4 July 2006
High Heels Okay in Moderation
A leading international podiatrist and world renowned researcher in podiatric clinical biomechanics, currently visiting
New Zealand, has stated that women can wear high heel shoes but only in moderation.
Professor Keith Rome who is in New Zealand to meet with the country’s leading shoe manufacturer Kumfs, said women could
achieve a balance between wearing and not wearing high heels.
“If an individual wears adequate shoes during the day and high heels only for evening outings or other social
engagements they may not go on to experience back and postural problems in later life,” he said.
Professor Rome said the definition of an ‘adequate’ shoe depended on the individual and could range from a flat shoe
through to one that has a moderate heel.
“However, for those people who wear high heels from a young age and continuously do so throughout their lives, they have
a much higher risk of experiencing adverse reactions including foot, ankle, knee, hip and lower back problems.”
Professor Rome who works at the University of Teesside in the United Kingdom and is an adjunct professor at AUT
University in the School of Podiatry has overseen studies by Masters students into high heel wearing. He has also been
conducting detailed research and clinical trials into the use of insoles/shoes and their impact on older people and
people who have severe arthritis.
The results of two separate studies carried out by Professor Rome and his research team in the United Kingdom will be
published in the coming months with one due to appear in the Journal of Rheumatology and the other in Gait & Posture.
While in New Zealand, he met with Kumfs representatives to discuss ways that he could assist the organisation in a
professional capacity, as well as possible collaborative research opportunities with AUT
University.
ends