June 01, 2016
Schuyler

After years of having bunions, I bought Correct Toes and I believe they are helping. I have also purchased and wear only Altra shoes (for after-work wear) and Olukai (for work) and I think these are the best two shoes to give the most room for the toes in general and while wearing Correct Toes. Unfortunately, in the last year, I have developed a hammertoe and can feel that my hammertoe is causing additional problems. Do you think the hammertoe is reversible? I’m still very active (I’m in my early 40’s) and still play competitive tennis and am hoping to have less foot pain. Please let me know thoughts.

June 01, 2016
Natural Footgear

Greetings, Schuyler,

Thank you for your message. In our experience, we’ve found that Correct Toes can be extremely helpful in relieving hammertoe symptoms while simultaneously straightening and aligning toes with their corresponding metatarsal bones.

I might suggest performing a few modifications to your Correct Toes to help them fit over your hammertoe, enhance your comfort during wear, and to help correct the hammertoe itself. Check out this video for comprehensive directions on how to modify your Correct Toes (fast foward to 13:34 of the video for the hammertoe modification, specifically):

www.naturalfootgear.com/blogs/product-info/17921896-correct-toes-modifications-comprehensive

Also, the use of metatarsal pads (www.naturalfootgear.com/collections/foot-pads/products/pedag-metatarsal-pads) can help to restore a balance between the toe flexor and extensor tendons. Pair the use of these products (Correct Toes and metatarsal pads) with the Hammertoe Stretch & Mobilization technique (www.naturalfootgear.com/blogs/education/17883464-hammertoe-stretch-mobilization) to restore foot/toe tendon balance and align your toes back to the way nature intended.

If you would like to learn more about hammertoes and strategies to help achieve optimal foot health, you can sign up for our free course on hammertoes here:

www.naturalfootgear.com/pages/do-you-have-foot-pain

Let us know if you have any further questions. Wishing you all the best in foot health!

Kind regards,
Laura Trentman

February 22, 2021
Karen

The stock photo of two sets of adult feet and one set of baby feet is very interesting, because although the adults do not appear to have bunions, their smaller toes look very squished together, especially compared to the baby’s. From what I can see, most adults in this country have feet that are that shape—literally molded by shoes! I used to think my feet were deformed because my toes spread out and are wider than the balls, but thanks to your website, I realize that they are actually the shape of a normal foot that hasn’t been deformed by shoes. It’s great to finally know that I’m normal and to be able to find shoes that don’t hurt.

February 22, 2021
Natural Footgear

Hi, Karen,

Thank you for sharing your astute observation! You are absolutely correct that most adults in the US (and in many societies around the world) have feet that are molded by shoes and misshapen (with many sets of feet heading toward bunion formation). Definitely celebrate the fact that your feet are normal; that’s a rare thing in this day and age! We wish you much success in finding footwear that conforms to your foot (instead of the other way around, as is usually the case).

Kind regards,
Marty Hughes, DC

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