Stiletto heels: harm or benefit?

The French have a joke: “Who invented the heels? The woman who was constantly kissed on the forehead. ” But the real history of heels is not so interesting, in a word – ancient. Studs are another matter, they were created quite recently, in the 1950s in France by the famous shoe designer Roger Vivier. It was with him that a new milestone began in the history of beauty, fashion and … health.

Stiletto Science

Ever since women started to wear stiletto heels, doctors around the world have become concerned about the health effects of such shoes. And most of them came to disappointing conclusions: according to their calculations, about a third of all women in the world suffer from the unpleasant consequences of wearing heels. Problems are varied – from the “athlete’s foot” to arthrosis and other incurable joint diseases caused by excessive stress on the toe of the foot. Doctors have even calculated that every two centimeters of heel increases the pressure on the toes by about 25%. At the same time, the risk of developing “bones” on the legs increases.

So, female fingers, knees and back suffer from heels. Although some doctors have a different opinion on the latter. High heels are believed to have a beneficial effect on posture. That is, literally, they force us to walk with a straight back. Sounds believable. In addition, when walking in high heels, the gluteal, thigh and calf muscles contract, which allows you to keep your figure in good shape. Actress Eva Longoria walks on her toes for half an hour a day for the sake of this house.

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Another strong evidence in favor of hairpins was presented by Italian scientists led by Maria Cerruto of the University of Verona.

Their study involved 66 young women who were repeatedly asked to stand in high heels. Meanwhile, while the ladies were walking, scientists measured the biocurrents arising in the so-called small pelvis – where the reproductive organs and the “pleasure muscles” surrounding them are located. Periodically, the heel height was changed, and new measurements were taken. As a result, it turned out that the optimal heel height is 4% of the height (7 centimeters for a 170-centimeter woman).

What is happening: while walking on heels of optimal height, the background electrical activity of the most intimate muscles of the small pelvis (close to the vagina) is minimized. This means that they can contract more strongly, ready for the appearance of sexual arousal, its intensification and subsequent satisfaction.

“I wear stilettos myself,” admitted Maria Cerruto. – I’m tired of listening to those who attribute harm to their health, scare them with curvature of the legs and arthrosis. I wanted to protect the hairpins that make women so seductive. “

Read next: What the statistics say and what shoe designers say

Does height matter?

According to Christian Louboutin, who makes the most comfortable shoes in the world, the height of the ideal stiletto heel is 11 cm. Favorite designer Carrie Bradshaw from the TV series “Sex and the City” Manolo Blahnik agrees with him: “Don’t fall into to the extreme. A heel higher than 11,5 cm makes it difficult to walk beautifully and looks inelegant, ”warns the designer.

The most gentle options are considered to be heels no higher than 4-5 centimeters. Well, quite suitable for daily commuting or shopping. Shoes with such heels look quite elegant, and the load on the foot is much less.

What do the statistics say?

• It turns out that one in ten women wears stilettos more than three days a week.

• Most men love to see a woman in stiletto heels, there are 75% of them. And 50% of the fair sex agree with them.

• More than half of the world’s women wear heels above 10 centimeters.

Well, beauty wins, it’s obvious. The main thing is that it is appropriate. High stilettos even on a walk in the park adorn the hostess’s leg, but they question the presence of her common sense. After all, it is important not only what to wear, but where and how.