German Health Insurance - Best on Bare Feet!

Well, here we see it... this is the cover of an information flier of the German Health Insurance company AOK ('Allgemeine Ortskrankenkasse'), who now wants to lure potential customers into signing up, by showing a barefoot print in sand. The white-on-green text translates to:
Do something for your health. Just turn the page!

The text at the bottom (when translated to English) reads as follows:

The first step to the right health insurance.

So, the bottom line may just be a pun... but I think a health insurance company would not choose the imprint of a bare foot to advertise, if they wouldn't think it being healthy to walk barefoot.

Below you find an article promoting barefooting in the latest issue of the AOK members' magazine vigo (Issue 04/2006).

"Bottomless"

Take the sandals in hand, and off you go on bare feet - walking barefoot regularly is healthy for the foot musculature, improves your posture in general and even strengthens the immune system.

As Dr. Uschi Bierbaum-Buksch reached the finish line of this year's Rhine Marathon at Düsseldorf, the audience cheered enthusiasti- cally. Some people also shook their heads in disbelief. That was not due to the running time of four hours and 40 minutes, which is for a non-professional quite good, in fact - Dr. Bierbaum- Buksch stood out from the others for having covered the distance of 42.195 kilometres on her bare feet.

How her feet looked afterwards? "It took me four weeks to get them clean afterwards," she said, and laughed. She didn't have any injuries at all, and in general, she has been very healthy since training in her bare feet - even in Winter, with temperatures of three degrees Celsius. By now, the 58-year-old has run four marathons in her bare feet and a few more shod. She claims, that barefoot running is good for her, and even previous problems with her knees have disappeared. "Only in Berlin it was difficult, since there were quite a few glass shards on the way." On October 15, she plans to take part in the Beijing marathon. Barefoot, of course.

Granted, to take part in an extremely long run on one's bare feet sounds for us Germans like something that needs to get used to, since most of us generally exercise too little - and if we do, only shod, please. One does not have to go as far as Dr. Bierbaum-Buksch, who also raises money for charity every time she runs a marathon and who has founded the initiative "barefoot for people" (Barfuss für Menschen). Taking off our shoes more often would be good for all of us. But why is it so healthy to walk through the landscape on naked feet? Doesn't one get athlete's foot from it?

[personal note by me here: I guess the author just wants to quote the most common myth about barefooting, but does not answer this question right away... just read on, and you'll see. :o) ]

The human feet do heavy labour indeed. On an average, they take five million steps per year, most of those squeezed into badly- shaped shoes or forced into an unnatural stance by too-high heels. The consequences are mostly fatal for your feet and are known as splayfoot, skew foot or flat foot and are quite common defective positions. Another consequence might be the so-called hallux valgus, an enlarged ball on the big toe, that will hurt with every step. For our overall motion apparatus, in which all parts are attuned to each other in a very complex way, problems will just start with that. The way we stand and walk has its effects for instance on our knees, hip and the spine. It is about time to pay more attention to our feet.

"Our feet are naturally constructed to carry us without shoes any- where and without any problem", says Dr. Birgit Plifke, orthopaedic surgeon and standing ready in our Clarimedis service center to ans- wer questions and solve problems of our members. [personal note by me: The AOK has this service center installed, where members can call a toll-free number - within Germany only, that is] "A horse, for instance, moves safely on its four rigid hooves, since the weight is distributed equally onto four legs. As bipeds, we have ground contact only with one foot, when walking. This requires a sensitive sole, which provides information on the ground texture, and a well-trained foot musculature, which enables us to balance on uneven ground. Otherwise, we would not even be able to stand safely."

intermediate text no. 1:

plateau-soles are taboo!

Many women won't like to hear this: heels in any orm and shape are bad for the feet. But also apparently healty shoes are not apt, since the industrially manufactured foot bed in them is not shaped after the individual form of one's foot. Ideal are modern sport shoes, which imitate walking barefoot with their flexible soles. Otherwise, the soles of shoes should be as soft as possible, providing little cushioning. Rigid wooden soles or plateau soles are taboo. In summer, flip-flops provide a good option for the feet to move freely.

end of intermediate text no. 1

[personal note by me: The article is aimed at shoddies, who are to be informed about barefooting... so, it would seem normal to provde a bit of information, as to which kind of shoes are "OK", in case they don't want to lose them completely]

These capabilities are lost, if we squeeze our feet into too rigid shoes constantly, and it also has its effects on the shape of our feet, as the orthopaedic surgeon explains. "People, who rarely wear shoes will almost never develop a bunionette. Well-trained foot muscles are also quicker to react to unexpected things. This reduces the danger of injuries." So, walking barefoot strengthens the foot muscles and trains our feeling for the ground underfoot. In the long run, this can have positive effects on our overall posture. Dr. Plifke recommends: take off your shoes more often.

