The answer is no. Any suggestion that a shoe simulates the bare foot in direct contact with a support surface, such as with "barefoot shoes" and "minimalist shoes," is simply experiencing an attempt to exploit the less informed consumer in order to sell shoes through false and misleading advertising. The mere presence of a shoe sole that remains attached to the foot has been shown to substantially reduce shear-stress applied to the plantar surface. Plantar skin shear-stress combined with vertical deformation is the most effective stimulus for SA II mechanoreceptors. This information provides humans with precise foot position awareness therefore optimal stability, and a foot loading pattern which spares more fragile foot structures (metatarsal-phalangeal joints) SA II mechanoreceptor afferent information is also used to lower aggregate loading of the the body (vertical component of ground reaction force) through intrinsic foot shock absorption, as well as locomotory mechanics that attenuates vertical impact. Barefoot locomotion on natural surfaces composed of loam remains the standard for safe and efficient locomotion. Reasonably safe locomotion is obtainable with the bare foot on most man-made substrates. Shoe wearing by most humans has never been based on improved functionality when weight-bearing. It has always come with substantial health costs. It emanated from ancient esthetic traditions of foot decoration through body art. Footwear may be improved so as to optimize the destabilizing effects shoe material and minimizing sole thickness. This would make footwear use less hazardous, but would not attain safety inherent with barefoot locomotion. |
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