What Is The Foot Arch?
The foot arch, frequently treated with arch supports, is located between the heel bone and the ball of the foot. It is formed by the bones, ligaments, muscles, fascia, and tendons of the foot. The purpose of the foot arch is to support the weight of the body and to help propel the body forward while walking. To do this, the foot requires both a high degree of stability and a great deal of flexibility.
The foot has three arches that help form the overall foot arch.
- The medial longitudinal foot arch runs along the inside of the foot from the front to the back and is the one most people think of when they think of the foot arch. Part of it’s job is to absorb most of the shock that occurs upon impact and support the structure of the foot.
- The lateral longitudinal foot arch runs in the same way as the medial longitudinal foot arch, but it is located on the outer edge of the foot. For most of us it is fairly horizontal, but it can be seen best in people with high foot arches.
- The transverse foot arch, also called the metatarsal foot arch. Unlike the other two, this arch runs from outside to inside across the mid-front part of the foot and provides some of the support and flexibility of the foot.
General Foot Arch Classifications
There are three general classes of foot arch, primarily based on observation of the medial longitudinal arch (the main arch at the inside of your foot).
1. Normal foot arch
2. High foot arch (associated with supination)
3. Low foot arch (flat feet, associated with overpronation)
Low arches, or flat feet, known as pes planus, usually occurs when the arch disappears upon standing or taking a step. People with low foot arches/flat feet are often overpronators. With too much pronation, the ankle turns inward upon standing and can give a knock-kneed appearance.
In individuals with a high foot arch, known as pes cavus, you can see a big gap between their foot and the ground on the inside, and sometimes even on the little toe side. This condition often leads to the ankles rolling slightly outward and giving them the appearance of being bow-legged. Both of these conditions change the mechanical approach to walking and can cause painful arch symptom.
How Can I Tell What Type of Foot Arch I Have?
To estimate what type of foot arch you may have, look at your feet in a standing position. If you have a clear space between the ground and your foot arch, even on the outside (little toe side) you may have a high arch.
If you have absolutely no defined foot arch, you are most like flat-footed. You can test this by stepping on a dry surface with a wet foot. If your footprint shows only a thin strip along the outside of your foot connecting your heel and ball-of-the-foot area, you have a high arch. If the connecting strip is approximately half the width of the foot you most likely have a normal or medium foot arch. If most or all of the sole of the foot touches the floor between the heel and the ball-of-the-foot area, you have a low foot arch or flat foot.
What Problems are Associated With Foot Arch Position?
The foot arch is the primary part of our body that absorbs the force when we hit the ground. So, it has a lot of work to do and can become injured fairly easily. Direct force can hurt the foot arch. When the ligaments or the muscles of the foot are overstretched, pain may occur. Overuse can also result in a significant amount of pain. If your arch is abnormal, poor biomechanical alignment can cause pain not only to the arch of the foot, but to other parts of the foot, ankles, knees, hips, and lower back. Arthritis of the joints in the foot arch area may also occur if your arch has continuously been improperly aligned.
Injury leading to inflammation of the plantar fascia is a source of pain as well. The plantar fascia is a thick band of fibrous tissue that extends from the heel to the toes and acts as a support platform for the foot arch. Excessive pronation or supination generally caused by having flat feet or a high foot arch, can cause micro-tears and tension where the plantar fascia attaches to the heel. When this happens, the point of insertion into the heel becomes inflamed and plantar fasciitis pain occurs.
Foot Arch Pain: How Is It Treated?
If you are having pain, a visit to your doctor may determine the best course of action. Often for foot arch problems, foot orthotics or arch supports will be prescribed. Foot orthotics work to distribute your weight more evenly when you are walking and to adjust the poor biomechanical alignment that may be a cause of your pain. For a flat foot, your arch supports will have longitudinal arch support, and may have rearfoot or forefoot posting to angle your foot in a better position. For a high foot arch, your orthotic will cushion the heel and help absorb some of the shock by contouring the foot arch.
Other treatments include stretching exercises, heel cups or heel cradles, plantar fasciitis night splints, and proper fitting footwear.
If you know you have a high or low foot arch but have no pain, you may never develop a problem...or you may develop problems over time. Make sure you don't ignore even slight foot arch symptoms. Over the counter arch supports (off the shelf arch supports) may bring the symptoms under control before they become a bigger problem, or they may be able to help prevent foot arch problems before they occur in the first place.
To see several lines of foot orthotics that we recommend, Click Here: Arch Supports
