This FAQ answers those questions that both non-barefooters and new barefooters ask of barefooters all the time, from the basic (obvious) questions to those on foot health, care, and treatment, as well as those on how to deal with a mostly shod world.

The simplest of answers: Because it feels good!

Having your feet free of confining, hot, sweaty shoes, open to the air and sunshine, able to wiggle your toes, able to feel the various textures and temperatures of surfaces as you walk, is wonderful! It is one life's most simple pleasures and is part of what it means to be human.

It's completely natural to walk barefoot. In fact, it is quite healthy and good for your feet to do so. (See Is it actually healthy to go barefoot?.)

Additionally, there's something to be said for the "barefoot aesthetic": bare feet on a person just plain look nice!

This is almost a silly question. The obvious answer is no. We are not masochists. Again, walking barefoot feels good!

Occasionally, you do step on something uncomfortable and it especially hurts if it presses into the soft arch. But stepping on uncomfortable things is greatly reduced by doing one simple thing: Watch where you're going! You ordinarily do this to avoid walking into fire hydrants, deep puddles, etc., anyway.

But, despite watching where you're going, you will still step on something uncomfortable eventually. That's life and you just have to accept it. Do you know how many times I've injured my hands in my lifetime? (Getting fingers caught in doors, smashed by hammers, sliced by knives, burned, knuckles scraped, for example.) Nobody thinks, "This would not have happened if I wore gloves." You have to have the same mindset about your feet and not think that you ought to have worn shoes because you injured them. The injuries are few an far between and the intervening pleasure of going barefoot far outweighs them.

Yes, broken glass exists, but it is not "all over the place" even on city streets. Unless it's a recent breakage, it gets kicked or swept into cracks, against walls, or right against curbs and isn't strewn about. For the little glass that does remain, again, just watch where you're going!

But, for the seasoned barefooter with tough, thick soles, most broken glass is not a problem even if you step directly on it.

It depends on your point of view. Personally, I don't think so. Walking barefoot is natural and dirty soles are the natural result. It is to be expected. Your body sweats and your hair becomes oily. So your soles get dirty...so what? Ever play sports or engage in any other prolonged physical activity? You still do it even though you will get dirty and sweaty. A shower later and you're clean. Walking barefoot is the same thing.

Personally, I can't stand sweaty, smelly feet which is what you get if you wear shoes: to me, that's gross. There is also a greater dislike for dirt you can see versus dirt you can't. People touch many dirty, germ-laden things with their hands all day such as doorknobs, handrails, etc., that many other people have touched after doing who-knows-what with their hands and fingers. Nobody gives that a second thought, however, because you can't see that dirt.

But other barefooters I know and I myself actually think it's fun and cool to get dirty feet, as black as you can possibly get them.

Once you get used to walking barefoot, no. It's very much like learning to drive a car. At first, you're very nervous about driving in traffic and worrying about getting into an accident. You keenly watch everything and proceed with extreme caution. You grip the steering wheel tightly with both hands.

But, over time, you relax and realise driving isn't such a big deal. Eventually you can tune the radio, talk to your friend, and read a map all at the same time while steering the car with only a couple of fingers on one hand. Similarly, you learn to relax when walking barefoot and don't need to stare at the ground all the time to avoid injury. You will develop a "sixth sense" about placing your feet since your soles are a wonderful sensory organ.

Most barefooters don't get really thick and hard callouses. More usually, the sole simply becomes thicker while retaining flexibility (not really stiff or hard). The actual degree of toughness seems to vary a lot among barefooters.

Any slight reduction in sensitivity due to thickening is more than compensated for by continued development of the sensory receptors in the soles (possibly also the relevant part of the brain).

Did you ever get too much wax (or some water) in your ear for a while and then when you get it out all sounds seemed to be really loud? If you did, you'll understand the following:

For some, when they first start going barefoot, the ground is too "loud" - it's like listening to a lot of unpleasant noise. After a while, however, your body adjusts and you begin to "hear the music."

Really, if we couldn't feel the ground, that would take away a large part of the pleasure of walking barefoot. We enjoy everything from the "rough, scratchy" feeling of gravel to the soft, damp moss on fallen trees. Many of the sensations are nothing short of delicious!

Very much so. I quote from the following article published in Women's Sports & Fitness, August 1994 issue:

The detailed answer to this question has largely been superseded by the A Case for Bare Feet paper, specifically section 3: Health. The paper is available on-line here.

Basically, if you can walk barefoot and it doesn't hurt, then yes. Many barefooters were born with arches lower than the "normal" but still enjoy the pleasures of going barefoot.

For someone with low arches or outright flat feet, habitual shoe-wearing often exacerbates the problem due to weak feet (see Is it actually healthy to go barefoot?).

Additionally, forcing feet into shoes with arch supports against their natural shape can be uncomfortable and sometimes painful.

In contrast, going barefoot strengthens the ligaments and tendons in the feet and helps to counter low arches or flat feet.

Some barefooters have reported that, once they started going barefoot regularly, their arches raised almost if not entirely to "normal" levels.

Why do many podiatrists push arch supports and corrective footwear? Part of it has to do with what they were taught; but, just because something is in a textbook doesn't make it right or necessary. Many people tend to want perfect bodies: perfect faces, noses, buns, etc., and this tendency can extend to feet which equates to high arches. Many podiatrists are merely catering to this tendency.

