Barefoot shoes have become super popular lately. Here's why!

Arch support was first introduced in the late 1800's and started becoming more popular in the 1970s. Shoes became thick, with inches of cushion & support between the bottom of your feet and the ground. The thought here is that our feet are weak and need to be supported. 


But our feet have 29 muscles. When we're constantly wearing runners, trainers or high heels that are narrow and don't let our toes splay out in their natural form, we begin to tell the feet to conform to the shoe we've put them in and just stay put. Over time, this causes misalignment of the foot, foot pain, muscle weakness and this changes how are hips and other part of our body move in order to accommodate for the feet. 

If you have upper back pain because you're sitting at a desk all day, and your upper back muscles are weak, you don't just wear a brace to keep you up right. You go to physio and get exercises to strengthen the muscles of the upper back.

If you have patellofemoral syndrome because of a muscle imbalance pulling on your knee causing pain, you don't put it in a brace for the rest of your life. You strengthen the thigh muscles to track the patella in the way we want and fix the actual problem.

Why do we think our feet need to be supported? Why are we not strengthening the 29 muscles of the feet?!

Barefoot shoes are gaining popularity as they are wider to accommodate for the actual shape of the foot. They are flexible, allowing your foot to touch & leave the ground in the way it was biomechanically designed. They also have no arch support, which may take some getting use to, but ultimately gives you the opportunity to build up the muscles to support you naturally in the way the foot was designed.

In addition to wearing barefoot shoes, being barefoot more often, stretching and strengthening the toes, and doing foot exercises will help strengthen the feet. You may notice once your feet get stronger that your hip & back pain go away!

There are different 'tiers' or styles of barefoot shoes that allow you to transition slowly to complete barefoot shoes. Some have more support on the bottom, or a bit of arch support, but have the wider fit. Make sure you do your research before committing to one shoe.

Anya's Reviews is a great website for more info: ​https://anyasreviews.com/foot-exercises-transitioning-barefoot-shoes/

The shoes I'm wearing here are the Wish I by Saguaro.
Saguaro Shoes sent me a free pair to test out and review.
This is my third pair and I would definitely buy more! They are super affordable compared to a lot of other brands. I'm usually a size 7, but for the Wish I's  "I WISH" (haha get it) I would have sized up. I find they fit a tad smaller than the trail runners and the sock shoes I have by Saguaro. They're still very flexible, wider fit, and super cute!

Food sensitivity testing is all the rage right now, and can be helpful for some individuals in identifying foods that may be triggering a myriad of symptoms. If you've been having diarrhea, heartburn, nausea, stomach pain, bloating, cramping, loose stool, diarrhea, brain fog, headaches, or other seemingly random symptoms, you may be experiencing a food sensitivity.

Food sensitivities are caused by IgG antibodies in food. This causes a delayed reaction of up to 48 hours since eating the food before you notice symptoms! Food sensitivities should not be confused with ALLERGIES. Food allergies are cause by IgE antibodies, and are life threatening. While food sensitivities may be uncomfortable and frustrating, they are not life threatening. 

There are tests available that many naturopathic doctors to test for IgG antibodies, therefore giving you a list of between 90 and 400 foods that you may be sensitive to. Many patients have found these lists to be helpful in knowing which foods to stay away from to see resolution of their symptoms. However, research on the accuracy of these tests shows that they are not very reliable. They may show foods that are not actually causing you trouble, causing you to remove a food group for weeks at a time that isn't harming you.

While there isn't exactly anything wrong with having these tests done, they can be pricey. The starting cost of testing just under 100 foods is $275+ tax, and there is an option to test more foods if there are specific foods you think may be causing you trouble. So it's really up to you, the patient, if you're willing to spend the money to try this route of testing, or spend less money but more time trial and error-ing what foods you are sensitive to. At the end of the day, it's whatever works for you, your lifestyle, and your budget!

I do run food sensitivity tests for patients who want to have it done, and I'm happy to go over the results with them and support them on their journey! However, if the cost is a little bit too high, there are ways we can identify food sensitivities through elimination. This takes a bit more time, but tends to be much more accurate if you're following the guidelines I've set out when it comes to elimination and food re-introduction.

Whatever way you choose to discover your food sensitivities, we always focus on healing the gut and replenishing nutrient deficiencies along the way, in whatever way we need to based on your individual health history. It may be through herbs, vitamins and minerals, incorporating healing foods, etc.

If you think you may have a food sensitivity and are ready to start healing your body, don't hesitate to book in for a free discovery call, or an initial appointment:
https://allsystemschiropractic.janeapp.com/#/staff_member/17