Is Your Fashion Sense Slowly Killing You?

Fashion and clothing serve two purposes in our society... to hide our birthday suits from the general public and to keep us warm during winter. That’s pretty much it. However, over the centuries, fashion and style trends may have gone a bit too far...to the point of actually making us suffer as opposed to simply looking good.

It’s been said that “high fashion comes at a price” and when it comes to health conditions, this claim isn’t far off the mark.

Take a look at the following list of ‘suspects’...you may be wearing one (or more) of them right now:

Tight jeans - ‘tight pants syndrome’ is a term coined by Dr Octavio Bessa of Stamford, Conn after seeing one too many patients with an abdominal girth bigger than their trousers. Skinny jeans are just bad...blamed for various conditions like increased risk of yeast infections in women and infertility in men. Wearing tight underwear is also not a good idea for men looking to conceive.

Compression wear and ties - ‘Tights’ that compress the chest and abdomen are particularly bad as they may interfere with breathing patterns. Neck ties and tight collars not only reduce the circulation of blood to the brain, some health experts warn that their effect on the body may lead to increased risk of glaucoma.

Undergarments - The ‘little black number’ you received from your husband for Valentine’s Day may look nice and worth a couple of hundred dollars, but if the bra doesn’t fit properly, it could leave you feeling more discomfort and pain than anything else. In fact, some lingerie experts say 75% of women wear the wrong size bra.

Shoes - My favorite subject...and not from a fashion perspective either. If you’ve been following this blog, you’ll know what my feelings are when it comes to shoes and over-exaggerated footwear. Bunions, hammer toes, stress fractures, ankle sprains and shortened Achilles tendons are just some of the conditions associated with years of wearing high heels. The supportive sole is another ‘fashion/health’ trend that seems to have brainwashed society into believing they actually need special shoes. Besides protecting your feet from the cold, as well as broken glass, sharp objects and other potential hazards on the ground, shoes serve no other purpose. If you pronate or supinate, no orthotic insert is going to correct your stance or gait. The problem almost always originates in the hips (maybe even as a result of wearing high heels and other footwear) and by addressing any hip alignment issues and a conditioning a few muscles here and there, you’ll be able to effectively treat these common conditions.

The article discusses a few other cases where fashion (even fashion accessories like piercings etc) may be causing more harm than style. What’s your fashion crime and is your health suffering as a result?