The Croc Epidemic

An Article on Slate that my bestest friend pointed me towards!

How a heinous synthetic shoe conquered the world.

Her are some of my favorite excerpts....

"Shoe fashion tends to swing dramatically on the pendulum from practical to beautiful, largely because shoes are even more utilitarian than clothes—and stylish clothes are rarely as uncomfortable as stylish shoes. Since everyone needs shoes, they are particularly susceptible to the tipping point phenomenon: When enough people are wearing ugly but comfortable shoes, others jump eagerly on the bandwagon, thrilled to be released from the bondage of straps and buckles. And so Crocs represent a kind of rebellion—a vanguard of the comfort movement."

'What is more certain is that some podiatrists are alarmed by their patients' fanatical embrace of Crocs; most Crocs, doctors point out, provide only moderate support. "I'll get people with strained arches because they've been running around in Crocs for five days," said Arnold Ravick, a doctor of podiatric medicine in Washington, D.C., and a spokesman for the American Podiatric Medical Association. "When it comes to shoes, people mistake comfort for support. Comfort is fool's gold—a soft gushy shoe that makes your arches collapse," he told me. "Crocs are popular because they're inexpensive and interchangeable. For people with certain problems, they can be a good shoe. Are they good for your foot, in general? No."

I have to totally disagree with the above podiatrist, except that yes if people are used to wearing shoes with lots of support and then cold turkey go to Crocs, there will be problems. So note to anyone reading this Crocs will not make your arches collapse, in fact over time your feet will get stronger, BUT be sensible and use moderation when switching shoes... any kind of shoe need a slight adjustment period.