After foot doctors have finished with their educational requirements they can work in private practices, hospitals and clinics. They can also decide to become professors at colleges of podiatric medicine where they in turn teach the proper way of treating foot problems. Then foot doctors also become department chiefs and hospital administrators.

In order to become foot doctors an individual must complete at least 90 semester hours of undergraduate study. They must have an acceptable grade point average and they should have good scores on the Medical College Admission Test. In addition to these they need to have completed a course of study in subjects like biology, inorganic chemistry, organic chemistry and physics. Potential students are accepted only after their letters of recommendation have been evaluated. Their various extracurricular activities are also considered.

Once an individual decides to become a foot doctor they must go to a 4 year medical college where they will learn both the practical and theoretical aspects of being a foot doctor. In their first 2 years foot doctors learn subjects like anatomy, chemistry, pathology and pharmacology.

In their third and fourth years of being foot doctors they learn to deal with patients by doing clinical rotations in private practices, hospitals and clinics. In their clinical rotations prospective foot doctors take patient histories, and they perform physical examinations on the patients. They must also interpret the various diagnostic tests that they are given and provide treatment to the various patients under their care.

Once the foot doctors are considered as being able to practice podiatry you can have your foot problems seen to and treatment provided to you by them. These foot doctors are the best individuals to see to the various infections that are hurting your feet and provide the best means to healing them.

Using a proprietary computerized evaluation system, Foot Doctor takes seconds to evaluate the mechanics of a foot-in-motion and determine the appropriate corrective orthotic for you. Foot Doctor Orthotics-are-available-on-site and can be placed in your shoes immediately so that you can begin experiencing affordable corrective comfort for your feet, legs, knees and back.

What is a Foot Doctor Orthotic?

A Foot Doctor Orthotic is a corrective insole appropriate for any kind of shoe that is designed to restore an individual's normal foot motion and function based on the results of a computerized biomechanical assessment.

Abnormal foot motion and function causes pain and discomfort in your foot, leg, knee, hip, lower back and neck. Foot Doctor Orthotics re-align and correct the foot and ankle bones to their neutral position, thereby restoring natural foot motion and function which will alleviate your pain.

The Foot Doctor Advantage = Corrective Comfort For Your Feet

Off-the-shelf foot products do not correct abnormal foot motion or function but simply accommodate feet with shock absorption (padding, cushions or gel) or by limiting motion.

Each pair of feet has its own shape, size and movement, yet off-the-shelf products treat each pair of feet as identical. How do you know which off-the-shelf product is right for your unique foot?

Custom-made orthotics are very expensive and take weeks to be made and often need to be refitted.

1.  Seventy-five percent of Americans will experience foot health problems of varying degrees of severity at one time or another in their lives.

2.  The foot is an intricate structure containing 26 bones. Thirty-three joints, 107 ligaments, 19 muscles, and tendons hold the structure together and allow it to move in a variety of ways.

3.  The 52 bones in your feet make up about one quarter of all the bones in your body.

4.  Women have about four times as many foot problems as men; lifelong patterns of wearing high heels often are the culprit.

5.  The average person takes 8,000 to 10,000 steps a day. Those cover several miles, and they all add up to about 115,000 miles in a lifetime -- more than four times the circumference of the globe.

6.  There are times when you're walking that the pressure on your feet exceeds your body weight, and when you're running, it can be three or four times your weight.

7.  Shopping for shoes is best done in the afternoon.  Your feet tend to swell a little during the day, and it's best to buy shoes to fit them then. Have your feet measured every time you purchase shoes, and do it while you're standing. When you try on shoes, try them on both feet; many people have one foot larger than the other, and it's best to fit the larger one.

8.  Trim your toenails straight across with clippers specially designed for the purpose. Leave them slightly longer than the tips of your toes.

9.  Walking is the best exercise for your feet.  It also contributes to your general health by improving circulation, contributing to weight control and promoting all-around well being.

10.  Your feet mirror your general health.  Such conditions as arthritis, diabetes, nerve and circulatory disorders can show their initial symptoms in the feet -- so foot ailments can be your first sign of more serious medical problems.

11.  The podiatrist (Doctor of Podiatric Medicine or D.P.M.) is the health care professional trained in the care of your feet. He or she receives conventional medical training, plus special training on the foot, ankle, and lower leg. All 50 states, the District of Columbia, and Puerto Rico require that they pass rigorous state board examinations before they are licensed, and most require continuing education programs for regular license renewal.

12.  There are about 10,700 podiatrists actively in practice in the United States, and they receive more than 55 million visits a year from people with any number of foot ailments. This is probably only a fraction of the number of foot problems. Mostly, say podiatrists, that's because many people have the erroneous notion that their feet are supposed to hurt.

13.  Only a small percentage of the population is born with foot problems. It's neglect, and a lack of awareness of proper care -- including ill-fitting shoes -- that bring on the problems.  A lifetime of wear and tear, plus neglect, accounts for the fact that the practices of most podiatrists are made up of older Americans.

14.  Corns and calluses are caused by friction and pressure from skin rubbing against bony areas when wearing shoes.  If the first signs of soreness are ignored, corns and calluses rise up as nature's way of protecting sensitive areas.

15.  There are approximately 250,000 sweat glands in a pair of feet, and they excrete as much as half a pint of moisture each day.