The dangers of high-heels, why El Al flight attendants are right to protest

LAST week El Al Airline flight attendants began protesting plans to enforce wearing heels during flights. Here’s the science to support them.

Smiling flight attendant looking at camera with luggage and jet on background

LAST week Israeli flight attendants from El Al Airlines began protesting against plans to enforce the wearing of high heels for the duration of flights.

The workers union of El Al instructed its female flight attendants to ignore the proposed plans, stating that stance was “aggressive” and would impact on the attendants’ health and safety — and it turns out they’re right.

A study published this month in The International Journal of Clinical Practice revealed high-heel shoes may be damaging if worn in excess.

The study, conducted by researchers at Hanseo University in South Korea tracked young women at the University studying to become airline attendants who were required to wear stilettos to class.

It found that senior students who had been wearing high heels for many years showed weakening of ankle muscles. In particular those on the inside and outside of the joint and dramatically worse balance when compared to first-year students just starting to consistently wear heels.

Professor of exercise physiology at Hanseo University, Jee Yong-Seok stated that wearing high heels alters the ratio of strength between the various muscles in the ankle, leading to ankle instability and balance problems. This eventually decreased strength even if wearing high-heels in the short-term may strengthen muscles, reports the New York Times.

Furthermore, a review looking at various research on the effects of high heel shoes stated that they “alter the natural position of the foot-ankle complex, and thereby produce a chain reaction of mostly negative effects that travels up the lower limb at least as far as the spine.”

Another study published in 2012 in the Journal of Applied Physiology looking at the long-term use of high-heeled shoes found they altered the neuromechanics of human walking, with results suggesting “long-term high heel use may compromise muscle efficiency in walking and are consistent with reports that high heel wearers often experience discomfort and muscle fatigue.” Adding, “Long-term high heel use may also increase the risk of strain injuries.”

Let’s hope El Al Airlines takes note.