Bellevue Chiropractor Answers The Question: Can Your Feet Give You Low Back Pain?
As a Bellevue Chiropractor I have found that 60-70% of the people that suffer with low back pain also have some sort of dysfunction in their feet. This dysfunction, over time, can create and be the very cause of the pain in their back. The vast majority of my patients who present this way have no idea that there is anything wrong in their feet, they just know that they have back pain! In my office I use a digital foot scanner, and biomechanical testing to evaluate every low back pain patient for this problem, and complication
The foot is the first line of defense against the ground. All of the stress of your body is pushed right through your foot when you walk or stand. Imagine if your foot was misaligned, what would this do to the way you walk? That’s right, it would create a misalignment all the way up to your low back. As I always say, “If your foundation is crooked, all of you will be crooked”. But how do you know if you have a foot issue causing you low back pain or discomfort? Lets look at 4 ways to know if this is part of your problem.
1. Take a look at the bottom of your shoes. Is there any wear on the heel of the shoe? If there is, is it worse on one side or the other? Unequal wear can be an indicator that you have a foot issue that is causing you to walk imbalanced. Now your going to need to look at a pair of shoes that you wear quite often as these imbalances may take some time to wear down the tread. This is very similar to wear on the tires of your car. If the alignment of the car is off, it will wear down the tire tread very fast.
2. Through out your life has there ever been a time when you have sprained your ankle? If so, do you find that you are very prone to spraining your ankle on a regular basis? This is one big indicator that you has biomechanical dysfunction in your feet. As you sprain your ankles they loose
3. Along with your low back pain, do you also have pain in your feet, ankles or knees? Most people do not connect pain in their back with pain in their feet or knees, but most of the time they are connected. Think of the back and legs as a chain. If one link to the chain is weak, it weakens all the other links as well.
4. the fourth way to know if your feet are causing your low back pain is if you have flat feet. Flat feet tell you that you’ve lost the arch, more specifically the medial arch. The medial arch of your foot is the first line of defense against the ground. Think of it like a shock absorber. It reduces the stress that each staff places on your body. If the shock absorber is not in place the entire shock travels through your leg and up to your low back. This can in turn create low back pain. In my office, I utilize computerized technology to assess your foot for bio-mechanical dysfunction.
The key to curing any type of pain is to find the cause of the pain. If your feet are the cause of your low back pain it is important to address the foot problem first. Realignment of the foot through chiropractic adjustments is the first step. Figuring out if you need customized orthodics for your specific foot dysfunction is the next step toward creating a good foundation under your back. If you live in the Bellevue area and have low back pain, it would be a smart decision to have a bio-mechanical foot evaluation.
Dr. Weir is a local bellevue chiropractor. To contact his clinic call 425-635-0495.
