Natural and holistic methods to get your toes back in alignment
“Crooked toes” are a casual term that is used to refer to a number of issues where a person’s toes may be misaligned or improperly positioned. They can happen as the result of a number of causes, including tight or narrow shoes, improper gait, or various activities or conditions that cause an imbalance in your ligaments, tendons, bones, and muscles.
If you have a bad case of crooked toes, you may think that the only way to help them is through expensive and invasive surgery. But, there are actually four natural ways you can fix it: exercise, natural shoes, toe spacing, and toe taping.
#1. Exercise Your Feet
One way to help fix crooked toes is by doing specific exercises and stretches for your feet. This helps to strengthen the muscles and ligaments around your toe joints, which can help to hold your toes in their proper position.
There are a number of different exercises you can do, but some simple ones include doing toe lifts, toe flexes, toe splays, and toe lifts and spreads. Doing these for a few minutes on a daily basis can provide immense benefits to your toes over time.
#2. Use Natural Shoes
One of the biggest core reasons for toe and foot problems in the modern world is the use of shoes that force your toes into unnatural positions. Between narrow shoes that squeeze your toes together and high heels that throw off your balance, it’s no wonder so many people have crooked toes. Even athletic shoes that provide “support” can actually cause damage to your feet.
If you want to help your crooked toes, start by ditching shoes that are constricting, uncomfortable, or over-developed, and consider natural alternatives that allow your feet to relax in their natural positions. This can be done by buying special “natural” or “minimalist” shoes, or opting for low-tech options like sandals.
#3. Toe Spacing
One way to ease the pressure on your crooked toes is by using toe separators. These devices help to hold your toes in their natural position, which takes some of the strain off of them and, over time, force them to realign to their correct posture. Toe separators benefits also include reducing friction and rubbing between your toes, which can further alleviate pain and discomfort.
#4. Toe Taping
If your crooked toes are in particular positions, taping may be an effective solution. Toe taping is as simple as it sounds: you apply tape to your toe or foot in a way that forces the misaligned toe into its correct position. This helps to keep the toe from moving out of place and can speed up the process of correcting the deformity.
There are a number of different ways you can tape your toes, but one common method is called “buddy taping.” This involves wrapping one toe around another in order to keep it from moving out of place. This is effective if one of your toes is crossed over another, and needs to be forced to stay separated.
Conclusion
There are many different methods to fixing crooked toes, some of which are more effective than others. Depending on the type of toe misalignment you’re suffering from, exercise, natural shoes, spacing, and taping may all be effective methods. If you’re not sure which method to use or whether a method will work, it’s always best to contact your podiatrist first.