FOOT HEALTH WEEK 2005

Every year the Australasian Podiatry Council runs Foot Health Week, during the third week of October, as a community health promotion campaign, offering a range of activities and information to the public to assist them to care for their feet, including free Foot Health Checks. Foot Health Week 2005 will run from Sunday 9th October-Saturday 15th October. Media Release   Get Walking for Foot Health Week, Podiatrists Urge ‘Get walking’ is the message for Australians & New Zealanders from podiatrists, during Foot Health Week (9th-15th October 2005), as walking is the best medicine. President of the Australasian Podiatry Council, Matthew Slattery, says walking is a great form of exercise with a huge range of social, physical and mental health benefits. Yet podiatrists, like many other health professionals, are concerned that too few Australians & New Zealanders do sufficient walking to get a health benefit. “We encourage people to get their 10,000 steps a day,“ says Mr Slattery,” and podiatrists can help to get people walking by attending to any foot problems that are affecting their mobility and by advising on the best footwear.” Foot health is vital if people are to remain active, according to Mr Slattery. “Even though we live in an increasingly sedentary society, the average person will still walk around 128,000 kilometres in a lifetime, which is the equivalent to three times round the world,” he says. “Feet suffer an enormous amount of wear and tear; however, most foot problems can be solved with the correct professional advice.” He said that inappropriate shoes and sore feet were among the reasons people didn’t do enough walking. “Walking will be out of the question for many people because of sore or tired feet,” he says. “Many people assume sore feet are part of life. But they are not. From a foot health perspective sore feet indicate a problem that should be addressed.” During Foot Health week, podiatrists around Australia & New Zealand will be promoting the walking message with a range of activities. “Don’t let a foot problem stop you from walking, as help is available,” Mr Slattery says “and walking is a great form of preventative medicine that costs nothing and is available to everyone.” Click on the above images to view a pdf of these publications for Foot Health Week 2005.