Custom Mounlded Foot Orthotics

Custom moulded foot orthotics work to correct the architectural structure of the foot which is the foundation of the body. The structure or lack of it in the foot consequently affects the ankles, knees, hips, pelvic structure and the musculature of the torso. Structure governs function and normal structure facilitates correct physiology the byproduct of which is greatly improved health, function and energy.

The causes of foot pronation, collapsed arch or decreased arch are many. They often start with the wearing of baby shoes that have a perfectly flat sole and being laced down tight so that the shoes won't fall off. This causes compression of the arch as do tight straps, elastics or a tight upper on the shoe itself. This is compounded by continual walking on hard surfaces such as cement, pavement, terrazzo and marble which causes stretching and weakening of the ligaments. This becomes a vicious circle and leads to further collapse.

A collapsed arch in the foot is accompanied by a prominent talus bone in the ankle and medial rotation of the tibia (bone between the knee and the ankle). This looks like inward rolling of the foot and ankle and is called pronation. This causes the knee to have increased joint space on the medial or inside and also increased joint space in the hip joint. This combination of events results in forward tipping of the pelvis along with weakness of the abdominal and gluteal muscles. These muscles are not just weak but actually turned off. The result is that the quadratus lumborum and psoas muscles take up the slack and become too tight. A tight psoas muscle reflexly causes or is accompanied by a weak diaphragm which in turn leads to a whole host of problems including hiatus hernia, acid reflux, poor digestion, pressure on the heart, poor emptying of the gall bladder, reduced liver function, reduced diaphragm excursion and therefore shallow breathing leading to reduced oxygen uptake by the blood. These problems can all be returned to normal and maintained with correctly fitted and moulded foot orthotics or shoe inserts.