We all know the song, "your hip bone's connected to your knee bone..." so it would only make sense that a problem in the back, neck and/or shoulder is related to the foot, ankle, hip and/or knee joints and vice versa! Do me a favor and try this out. Stand up and place your fingers on your hip. And by "hip" I mean the widest part of your outer, upper thigh where you feel the bone poking out,called the "Greater trochanter".

Now, while your fingers are over this area, slightly roll the foot (on the same side) against the ground in a sideways rocking motion. Can you feel the movement in your hip while you are doing this? You should. See the connection there? So what does this little science experiment tell us? Well, it explains how even the smallest amount of pronation (a flattened arch in the foot) or supination (a higher arch of the foot) can affect the position of the femur bone.

So what's the big deal if the femur bone moves? Well, put simply, our bodies are designed with specific angles at which the muscles, bones and ligaments connect everything together. There are also normal ranges of motion. When there are slight shifts in the "normal" arches in the foot with pronation being the most common, the lower leg rotates inward, the greater trochanter drops down to compensate and the muscles and ligaments associated with these joints shift and stretch as well. This leaves our lower part of our bodies more susceptible to injury and pain.

But the fun doesn't stop here. These postural shifts travel way up the kinetic chain and now our lower back, upper back, neck and shoulders take on the stress. The image below is a perfect example of what occurs.

Just think, if abnormal shearing of the bone and the skin of the foot can cause a callous or a corn, what do you think it could be doing to the rest of your body? Catch my drift? So can't I just go to my podiatrist and get a pair of orthotics to correct all of my problems? Unfortunately the answer is no. Most orthotics out there come with two major problems. One, they usually only support one arch of the foot (we actually have three arches) and secondly, theymost often are designed out of a hard plastic material which is extremely rigid and uncomfortable. The foot is a moving, flexible part of the body, with specific biomechanics to support the gait (walking) cycle. Why would anyone want to have a rigid piece of plastic under their foot while walking? This is the exact reason why most of our patients do not use them after they are prescribed from their podiatrist.

In our office, we use Pelvic Spinal Stabilizers (otherwise known as Functional Orthotics) made by Foot Levelers. These stabilizers do just that. They STABILIZE. They also are custom made which not only means they are specific to your THREE arches of your feet but they have different topper options for different needs. They have special tops for people who play golf, or for those that who's feet tend to sweat or there's a even a tougher top for those who spend almost an entire day standing, etc. The material is soft, flexible and breathable which patients love.

When these stabilizers are given to our patients in conjunction with their care, which include spinal (and extremity) adjustments, myofascial massage, stretching and strengthening exercises, we see a huge changes in their posture over time. These patients experience faster results than if they were seeking chiropractic care alone or had orthotics alone. Chiropractic care and Functional Orthotics help to enhance the body's performance and efficiency and reduce pain and muscular imbalances.

For more information on Foot Levelers, please visit their website:

http://www.footlevelers.com/