Conscious Choice: Treat Your Feet (or not)

December 2007 | Healthy Living :: Body Talk

Treat Your Feet (or not)

You may treasure your $200 kicks, but a far less spendy pair might be equally sweet for your feet. In a study recently published in the British Journal of Sports Medicine, researchers concluded that cheap and moderately priced running shoes can be just as good as more expensive shoes in terms of their cushioning and overall comfort.

For the study, 43 runners tried out nine pairs of shoes in three different price ranges ($80-$90, $120-$130, and $140-$150). In addition to recording the runners’ plantar pressure (the force produced by the impact of the sole hitting the ground), researchers asked participants to rate the comfort of each shoe. Study results showed that there were no major differences among the shoes’ cushioning and comfort, regardless of the brand or the price.

To find the workout shoe that’s ideal for you, the American Podiatric Medical Association advises choosing only pairs that feel comfortable immediately, rather than relying on a “break-in period” to reach the right comfort level.

Sloppy sleep math

Think you’re getting your full eight hours of sleep each night? Dream on. Most people drastically overestimate their nightly snooze time, suggests a new report study from the Journal of Clinical Sleep Medicine. For their study, researchers hooked up 2,113 adults to at-home sleep-monitoring machines. While the participants said they slept for an average of seven hours on a typical night, the sleep tests showed that they’d only slumbered for an average of six hours.

To make sure you’re achieving the sleep you need, the National Sleep Foundation encourages adopting a nighttime relaxation routine. Activities like soaking in the tub, reading a book, or listening to soothing music before bed can ease your stress and set you up for deeper sleep, according to the NSF.

Household health hazard

Here’s a good excuse to go on a cleaning strike: Using household cleaning sprays—especially air fresheners, furniture polishes, and glass cleaners—as little as once a week may raise your risk of developing asthma, according to a new study published in the American Journal of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine.

In the first report to explore the effects of cleaning products on occasional users—rather than cleaning professionals—researchers studied more than 3,500 adults over a period of nine years. On average, asthma risk was about 30 to 50 percent higher in people who regularly used cleaning sprays than in those who didn’t.

The study’s authors didn’t determine how cleaning sprays might increase asthma risk, but they recommend that consumers opt for liquid cleaning products whenever possible. For a nontoxic alternative to sprays, consumer advocate and Home Safe Home author Debra Lynn Dadd recommends creating your own cleaner by mixing vinegar and water (equal parts) in a spray bottle.

— Liz Barker

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