You might have heard about the foot binding tradition that used to occur in China until it was banned in 1912, where a girls feet were bound so they didn't develop properly, leading them to have feet as small as three inches, but modern day Podiatrists are warning that fashionable footwear still contains some of these torturous, restrictive properties.

The wear of fashionable shoes has been linked to numerous health and foot problems over the years, with increasing concern as to just how much damage they could be doing to feet on a daily basis. In fact, surgeon Andy Goldberg goes as far as to say, “Shoewear design is in the dark ages.

“A third of bunions are caused by shoes – we've become used to wearing pointed shoes and high heels.”

Evidently, high heels are massively to blame for many problems that women develop and not just in common ailments such as bunions as John Durkin, London osteopath, comments; “When you walk, the foot naturally rolls in so that when it hits the ground, it absorbs the shock.

“High heels don't allow for this, so the knees and back absorb the shock instead, which can lead to back pain as well as osteoarthritis in the knee and hip.”

However, further health issues have been highlighted as Dr Jane Andersen (part of the American Podiatric Medical Association) suggested; “The muscular tension that heels put on your back can also lead to migraines. But there aren't any studies proving this link.”

Any heels that are higher than 2 inches could be throwing out the alignment of the body, which consequently leads to further head and neck pain.

However, it's not just a woman's choice of shoes that could be leading to ailments later on in life, as 1 in 10 sufferers of bunions are men, which could potentially be caused from wearing shoes that are thin at the toe, which squashes the toes.

Thus, perhaps it's time to really listen to what your feet are telling you; if your shoes pinch, ache or feel painful in any way, perhaps you aren't wearing the right footwear for you. Get the right fit for your feet.