The term stiletto is derived from a long, thin blade of the same name, similar in profile to the shape and length of the heels that women now covet, from designers like Prada, Jimmy Choo and Louboutin, whose signature red soles are a status symbols for shoppers from coast to coast. We love to look at their dainty (or elaborate) designs, and girls have been strapping on their mothers’ shoes to practice the art of walking in high heels for decades, lest we look like a coltish Julia Roberts, struggling across the screen in Pretty Woman.

Although the original designer of the stiletto heel is still the subject of debate, most credit Andre Perugia with the development of the high, slim heel sometime after the turn of the 20th century. The technology required to make a sturdy, slim heel was attributed to designer Roger Vivier, who popularized stiletto heels in the 1950s.

Beautiful, But Painful

The impact that shoes have on our gait has become a popular, and controversial, subject in recent years. The popularity of barefoot running, for example, has sprouted from the (unproven) belief that wearing modern, well-cushioned running shoes decreases foot strength and proprioception -- the sense of how the body is positioned in space -- and may contribute to running-related injuries.

According to the Spine Health Institute, 72 percent of women report wearing heels “all the time.” Those of us who fall into this category are painfully familiar with the damage that even (or especially) our daintiest heels can do to our feet. Among them:

●     Calluses and corns can develop because of pressure on the skin. With heels, corns (hard nuggets of keratin) can build up under the balls of the foot where body weight presses down.

●     Capsulitis, or a painful inflammation of the joints where the toes attach to the foot, can occur from the unnatural bend into which heels force our feet.

●     Some heels may cause neuromas or pinched nerves where pointed shoes compress the toes.

And those are just short-term problems. While the long-term impact of stilettos on a wearer’s feet has yet to be studied in depth, with millions of women wearing heels on an almost daily basis, the potential dangers of wearing heels is a subject worth examining.