Have you ever felt a prickling, tingly sensation on the bottom of your foot? If so, you may have experienced plantar fasciitis!

Plantar fasciitis is a common condition that causes pain and tightness on the bottom of one or both feet. While it’s not a life-threatening issue, it can significantly decrease quality of life.

Below, we will review plantar fasciitis and outline why chiropractic care is a viable treatment option for this orthopedic problem. 

What is Plantar Fasciitis?

On the underside of the foot, there is a thick band of tissue that runs from the heel out to each individual toe. In fact, if you place your hand on the bottom of your foot and flex your toes upward, you can feel this tissue for yourself as it stretches!

This tissue is known as the plantar fascia or the PF.

The PF is a critically important body structure that maintains the integrity of our feet. It also allows us to walk, run, and perform various athletic movements. 

Unfortunately, due to our largely sedentary lifestyles and our common footwear choices, the plantar fascia is chronically tight on many people. In the next section, we’ll take a closer look at some of the major causes of plantar fasciitis.

Plantar Fasciitis Causes

As with any condition, there are tons of potential reasons why a person might develop plantar fasciitis. Any or all of the following could lead to the development of PF.

Lack of Exercise

As simple as it may seem, simply moving your body can alleviate many of the common painful orthopedic conditions. When it comes to plantar fasciitis, it tends to affect sedentary people at much higher rates than it does active individuals. 

You should strive to get up and walk for at least 30 minutes every day. However, when it comes to exercise, there is a dose-response relationship. This means that the more you do, the better the results. Obviously, performing way too much exercise can put excessive stress on your body, so take this advice with a grain of salt and don’t overdo it!

Inappropriate Footwear

In the past few years, there has been a movement toward returning to more basic shoes and footwear. Many clinicians believe that our typical shoes, with a large heel and a tight toe box, force our feet into suboptimal positions. There is a growing belief that this may be contributing to the recent uptick of plantar fasciitis cases, as well as the many other orthopedic conditions we’re seeing more often today. 

While this research is still emerging, you may consider experimenting with your own footwear. For example, if you’ve developed plantar fasciitis, consider trying out a shoe with a smaller heel (or going barefoot when it’s safe to do so).

Plantar Fasciitis Symptoms

Regardless of what caused your plantar fasciitis, you’ll likely experience one or all of the following symptoms:

  • Excessive stretching sensation in the bottom of the foot.
  • Pain with walking or standing, especially after sitting for a long period (this pain may decrease as you continue to walk and stretch out the plantar fascia).
  • Tenderness to touch on the bottom of the foot.

If you find that you are experiencing any of the symptoms listed above, you may consider seeking out chiropractic care!

Your chiropractor can perform a specialized treatment known as a spinal manipulation which may improve nerve function. With better functioning nerves, patients are often able to heal from conditions all throughout the body.

If you want to see what chiropractic care can do for you, come see us at At Last Chiropractic, the Lithia, FL chiropractors. Book your appointment with us today.