Arthritis Awareness Month

May is Arthritis Awareness Month:

Our store, Your 2 Feet, will be fitting the arthritis chair of the Mt. Vernon chapter who will be participating in the May 13 Mt. Vernon walk with Z-coil pain relief footwear after measuring for pressure analyses with the I-Step. This will allow a fitting for the proper type of Lynco arch supports/ orthoses.

Arthritis sufferers have benefited from wearing the pain relief footwear in many circumstances. Since there are over 31 adjustments, caution is recommended for a slow break in period until the proper adjustment has been obtained. The main effect of the shoes is to reduce impact. They have been shown to reduce impact by 50% or more. You will also notice your center of gravity changes when wearing the shoes. This engages different muscles, the lateral stabilizing muscles, with every step. It is often necessary to wear them for as little as an hour the first day, and increasing the wearing time gradually every day. As you become stronger, this sensation of "bouncing" and balancing dissipates during the break in period.

Depending on your type of arthritis, as well as which stage of progression you are in, this new way of combating the negative forces of gravity may prove very beneficial for relieving your arthritis symptoms. As you are reducing your impact via the coil action, there is a component of ground reactive forces that provides an energy return as well. This redistributes the forces through your lower extremity. I recommend caution in more advanced arthritis since the compensation necessary to accomodate for this redistribution may not be available. I see this footwear as a device to be added to the armentarium of arthritis sufferers, and the providers attempting to relieve their patients suffering. The results, positive or negative, are immediate, minutes or at least within five days. We allow a trial wearing for five days. Returns for full refund of footwear in resellable condition are allowed within that five day period.

Visit the "Your 2 Feet" store for more info and get your own evaluation in Seattle-1201 Pine St or 1764 NW 56th St. Or call 206-782-7300. See us at The Fremont Fair in June as well. May 21 is our in store event "Free Foot Screening Day". We will have pedorthist Ed Cael, and podiatrist Dr. Lotchie M. Kerch performing I-step evaluations for Lynco orthoses. Adding these devices to the footbed of the Z-coil pain relief footwear adds an increased element of support and cushioning making them the "cadillac" of impact reducing footwear with a rocker sole.

May is National Arthritis Month, and the Arthritis
Foundation is looking for walkers to raise money to
fight the painful disease.

About one of every three adults and about 300,000
children are afflicted with arthritis nationwide.

In May and June, Washington State Arthritis Walks and
health fairs are scheduled in four counties:

Skagit
May 14 at the Cascade Mall in Burlington

Kitsap
May 21 at Waterfront Park in Silverdale

Pierce
June 4 at Owens Beach at Point Defiance Park in Tacoma


Spokane
June 18 at Centennial Trail at Gonzaga University in
Spokane

The mission of the Arthritis Foundation is to improve
lives through leadership in the prevention, control
and cure of arthritis and related diseases. The
Arthritis Walk is the Arthritis Foundation's
nationwide event that raises awareness and funds to
fight arthritis, the nation's leading cause of
disability.

The walk serves as more than a fund-raiser and roaming
support group. Another goal is to promote a greater
awareness that the condition victimizes even the very
young, contrary to the common misconception that
arthritis is a condition striking only the elderly.
Arthritis affects more children in the United States
than muscular dystrophy, cystic fibrosis and
sickle-cell anemia combined.