Bottom line: If you can walk barefoot and it doesn't hurt, don't worry about it. (If it does hurt, however, do see a podiatrist.).

Walk barefoot. Walk barefoot some more. Go barefoot everywhere you can. Your soles, foot muscles, ligaments, and tendons are like any other parts of your body: you have to use them to develop them, otherwise they will atrophy.

Note that you wouldn't need to build up your feet if you went barefoot from birth as nature intended. What you're actually doing by "building them up" is getting them back to their natural state. Regardless of whether you have been mostly barefoot since birth, you can still build up your feet - baring a medical condition, there is no such thing as a permanent tenderfoot.

Walking on gravel is an excellent way to develop the soles of your feet quickly. A few jaunts daily will thicken and toughen your soles in a few weeks. (It is within the realm of human capability to run barefoot on even the most punishing gravel with little discomfort.)

Once your feet are in good shape, I would be very surprised if you ever got a blister from walking barefoot. Blisters are caused by continual rubbing in the same spot over and over; while walking barefoot, your soles get rubbed all over and no one "hot-spot" develops.

But, should you "over-do" you barefoot training and get a blister, you can follow the procedure below.

[Note: The following does not constitute medical advice. It is only the personal experience of some barefooters and no claims are made that these techniques will work for anybody else. Use them at your own risk.]

Lance the blister with a sterilised needle and squeeze the fluid out. Leave the flabby skin on! If the blister is small, it may "reattach"; if not, it will protect the soft, "virgin" skin under it until it becomes harder. Then, after a few days if it does not reattach, carefully trim it off with a small pair of scissors or a nail-cutter in a chopping manner.

After treating a blister, the the best thing to do, believe it or not, is to walk barefoot more! (You did leave the skin on, right?) Your body will recognise the "need" for thicker skin and this will help prompt the skin to reattach.

A blister, if you followed the above procedure, will get to the point where you don't notice it in under a week. You will still see a "crater" for up to 3 weeks, though.

Athlete's Foot (fungus): The following is an excerpt from a Dermatology Insights (vol. 3, no. 1, Spring 2002) article on athlete's foot by the American Academy of Dermatology:

Therefore, by going barefoot, the perspiration from your feet evaporates just like it does from the rest of your body; your feet then remain cool and dry in the open air. The fungus can not survive under these conditions. As a result, going barefoot will most likely cure athlete's foot.

Hookworm (parasite): This is almost entirely confined to tropical, third-world countries where people habitually walk in soil contaminated by the excrement of infected humans and domestic animals. In the 1940s, hookworm occurred in some regions of the southern USA but has largely disappeared even there thanks to improved sanitation. The chance of getting hookworm from barefoot hiking on trails in a temperate region such as North America or Europe is very small. Hookworm is easily treatable with vermifuges such as tetrachloroethylene: its prevalence in tropical regions is largely a matter of public health, due to poor sanitation and lack of access to medical facilities.

Ringworm (fungus: this has nothing to do with worms — it's a misnomer):

The same text about Athlete's Foot applies for ringworm. (Additionally, one can get it anywhere on one's body.).

No, but some people do not walk properly to begin with. You should walk by placing most of your weight on the balls of your feet (the pads in the front behind your toes) rather than your heels.

Heels are rigid and many people slam them into the ground, shocking; the legs and knees. Instead, while you should still make your heels touch the ground first, you should shift most of your weight forward onto the balls of your feet. The balls are flexible and will mould to the contour of the surface; they also have a wider surface area to better distribute your body's weight. Once you get used to walking this way, it will become natural for you.

Aside on foot anatomy: The above shows off one of the most beautiful and functional aspects of the human foot: the arch. Just like the arch of a bridge, the arches of your feet carry your weight across from your heels to the balls of your feet where it can better be distributed. Structurally speaking, an arch is extremely strong.

As for walking barefoot, you should always step down and never slide or shuffle your feet. If perchance you do step on something uncomfortable or sharp, you will notice before you place your full weight down. Sliding your feet puts them as risk of being gashed, getting splinters if walking on wood, etc. You ought to slide or shuffle your feet only when you know the surface you're dealing with. Carpeting or tile floors do feel nice.

There is one technique that contradicts the above advice. When walking through prickly, dried grasses, you can put your feet down, but, within the last couple of inches, sweep them sideways in a semicircular fashion. This will knock over the grass and you'll step on the sides rather than the pointy ends. Take extra care when you can't see the ground surface.

Sometimes, parts of your soles can become too thick and the callus can crack which is often painful. This generally happens around the edges of your heels.

To prevent the cracks in the first place, file some of the callus with pumice from the edges only and use skin lotion or Bag Balm* to keep the edges supple. Do it just after you trim your toenails; this is a good frequency. That's all the maintenance bare feet need!

The reasons why some store owners don't permit bare feet can be summarised as:

• Lack of understanding.
• Belief that there is a health department regulation.
• Belief that they open themselves up to liability in case of injury.
• Belief that bare feet are "offensive to other customers."

The detailed answer to this question has been superseded by the A Case for Bare Feet paper, specifically section 2: Discrimination. The paper is available on-line here.

SOURCE: Barefooters.org