Today foot orthotics are used widely by physiotherapists, chiropodists and podiatrists to help relieve common types of foot pain, including heel pain and plantar fasciitis.
Orthotics are corrective devices, designed to restore faulty foot function and improve your overall body posture.
The word orthotic comes from the Greek ‘ortho’ , which stands for “to correct”. The correct term for orthotic is actually orthosis (plural: orthoses) which literally means “correcting device”. Therefore, a foot orthotic is a device designed to correct the foot.
How do orthotics work?
Orthotic insoles (or shoe inserts) are placed inside the patient’s shoes with the purpose of correcting poor f o o t biomechanics - or faulty foot function. The most common display of faulty foot biomechanics is excessive pronation or over-pronation. This is a very common condition whereby the arches tend to flatten out and the feet and ankles are rolling inward during walking, running and sports. Over-pronation should not be confused with flat feet (latin Pes Planus). Flat-footed people are born with a completely flat foot without any arch. Whereas over-pronators do have an arch, but it lowers significantly upon weight bearing, plus the ankles are quite mobile and loose, which causes them roll inwards too much when the foot strikes the ground. Over-pronation can cause a range of foot conditions such as Plantar Fasciitis (heel pain) and Metatarsalgia (ball of foot pain). In addition, bad alignment of the feet also affect other parts of the body, including the knees and lower back. This is why many health practitioners include orthotics in their treatment regime for patients suffering shin splints, knee pain and low back pain.
Podiatry orthotics are custom-made and therefore quite expensive. They are suitable for people with s e r i o u s b i o m e c h a n i c a l d i s o r d e r s and/or foot deformities. However, most people who suffer from over-pronation do not require an expensive rigid orthotic. Research has shown that for 80% of people suffering from over-pronation an off-the-shelf pre-made orthotic such as Footlogics will provide enough support.