Types Of Feet: What Are Yours Like And What Pathologies Are You Prone To?
The anatomy of the human body has characteristics that have been studied over the centuries In fact, the great diversity of shapes, measurements and proportions of different parts of the body are interesting both for the medical community and for anyone.
One of the most studied parts of the body are the feet. Having to support all our weight when we are upright, the feet are of fundamental importance, and the fact that there are different types of feet is still curious because it shows us certain signs of how evolution has adapted these extremities to the movement needs of human beings. .
Types of feet: which ones exist and what makes them different?
In this article we are going to know what types of feet exist and how they are classified according to different medical and anatomical variables. In addition, we will learn why some foot shapes make a person more or less likely to develop certain podiatric pathologies.
The most common way to classify feet is as follows:
1. Flat feet
The plantar vault has little or no height This means that, in an upright position, the person with flat feet has the entire surface of the sole of the foot in contact with the ground.
The cavus foot is the opposite of the flat foot In the cavus foot, the plantar vault has a great height, so the upright person will have little surface area of their feet in contact with the ground.
3. Normal foot
When we talk about a normal foot in terms of the height of the plantar vault, we mean that the height of said vault is average. That is to say, It is neither too high nor too low In general, a normal foot also correlates with better podiatric health.
Different ways to classify feet
Although the plantar vault marks a very useful parameter when classifying the different types of feet that exist, it is not the only way to carry out said classification.
For example, Another way to evaluate foot types is based on measuring the size of the toes and their proportions with respect to the rest Although this theory does not have great scientific support, it is often said that there are three shapes of the feet in terms of the position and proportions of the toes, each shape being “prototypical” of the people of various civilizations in history: Egyptians, Greeks and Romans…
Thus, we are faced with the following distinction:
1. Egyptian foot
On the Egyptian foot the toes form a diagonal line, the second toe not protruding above the big toe. That is, their second finger is shorter than the first.
Statistics say that it is the most common foot morphology, with more than 50% of the population. In fact, footwear manufacturers often use this reference to make shoe lasts.
These are the feet whose second toe is longer than the big toe It is estimated that between 12 and 16% of the population has this type of foot. People who have this type of foot may have some podiatric difficulty, since footwear often does not adapt to this characteristic.
If your feet have this shape, it is advisable that you take great care how and where you select your footwear, to avoid discomfort and podiatric disorders. The name “Greek foot” is usually given since some Greek sculptures show this very particular morphological characteristic.
3. Roman (or square) foot
These are those feet in which the length of the big toe and the second toe are equal They are not very common and tend to have wider feet than usual. This means that people with square feet require special footwear with a width that allows them to step comfortably and without risk of injury.
The length of the metatarsal, another way to classify them
Another way to classify foot types, a little more technical, is by looking at the length of the first metatarsal that is, the penultimate bone that joins the structure of the foot to the tip of the big toe.
According to this particularity, which greatly influences the probability of developing bunions and other disorders depending on the shape of our feet, we find these three types of feet.
1. Index minus
In this case, the first metatarsal is clearly shorter than the second As podiatrists indicate, this anatomical characteristic means that the second metatarsal supports a greater load during, for example, a walk, which is why it is common for people with Index minus to suffer from overloads and even bunions.
In this case, the first metatarsal is longer than the second People with this type of foot may have a greater propensity to develop certain podiatric disorders, such as sesmoiditis (inflammation of the bones of the first metatarsal) and hallux rigidus (difficulties in mobility of the big toe joint).
3. Index plus minus
In the Index plus minus foot type, the first and second metatarsals have a very similar length, or alike. As we have seen, the length of the metatarsals has some important implications, especially at a medical level, since having one shape or another correlates with developing, or not, certain foot pathologies.
