

You might be surprised to hear this, but – have you ever considered that your back pain may be caused by a foot problem?
The feet are the foundation of the body, and if there’s a problem with them, the rest of the body is likely to suffer as well. Just like how you can get neck pain or back pain from poor mattress support, poor support from your feet due to issues like a leg length discrepancy can cause back pain.
Chronic lower back pain can be caused by many factors related to the feet, such as flat feet or a leg length discrepancy (LLD) where one leg is shorter than the other.
An irregular gait or improper shoes may also play a role in the development of back pain, as they put excessive amounts of stress on the back.
There may also be more serious conditions behind chronic lower back pain which can escape the notice of non-specialists, like malalignment syndrome.
If back massages haven’t been doing anything to ease your lower back pain and doctors can’t seem to find anything wrong with your back apart from strain either, perhaps the problem lies with somewhere you haven’t thought to look. We recommend visiting a podiatrist for a consultation.
Treatment for lower back pain arising from lower limb problems usually involves simply treating the problems in the first place – while the relief may not be immediate, as the root cause has been removed it will likely go away by itself over time.
Based in Singapore, Degree in Podiatric Medicine from the University of Johannesburg. Published in The Foot and member of The Golden Key Honour Society.
02-19 Serene Centre
10 Jalan Serene
258748
+65 6464 8654
Monday – Friday: 9:00am – 6:00pm
Lunch: 1:00pm – 2:00pm
Saturdays: 9:00am – 1:00pm
Closed on Sundays
9 Lorong Datuk, Sulaiman 7
Taman Tun Dr Ismail
60000
+603 7710 5244
Monday – Friday: 9:00am – 6:00pm
Lunch: 1:00pm – 2:00pm
Saturdays: 9:00am – 1:00pm
Closed on Sundays