We now know why they are called Uggs. Dr. Ian Drysdale, head of the British College of Osteopathic Medicine and known for his sensible shoes, has gone public with criticism of Ugg as causing ankle, knee, hip and back problems.
Doctors are seeing rising problems in girls who wear the boots due to their lack of support.
The doctors insist that this is merely a slipper that has been fashionable to wear outside. Drysdale noted “You wouldn’t normally expect to be doing outdoor activities from something that’s indoor. If it’s raining outside you don’t wear your pyjamas. If you decide to wear your pyjamas outside all the time, someone will come up and say it’s not a good idea.”
It is interesting to see how few product liability actions occur over such allegations. If this is designed as a slipper, the use outside would certainly satisfy foreseeable misuse. However, the lack of support is not viewed as a product defect but a type of open and obvious characteristic.
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Drysdale noted “You wouldn’t normally expect to be doing outdoor activities from something that’s indoor. If it’s raining outside you don’t wear your pyjamas. If you decide to wear your pyjamas outside all the time, someone will come up and say it’s not a good idea.”
Methinks he has never been shopping with a teenager.
As far as the boots are concerned. What did we do before the invention of shoes?
Wow….I’ve worn my Uggs all winter long, they are comfy and warm….perfect for a relatively mild Canadian winter. I was actually a little sad knowing that I would soon be putting them away with the change in winter. Who knew?
Well Canadian, the Health Minister will have to send you to ugg school….
No way…I will not give my Uggs up to anyone!!!
The Uggh boot is comfortable not fashionable. I put on a pair of my daughter’s old Ugghs on the snowy days we had in Texas and they were very warm and comfortable. Daughter moved on to more fashionable boots and left me and old pair of Uggs.
Well so long as you don’t let the bed uggs bite, I suppose you’ll be just fine.
Great post–particularly your closing comment re: liability. If not an “open and obvious characteristic” we’d potentially have huge claims here–and sadly, at the very least, we may have an epidemic of foot/ankle/knee problems to face as our kids continue to grow…
The flips flops the kids wear in the summer are much worse for the feet than the Uggs. They have no support whatsoever.
Frankly, I don’t get it. I’ve worn Ugg’s for a number of years. In addition to my New Balance tennis shoes, they are the most comfortable pair of shoes I own.
And my Ugg’s have a thick rubber sole that provides ample support. I walked across Rome, Paris, Brussels, and Amsterdam in them a couple of winters ago (certainly offending the delicate aesthetic sensibilities of some of our European friends), and continue to wear them on cold days here in California to places like Costco with its cold concrete floor…just because I like the support they provide and how warm they are.
Ugg stands for Ugly. I do not see why anyone would think that these boots are fashionable.
I get knee problems after wearing my Uggs for several days. I have weak knees from a knee injury from fencing. When it snowed, I wore these around for several days in a row and it caused my knee injury to resurface. The problem is that they are totally flat on the bottom, so it causes people with high arches to have their arches collapse, causing knee pain. And because of the fuzzy insides you can’t put insoles into them.
uggs look suspiciously like diabetic footwear that is scientifically designed to not impede circulation, to enhance warmth and diminish the possibility of blister formation.
someone is jealous of uggs’ popularity. that someone needs to get a life.
i think the Ugg boots are fine. If you cant walk in them then just don’t wear them.
i personally dont have a pair of Uggs because i am funny about my foot wear and i feel that those boots would look funny on my feet.
good
Foot problems? Well thats a first, finding the right size and not forcing yourself would be the best thing to do. I’m still looking for some ankle black boots, I never seem to get enough of these boots.
Can’t wait for all the Ugg boot lovers to wake up with plantar fasciitis one morning. The day you have to crawl or walk to the bathroom, you better throw them away.
There is no point in criticizing the most popular women boots ever. I know that pretty much any shoes, even athletic ones may cause some problems, even athletic ones and especially high stiletto heels and women still wears them. However most Uggs have just a bit worse arch support than for example Fryes and nobody criticizes Frye boots.
Uggs increase blood flow, they certainly do not cause blisters and they are really comfortable – obviously in case you choose the right size.