Types of feet: what are yours like and what pathologies are you prone to?

The anatomy of the human body has characteristics that have been studied over the centuries. In fact, the great diversity of shapes, measurements and proportions of different parts of the body are interesting both for the medical community and for any person.

One of the most studied body parts are the feet. Having to support all our weight when we are upright, the feet are of fundamental importance, and that there are different types of feet It is still curious because it shows us certain signs of how evolution has adapted these extremities to the movement needs of the being human.

Types of feet: which ones exist and what differentiates them?

In this article we are going to know what types of feet exist and how they are classified according to different medical and anatomical variables. In addition, we will learn why some shapes of the feet make the person more or less likely to develop certain podiatric pathologies.

The most recurrent way of classifying feet is as follows:

1. Flatfoot

The plantar vault has little or no height

. This means that, in an upright position, the person with flat feet has the entire surface of the sole of the foot in contact with the ground.

2. Pes cavus

Cavus foot is the opposite of flat foot.. In pes cavus, the plantar vault has a great height, so the upright person will have little surface of their feet in contact with the ground.

3. normal foot

When we speak of a normal foot in terms of the height of the plantar vault, we mean that the height of said vault is average. Namely, it is neither too high nor too low. In general, a normal foot also correlates with better podiatric health.

Different ways to classify feet

Although the plantar vault marks a very useful parameter when classifying the different types of foot that exist, it is not the only way to carry out said classification.

For example, another way to evaluate foot types is based on measuring the size of the toes and their proportions with respect to the rest. Although this theory does not have a great scientific endorsement, it is often said that there are three forms of the feet in terms of position and proportions of the fingers, each form being "prototypical" of the people of various civilizations of history: Egyptians, Greeks and romans..

Thus, we are faced with the following distinction:

1. egyptian foot

In the Egyptian foot the toes form a diagonal line, not protruding the second toe above the big toe. That is, they have the second finger shorter than the first.

Statistics say that it is the most common foot morphology, with more than 50% of the population. In fact, shoe manufacturers often use this reference to make shoe lasts.

2. greek foot

They are the feet whose second toe is longer than the big toe. It is estimated that between 12 and 16% of the population has this type of foot. People who have this type of foot may have some podiatric difficulty, since footwear often does not adapt to this characteristic.

If your feet have this shape, it is advisable to take great care of how and where you select your footwear, to avoid discomfort and podiatric disorders. The denomination of "Greek foot" is usually given since some Greek sculptures show this particular morphological characteristic.

3. Roman (or square) foot

It is about those feet in which the length of the big toe and the second toe are equal. They are not very common and tend to be feet wider than usual. This means that people with square feet require special footwear with a width that allows them to step comfortably and without risk of injury.

The length of the metatarsal, another way to classify them

Another way to classify the types of feet, somewhat more technical, is by looking at the length of the first metatarsal, that is, from the antepenultimate bone that joins the structure of the foot to the tip of the big toe.

According to this particularity, which greatly influences the probability of developing bunions and other disorders depending on the shape of our feet, we find these three types of feet.

1. Index minus

In this case, the first metatarsal is clearly shorter than the second.. As indicated by podiatrists, this anatomical characteristic means that the second metatarsal bears a greater load during, for example, a walk, so it is common for people with Index minus to suffer overloads and even bunions

2. Indexplus

In this case, the first metatarsal is longer than the second.. People with this type of foot may be more likely to develop certain podiatric disorders, such as sesmoiditis (inflammation of the first metatarsal bones) and hallux rigidus (difficulties in mobility of the toe joint) fat).

3. Index plus minus

In the Index plus minus foot type, the first and second metatarsals are very similar in length, or alike. As we have seen, the length of the metatarsals has some important implications, especially medical level, since having one form or another correlates with developing, or not, certain pathologies of the foot.

Bibliographic references:

• France, Diane L. (2008). Human and Nonhuman Bone Identification: A Color Atlas. CRC Press.
• Hawes MR, Sovak D. (2007). "Quantitative morphology of the human foot in a North American population". Ergonomics.
• Marieb, Elaine Nippon; Hoehn, Katja (2007). Human anatomy & physiology. PearsonEducation.