Ah, the high heeled shoe. These are the ones that help keep podiatrists in business with a steady flow of patients. Medically speaking, these types of shoes are the absolute worst for the health of the foot due to the way that they put so much pressure on the front of the foot and put the toes in a totally unnatural position. Still, many women wear them because they make them feel sexy and they look very stylish. Like many other women's shoes these also come in a wide variety of styles, shapes, and colors. There are some made a little more stable that can be worn for work such as the block or wedge and then you have the high fashion ones for a night out like the stiletto or blades.

There is a long standing debate over how high a heel must be to be considered a high heeled shoe. The normal standard for the average high heeled shoe is two to three inches which gives some height but at the same time can still be worn somewhat comfortably. Heels over four inches are the extreme and are usually reserved for entertainers or professional dancers, if you know what I mean.

Before investing in a pair of high heeled shoes you should first figure out why you want them and in what environment you will be wearing them. For some women the reason is to project an illusion of being taller. Another reason may be just for the sexy look that the shoes give by having the calf muscle in a semi flexed position. They also create a more sexy walk by shifting the body in a way that accentuates your bottom and a bit of a sway in the hips. The tall stiletto heels are thought of by men and women alike to be a huge turn on sexually.

Many women today own several pairs of these types of shoes mixing some for business and some for pleasure. The popularity of the high heel shoe has gone up and down over the past few decades losing ground in the 60's and 70's but coming back strong for the next two decades. Recently the trend has been back towards lower heels or even flats. In the post war era of the late forties through the fifties stilettos were hot just as they are now. Just remember you have to be able to walk in them, buy a pair of lower heels for work and reserve the stilettos for that night on the town when you want to exude sexiness.