1-800-824-BONES

Improperly-fitting shoes, which can cause bunions, corns, calluses, hammertoes, and other disabling foot problems, are a huge public health risk in the U.S.

One in six persons or 43.1 million people in the U.S. have foot problems. Thirty-six percent regard their foot problems as serious enough to warrant medical attention.

The cost of foot surgery to correct foot problems from tight-fitting shoes is $2 billion a year. If time off from work for the surgery and recovery is included, the cost is $3.5 billion.

A study conducted by the American Orthopaedic Foot and Ankle Society found that:

• Nine out of 10 women are wearing shoes that are too small for their feet.

• Eight out of 10 women say their shoes are painful.

• More than 7 out of 10 women have developed a bunion, hammertoe, or other painful foot deformity.

• Women are nine times more likely to develop a foot problem because of improper fitting shoes than a man.

• Nine out of 10 women's foot deformities can be attributed to tight shoes.

(For a free "If the Shoe Fits, Wear It" brochure, call the Academy's public service telephone number (800) 824-BONES or send a stamped, self-addressed (business size) envelope to "If the Shoe Fits, Wear It," American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons, P.O. Box 1998, Des Plaines, Ill. 60017.)