To PR consultant Detlef Fleischer it has become clear a long time ago, that walking barefoot makes sense. In his leisure time, he takes his shoes in hand, rather than wearing them, as often as possible. In his book "Barfuß-Szene - Mehr Mut zu nackten Füßen" ("the barefoot scene - more courage for naked feet") he described the problems of everyday life: one is looked at in strange ways when barefooting around town, and most employers react negatively to their staff walking barefoot through the office. To Fleischer, the clear consequence from this was to initiate the installation of a Barfußpfad in his home town Neuss, where anyone can now try out the sensations of exploring the world on bare soles. The visit of this path is free. "Most people neglect their feet to a great extent", Fleischer emphasizes.

Accordingly surprised people react when shedding their shoes to walk the barefoot training path in Neuss. The grass feels pleasantly soft underfoot, a few stems of grass tickling between the toes. The gravel feels more like a challenge, then. Some single stones press into the skin unpleasantly... but, what's that? After a very short while, the feet are used to the new surface and even walking over the rough gravel feels like a pleasant massage now. Now a swift walk over the soft bark mulch before meeting the next challenge: shells.

Since spring 2003 the Barfußpfad at Neuss enables visitors to get new experience with their feet. They especially travel there, even though they could take their shoes off anywhere. On such a barefoot path, no one gets queer looks for padding through mud, giggling. The barefoot paths have become sought-after and quite fashionable. In almost every corner of Germany, they have been installed as a leisure-time fun opportunity and as means to pro- mote one's health. The Barfußpfad at Neuss advertizes with barefooting as serving your feet, strengthening you immune system, and - not to forget - a means to have fun.

For beginners, these barefoot paths are an excellent means to practise barefooting. For beginners?? Sadly, it is like that: who is used to move around in shoes almost constantly, will have to learn to walk barefoot again, otherwise is in danger of experiencing severe muscle ache. Even sinews and bones must get used to the different kind of strain they get from barefooting. Therefore, the doseage (so to speak) should be increased bit by bit: for starters, soft surfaces like grass, sand and forest ground are ideal. The soles are stimulated by the slightly uneven ground, and the different muscles are so trained separately. A good backup training is to leave slippers in the closet, when at home, and to walk barefoot around the house and garden or, when on a day-out, to take the shoes in hand and let your feet explore a nice green pasture.

Who ever walked barefoot over a bed of moss will perceive shoes as unpleasantly hard and rigid. In any case: watch the ground. Who turns around corners on bare feet can realize quickly, that it is possible to stub a toe on a corner, or some- times a glass shard was overlooked when cleaning the patio after the last BBQ. By the way, feet trained to walk barefoot will just walk over small shards, thanks to callous. Some dangers remain, though. In there forest, there are ticks, one should look for thoroughly after a hike, especially between the toes. In the city, one has to beware of larger glass shards. One reason, which our grandparents possibly quoted for not walking barefoot, has been demasked as being a myth: barefooting increases the chance of getting athlete's foot. Actually, the exact opposite is true. Fungus spores cannot harm healthy feet. They might become a problem, when meeting a moist environment and thereby are enabled to breed, for example when feet are sweating inside shoes. Walking barefoot rather prevents athlete's foot.

The old saying, that cold feet promote catching a cold might have a basis. Therefore, it is best to not not exaggerate outdoor bare- footing and to keep in motion, so that the circulation is kept up. If one starts to feel chilly, a thorough foot rub with a dry towel and warm socks will help. Those who walk barefoot often enough will have less and less problems dealing with lower temperatures over time. People with healthy feet will have few to no problems when walking barefoot. Who has worn shoes all the time and has deformations on the feet should inquire with an orthopaedic surgeon before beginning to walk barefoot. For some medical indications, shoes with medical inlays are better.

intermediate text no. 2:

Healty feet at work

In Finland it is common, that office employees shed their thick winter boots and wear comfortable slippers or just warm socks in the office. Here, employers rather frown at that. A good solution is to take off the shoes under the desk and do a little workout, such as clenching the toes, as if to grab something . At drugstores, wooden massage rollers can be purchased.

Who has to stand a lot during work, can tend to feet and legs with cooling sprays or cremes. Adequate products are those containing horse chestnut, arnica or menthol.

end of intermediate text no. 2

For healthy feet, there are really no good arguments against walking barefoot. Except for the irritated looks of other people, perhaps. And even to prevent those, enthusiastic barefooters have found a solution: soleless sandals. On the top everything looks normal - which it is, since there is nothing more normal than using your own feet for walking.

intermediate text no. 3:

Foot care tips:

a few care tips help in keeping you feet healthy:

  1. Dry your feet thoroughly after washing, especially between the toes.
  2. Apply foot cremes regularly to keep the skin supple.
  3. Soak callous first, then use a pumice stone to remove it. A callosity plane should only be used by an experienced pedicurist.
  4. Toe nails should not be trimmed too short, and cut off straightly to prevent ingrown nails.
  5. Take off your shoes as often as possible.

recommended reading: Detlef Fleischer, "Barfuß-Szene - Mehr Mut zu nackten Füßen", Neue Neusser Reihe, Neuss 2002, EUR 12,80 links:

http://www.barfusspark.info/ - a list of barefoot paths/parks
http://www.barfuss-szene.de/ - Detlef Fleischer's web site
http://www.barfusspfad-neuss.de/ - The Barfußpfad in Neuss, Germany.

end of intermediate text no. 3

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