Feet: Your Chiropractic Foundation

By Krista Elliott

When you think of chiropractic care and the basis of chiropractic medicine, you probably think of the spine, right? Well, the spine is a major focal point for chiropractors considering its vital role as the conduit for every nerve impulse that travels through your body. Spinal health is health, to say the least. 

But if we look down just a bit more, we see a body part that is often abused and neglected, but that surprisingly can receive a great deal of benefit from chiropractic care. 

Yep, the humble and unappreciated foot is actually an incredible marvel of engineering. Flexible, but strong enough to carry hundreds of pounds, the human foot contains 26 bones (a quarter of the bones in the entire human body!). And all of these bones, along with their tendons and other soft tissues, have evolved to work in perfect concert, bending and stretching and moving. Stomping, dancing en pointe, kicking a ball, and just standing upright and keeping our balance are only a few of the demanding tasks we place on our feet. 

So when you think about all of the abuse feet take, it's no wonder that they're so prone to musculoskeletal issues. And sure, we might treat ourselves to a pedicure or some cushy insoles one in awhile, but we really don't put much thought into the bones in our feet and whether or not they are properly aligned. 

However, if even one bone in your foot is misaligned, it can throw off your entire gait and stance, causing a chain reaction that affects your knees, hips, and back. Other conditions include: 

• Ball of foot pain: We put a lot of weight on the balls of our feet. And if any of the long forefoot bones (the metatarsals) are out of alignment, it interferes with weight distribution. Misaligned foot joints can even cause painful conditions like Morton's Neuroma. 
• Heel pain: Conditions like plantar fasciitis have a wide range of causes, but one of the major causes is poor biomechanics in the feet. 
• Pain at the sides of the feet: Cuboid syndrome is a common cause of lateral (side) foot pain. It's marked by pain at the outside of the mid-foot, and is caused by the cuboid bone being out of alignment due to uneven forces from the muscles of the lower leg and foot. 
• Ankle pain and/or instability: Previous sprains and strains can lead to instability of the muscles and tendons, which can create subluxations of the ankle joint. 

If you've been ignoring your foot pain, no more! Visit The Joint Chiropractic today. You don't even need an appointment, and our professional chiropractic experts can carefully analyze your feet and provide gentle, targeted adjustments to help your joints and bones align into a healthier position. It couldn't be simpler, so bring your aching dogs to The Joint today and take the first step toward happier feet.