Feet and foot facts

Did you know that at birth a baby only has 22 out of the full 26 bones in his or her feet and the remaining few develop slowly throughout childhood, with the whole process finishing at around 16 to 18 years old? Here are some more things you may, or may not, be aware of...

• The average person takes 18,000 steps a day.
• On average, an adult walks approximately 2,500 miles a year.
• A single foot has about 250,000 sweat glands, and gives off ¼ pint of sweat for one foot per day.
• When walking, the heel strikes the ground with a force equal to twice your body weight.
• With every mile the average man walks, he shifts approximately 100 tonnes just moving his body forward.
• 50% of women aged 60 have bunions.
• 52 bones in your feet make up about one quarter of all the bones in your body.
• 33 joints, 107 ligaments, 19 muscles, and tendons hold the structure together and allow it to move in a variety of ways.
• Women have about four times as many foot problems as men; lifelong patterns of wearing high heels often are the culprit.

Our links can route you to more information on feet, especially the development of children's feet and a guide to buying shoes.