High-heeled shoes do not cause osteoarthritis in the knee, fashion-conscious women will be relieved to hear.
Researchers feared that the shoes could be responsible for the disease that affects twice as many women as men over the age of 65.
But they'll have to resume the search for the culprit after a study could find no causal link with the shoes. They interviewed 111 women aged between 50 and 70 years who were waiting for knee replacement surgery, while the controls were 82 healthy women.
Women from both groups said they wore heels that were at least one inch (2.5 cm) high. Indeed, the researchers concluded, high-heel shoes may even have a protective effect.
(Source: Journal of Epidemiology and Community Health, 2003; 57: 823-30).
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