Foot inserts are generally typically used to treat a variety of biomechanical problems of the foot and leg. These foot orthotics are inserts which are used in the shoe to try and adjust positioning of the foot in such a way that they help ailments in the foot and leg. These complaints range from, for example, plantar fasciitis in the heel to shin splints that may occur in the legs of athletes. All the research evidence shows that the clinical outcomes with foot orthoses are usually beneficial and most people that have them are satisfied with them. However, foot supports are only ever do worthwhile if you in fact use them. You do need to have appropriate footwear to use them in and use them enough for the problem they were recommended for to get better.
One of the issues with foot orthotics is that you simply need to use them in shoes. This is often a dilemma if you don't like wearing footwear or live in a warm climate in which the using of shoes is problematic. In these climates people like wearing jandals (referred to as ‘thongs’ in Australia) that you can not really use with a foot orthotic. There are several alternatives that you can get. Among those is to restrict the time that you are not using the foot orthoses, so that you wear shoes with the foot orthotics for long enough and do not wear the sandals too much so that the painful problem does not occur. Another choice is to use such things as the arch support sandals or jandals such as the Archie Thongs from Australia. These have some arch support constructed into them and can generally be used instead of foot supports. Shoes much like the Archies will usually not be as effective as a properly made foot orthotic, however they would be more than adequate to supplement them and use when the proper footwear can't or will not be worn.