The Californian researchers said: "Because women and men are observed to have similar knee biomechanics during barefoot walking, gender differences in footwear, specifically high-heeled shoes, have been implicated as a possible factor for the higher incidence of osteoarthritis in women."
The most common form of arthritis, osteoarthritis, caused by wear and tear of cartilage that helps our joints take the strain of bending, lifting, gripping and kneeling, affects more than eight million Britons, according to the Mail Online.
The university researchers studied the gait of 14 women as they walked in different types of shoes, from flat trainers to heels.
The higher the heels were, the more their gait, including the movement of their knees, changed.
The research findings were published in the Journal of Orthopaedic Research, and the scientists said being overweight may make the implications of wearing heels even worse.
The most common form of arthritis, osteoarthritis, caused by wear and tear of cartilage that helps our joints take the strain of bending, lifting, gripping and kneeling, affects more than eight million Britons, according to the Mail Online.
The university researchers studied the gait of 14 women as they walked in different types of shoes, from flat trainers to heels.
The higher the heels were, the more their gait, including the movement of their knees, changed.
The research findings were published in the Journal of Orthopaedic Research, and the scientists said being overweight may make the implications of wearing heels even worse.