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Healthcare
Special Issues
Understanding Foot Health: An Evolutionary Perspective
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Understanding Foot Health: An Evolutionary Perspective

A special issue of Healthcare (ISSN 2227-9032).

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 30 November 2025 | Viewed by 331

Special Issue Editors

Dr. Peter Francis

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
EVOLVE Research Group, Department of Health and Sport Science, Southeast Technological University, R93 V960 Carlow, Ireland
Interests: evolution; running; barefoot; movement; injury; developmental; medicine; musculoskeletal; physiology; biomechanics
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Dr. Des Earls

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
EVOLVE Research Group, Department of Health and Sport Science, Southeast Technological University, R93 V960 Carlow, Ireland
Interests: sport; strength; progress

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Humans evolved slowly over the course of millions of years. Our bodies evolved, primarily, to cover large distances in our bare feet while hunting and gathering. Our environment tended to change slowly around us until the advent of agriculture, the industrial revolution, and, most recently, the internet. This has led to a rapid change in our environment that our bodies are not equipped for. Changes in our nutritional environment, combined with sedentary behavior, has led to a widespread increase in diseases associated with metabolic syndrome. One lesser-discussed change, and the focus of this Special Issue, is how rapid changes in both footwear and surfaces have affected foot development and subsequent diseases of the foot.

This Special Issue welcomes submissions on how footwear and the artificial surfaces we walk or run on influence foot development, health, and disease. We are particularly interested in papers which can illuminate how footwear–surface interactions can both cause diseases of the foot and be used in the prevention and/or treatment of foot-related diseases. Papers which discuss footwear recommendations and medical practitioner knowledge of footwear recommendations for healthy foot development are also welcome.

In this Special Issue, original research articles and reviews are welcome.

We look forward to receiving your contributions.

Dr. Peter Francis
Dr. Des Earls
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Healthcare is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2700 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • evolution
  • running
  • barefoot
  • movement
  • injury
  • developmental
  • medicine
  • musculoskeletal
  • physiology
  • biomechanics

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Published Papers (1 paper)

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Review

14 pages, 689 KiB  
Review
Guidelines for Recommended Footwear for Healthy Children and Adolescents: A Rapid Scoping Review to Characterise the Nature and Extent of Footwear Research and Clinical Policy Guidelines
by Liam Hughes, Mark I. Johnson, Nic Perrem and Peter Francis
Healthcare 2025, 13(13), 1578; https://doi.org/10.3390/healthcare13131578 - 1 Jul 2025
Viewed by 165
Abstract
Background/Objectives: Clinical guidelines for children’s footwear vary widely across governmental and clinical sources, reflecting inconsistencies in best practices for paediatric foot health. These discrepancies arise from differing research interpretations, regional priorities, and clinical expertise. This scoping review evaluates existing guidelines and examines [...] Read more.
Background/Objectives: Clinical guidelines for children’s footwear vary widely across governmental and clinical sources, reflecting inconsistencies in best practices for paediatric foot health. These discrepancies arise from differing research interpretations, regional priorities, and clinical expertise. This scoping review evaluates existing guidelines and examines the evidence supporting them. The objective of this scoping review was to identify and map existing footwear guidelines for healthy children and adolescents across governmental, professional, and clinical sources, and to evaluate the type and strength of evidence underpinning these recommendations. Methods: A systematic search of PubMed, Google Scholar, ScienceDirect, and governmental databases was conducted. Studies on footwear recommendations for healthy children aged 18 months to 18 years were included. Articles published between 1970 and 2024 were considered, as 1970 marked the first mass marketing of running shoes/trainers. Results: Footwear guidelines lack standardisation, with variations in definitions, recommendations, and supporting evidence. Key inconsistencies exist in parameters such as fit, flexibility, and toe allowance, with most recommendations based on expert opinion rather than empirical data. Discrepancies in commercial footwear sizing further complicate proper fit assessment. Conclusions: This is the first comprehensive review of children’s footwear guidelines, integrating governmental, professional body, and clinical recommendations. While there is consensus on the importance of properly fitting shoes, the literature reveals inconsistencies and reliance on expert opinion rather than high-quality research. This review highlights the need for standardised, evidence-based criteria to guide footwear recommendations and serves as a foundation for future research aimed at bridging the gap between research and practice. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Understanding Foot Health: An Evolutionary Perspective)
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