Causes of Plantar Fasciitis

Your plantar fascia is only able to stretch to 102% of its length without tearing; therefore it may not be strong enough to withstand the stress placed on it by your lifestyle. The main cause of this condition is from overuse and overloading in occupations where you are on your feet all day (teachers, store clerks, soldiers, waitresses, hostesses), activities that require you to push heavy items (shippers and receivers, construction workers) and/or sporting activities in which you overexert yourself (doing too much, too fast and/or too soon), especially running, football, baseball, basketball, tennis, volleyball, step-aerobics, stair climbing, dancing. Running on your toes or the balls of your feet, on very hard or soft surfaces, and up hills can increase your risk and suffering. Among professional athletes, plantar fasciitis is one of the 5 most common foot and ankle injuries. However, weekend warriors or people who have a rapid change in their activity levels are prone to this condition.

One of the most common causes of Plantar Fasciitis is the shortening of the plantar fascia. If your foot is held for long periods of time in a position where your toes are pointed, the plantar fascia may become shortened. The tissues adapt to the stresses put on them. Within the body muscles, tendons, or ligaments that are in a shortened position for any length of time will become tighter and shorter. For example, the neck of a T-shirt will become permanently deformed if it is stretched too much.

Faulty foot structures (abnormal growths, different leg lengths, arch variations, and unhealed injuries), muscle imbalances (tight, weak or shortened muscles in your foot, ankle, calf and hamstring) and poor biomechanics (abnormal twisting of your foot) affect the way your foot hits the ground (your gait). Overpronation (feet rolling inward) is found in 85% of people who suffer from plantar fasciitis. These individuals tend to have a low arch and flat foot (pes planus). Those who underpronate (feet rolling outward) tend to have rigid feet and a high arch (pes cavus) which results in a shortened plantar fascia. The above issues place increased pressure on your plantar fascia when your foot hits the ground.

Approximately 90% of women and 40% of men with plantar fasciitis are overweight. Obesity or sudden weight increases can overstretch and increase the tension placed on your plantar fascia. The additional weight gained during pregnancy along with the hormonal changes can cause your ligaments and tissues to relax, which heightens your risk for this disorder.

As you age your tissues break down and weaken; your plantar fascia changes from an elastic-like fiber to a more rigid, rope-like fiber, the fat pad in your heel thins out and doesn't provide as much cushioning, which cause it to swell, bruise and/or tear.

Worn out, old, poorly constructed shoes that don't fit properly or don't support your heel or arch affect the distribution of your body weight on your foot and add undue stress to your plantar fascia. High heeled shoes commonly worn by women are famous for leading to the eventual shortening of the plantar fascia. They don¹t just shorten the plantar fascia, they shorten the calf muscles as well. Whenever you stand on your toes these muscles contract and shorten. Tight calf muscles can increase the problems associated with Plantar Fasciitis.

Other factors that may cause plantar fasciitis are:

• Neurological disorders that affect the brain or nervous system (nerve damage from tarsal tunnel syndrome, tibial/plantar/calcaneal nerve entrapment or irritation)
• Diabetes, Osteoarthritis and Inflammatory disorders - rheumatoid arthritis, Reiter's disease, Behcet syndrome, ankylosing spondylitis, spondyloarthropathies, diffuse idiopathic skeletal hyperostosis, bowel disease, psoriasis, fibromyalgia
• Disk herniation
• Obesity
• Genetics
• Stress fractures of calcaneus or bone tumors
 

Therapeutic Products

Blood Flow Stimulation Therapy



You can help your body repair your plantar fasciitis, heel spur, arch pain or tendon injury by boosting the natural healing process using an Inferno Wrap™. The Inferno Wrap's patented design delivers the most effective Blood Flow Stimulation Therapy you can find. By stimulating the flow of blood to your foot you are increasing the amount of healing oxygen and nutrients to the area. Unfortunately, we need to rest in order to heal and this decreases the blood flow throughout our bodies. Since you can't work your foot without danger of further injury, you need to stimulate the blood flow another way. Our innovative Inferno Wrap™ gives you the best Blood Flow Stimulation Therapy available. The Inferno Wrap™ creates energy waves that stimulate blood flow while you rest by penetrating through the outer layers of your foot. The energy waves reach deep into your foot reducing your pain as they heal the inner tissue.



The Inferno Wrap™ provides effective, non-invasive, non-addictive pain relief with no side effects. By treating your heel spur or plantar fascia in the morning before stepping out of bed, you will warm the area and prepare it for use during the day with less risk on re-injury. When your injury has healed somewhat and it comes time for more aggressive rehabilitation, stretching and activity, Blood Flow Stimultation Therapy warms the tissues in the injured area which increases range of motion and allows for a safer stretch with less risk of reinjury.




Therapeutic Ultrasound



Ultrasound Therapy is also a great tool for pain prevention of heel spurs, plantar fasciitis and tendon injuries, and having a therapeutic ultrasound device at home can be a powerful and convenient treatment tool. If you are suffering from a heel spur or have an injured plantar fascia or are recovering from a tendon injury, using ultrasound on a regular basis before your activity or throughout the day will help relax the area, diminish pain and inflammation, soften scar tissue and contribute greatly to the healing of your injury.

Therapeutic Ultrasound warms and massages your soft tissue giving you three primary benefits. First, it increases blood flow in the treated area which speeds your body's natural healing process. Second, it reduces swelling and edema which are the main sources of pain. Third, ultrasound softens existing scar tissue and minimizes the build up of new scar tissue resulting in reduced pain while healing and greater flexibility once healing is complete.



Eucalyptus...
It's in our Gel!

Ultrasound can also be used to administer therapeutic medicines into the body. This is a process known as phonophoresis. Ultrasound with Phonophoresis is rapidly becoming more popular than Ultrasound Therapy alone.



Peppermint...
It's in our gel too!

Our MendMeShop Lavender Infusion Gel is the only topical therapeutic gel that is also a Phonophoretic Ultrasound Gel. It is made with natural medical ingredients including eucalyptus, peppermint, Bulgarian lavender and menthol. These effective ingredients have anesthetic, anti-inflammatory, analgesic, decongestant, and circulatory stimulant properties. When applied topically and massaged into the skin, MendMeShop Lavender Infusion Gel relieves pain and speeds healing without any side-effects.




Freezie Wrap™ Cold Compression Therapy



Our cold compression wraps work by interrupting and slowing nerve and cell function in your foot. Once blood vessels are damaged they can no longer carry oxygenated blood to the damaged tissue and therefore cells begin to break-down. The deep cold provided by our cold compression wraps slows cell function thereby reducing cellular break-down. Furthermore, because the cold wraps serve to numb the nerves, the wraps also reduce pain!



With the non-migrating gel that holds the cold for your cold therapy, our Freezie Wraps are the best. We have noticed over time that our customers are so fond of our cold wraps that they are frequently coming back and ordering a second one - this way they can cool one while wearing the other. The wraps are becoming very popular with baseball and soccer trainers, and the wraps can be conveniently stored in a cooler for quick application on the field when needed.




Always allow the injured area to return to normal body temperature between hot and cold treatments by waiting 60-90 minutes before applying a different therapy.







Do you have more questions?

If you have any questions regarding our therapeutic products and your treatment options, please contact a MendMeShop Advisor for assistance. You can be assured all your questions will be answered in a thorough and courteous manner by our trained staff.

Within Continental US and Canada call toll 1-866-237-9608

Other countries call 1-705-445-3505

Email us at service@aidmyspur.com.

We strive to answer all emails within 24 hours. Often you will receive your response sooner.

Our Office Hours


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