“The entirety of biology is reducible to physical and chemical laws and has arisen through evolution by natural selection.”
– E. O. Wilson (1998)
Form determines function — there is no doubt about that in biology. The foot serves as a stable base and is meant to provide support. From physics we know:
The broader the base, the greater the stability. A functional foot is therefore broad. In short: for a foot to function properly, it must also be shaped like a foot.
Shoes Shape Feet:
What studies have shown since 1905
This is precisely where shoes that are not foot-shaped cause problems.
As early as Hoffman (1905) showed:
Among people who usually go barefoot, the toes are widely splayed — the forefoot is broad and stable, fully in line with the physical laws of stability.
He also demonstrated how quickly conventional footwear can alter foot shape — after just six weeks.
Recent comparisons confirm this. In a study comparing habitually barefoot-running Indians (right) with Chinese participants wearing conventional shoes (left), Shu et al. (2015) found pronounced differences in foot shape.
This aligns with Wolff’s Law (1892):
Bones adapt to the forces acting upon them.
Conversely:
Under appropriate conditions — that is, with room to expand — the functional foot shape can be restored.
Knowles (1953) documented a complete return to a functional foot shape after two years in foot-shaped shoes.
- Wear foot-shaped, functional shoes that allow the toes to splay and give the forefoot room.
- Load your feet regularly with your own body weight so the necessary stimuli can act to restore the functional shape.
- Hoffman, P., Conclusions drawn for a comparative study of the feet of barefooted and shoe-wearing peoples. J Bone Joint Surg. 1905; 3: 105–136.
- Knowles, F. W., Effects of shoes on foot form: An anatomical experiment. Med J Aust. 1953; 1: 579–581.
- Shine, I. B., Incidence of hallux valgus in a partially shoe-wearing community. Br Med J. 1965; 1: 1648–1650.
- Shu, Y., et al., Foot morphological difference between habitually shod and unshod runners. PLoS ONE. 2015; 10: e0131385.
- Wilson, E. O., Consilience: The unity of knowledge. New York: Vintage Books; 1998.
- Wolff, J., Das Gesetz der Transformation der Knochen. Berlin: A Hirschwald; 1892.