I never had a thing for those expensive flip flops.

Okay, they’re admittedly more comfortable than your run of the mill tsinelas (rubber slippers) but I was never really crazy about them. Buti na lang. A New York Times article cites a recent study that says flip flops can be painfully bad for your feet and legs when worn for long periods of time. “We found that when people walk in flip-flops, they alter their gait, which can result in problems and pain from the foot up into the hips and lower back,’’ said Justin Shroyer, a biomechanics doctoral student who presented the findings to the recent annual meeting of the American College of Sports Medicine in Indianapolis.

Five years ago, a report published by the American College of Foot and Ankle Surgeons talks about the rise in heel pain among young people in the age 15-25 age group. “A major contributor is wearing flip-flop sandals with paper-thin soles everyday to school. Flip-flops have no arch support and can accentuate any abnormal biomechanics in foot motion, and this eventually brings pain and inflammation.” The folks over at the Ateneo de Manila University trying to implement the dress code and banning the wearing of flip flops to school should rejoice at these two reports.