Image via WikipediaHeel pain is one of the common foot problems in adults. It occurs mostly among active individuals, people who are overweight, those using improper footwear, females or simply reaching the age of 40 and above.
The feet have an important function in absorbing all the weight of the body while walking. At the same time, they help provide stability and balance. The heel bone is the largest of all the bones of the foot.
The heel is the part of the foot that first comes in contact with the ground while walking. Daily walking or other activities like running or jogging can put stress to the heel. Over time, this stress can result to injury to the heel leading to heel pain.
At first, heel pain is only minimal and tolerable, this is commonly ignored because the heel naturally heals itself and the pain usually disappears. But in some cases the healing process is overcome with the constant injury induced by daily activities. If this is not addressed properly and again ignored, this can lead to heel pain.
The occurrence of chronic heel pain happens when an acute pain is managed with pain medications. Pain relievers reduce or sometimes totally stop the pain. This is an improper way to treating foot pain because it can mask foot problems which can actually get more severe in the future. When the heel pain is gone we continue to use the injured foot instead of resting and giving it time to heal.
Generally, heel pain in general can be caused by several factors but commonly involves injury to the plantar fascia (plantar fasciitis) and the Achilles tendon (Achilles tendonitis). In some cases, due to muscle tension and strain, bone formation can occur due to the inflammatory response called periostitis. The bone always grows towards the pulling and can cause severe pain.
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