'Heel-strike' may have allowed early humans to walk farther-at the cost of high-impact forces
A new study suggests that the human 'heel-strike' walking style evolved to improve metabolic efficiency, allowing early ancestors to travel longer distances. While this adaptation helped humans spread globally, it also increased impact forces on joints, necessitating the development of stronger skeletal structures.
Why it matters
Understanding human evolutionary biology provides insights into modern biomechanics and the origins of common orthopedic issues.
edited by Gaby Clark , reviewed by Robert Egan
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Add as preferred source Credit: Unsplash/CC0 Public Domain The average person takes thousands of steps each day, instinctively walking heel-to-toe. Although they hardly register them, those consistent heel-first strides are more distinctive to humans than previously thought and allowed early hominins to walk farther and more efficiently, but at the cost of higher impact forces on bones and joints, according to a new study led by a researcher at Penn State.
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