PhDr. Ludmila Brůhová leads the Regeneration and Rehabilitation Centre in Borovany focused on the complex prevention, diagnostics and treatment of all problems of the movement system – pains in the back, joints and muscles, functional and degenerative diseases, post-traumatic and postoperative states. Her centre is also a clinical department of the Faculty of Health and Social Studies of the University of South Bohemia for students of physiotherapy.

The numerous team consists of physiotherapists focusing on the care of patients at the age of children including infants, further of specialists dealing with post-traumatic states of the movement apparatus and also of specialists treating patients with neurological or orthopaedic diseases.

When treating the patients, she uses besides other means also RootyRUG – and therefore we asked her why and in which way it may be beneficial to children and adults.

Ms Brůhová, you lead the Rehabilitation Centre. What is your philosophy of approach to the patients?

• The essence of success is – in my view – to show the patients how to work with their body and how to use all possibilities of self-healing abilities of the body of each of us.

What is the impact of neglect of feet on the overall health of a person from the viewpoint of a physiotherapist?

• The foot as such is a carrying and supporting structure for our body but it also sends to our brain a lot of information influencing stability and quality of motion of the whole body. Therefore, if we neglect the foot in some way, we can certainly expect that sooner or later it will reflect in the quality of motion of the whole body.

What does the human foot need to be functional?

• The sole of a foot needs for its sufficient function to be supplied by an adequate number of stimuli that should be dealt with. Therefore, if we put the foot into hard footwear for the most part of the day, the sole gets no stimuli and it becomes non-functional with time.

Do you recommend your patients to walk barefoot in nature? Why?

• To walk barefoot in nature is an ideal way to keep the sole of the foot functional for a long time. However, in our culture it is not possible to practise it always and in all seasons of the year. Therefore we use different therapeutic means for these purposes.

Why is is not sufficient to walk barefoot only at home?

• To walk barefoot at home does not always have to be suitable because of the character of floor coverings in our households. The sole of a foot needs varied stimuli, of different flexibility and shape, so that short muscles of the foot would have to work in an active way.

What made RootyRUG so attractive for you?

• RootyRUG is just the suitable therapeutic device that can make our home floor areas more varied in the sense of diversity and imitation of natural surfaces. Moreover, it can be an appropriate aesthetical accessory for living rooms, entrance halls and children´s rooms. The stimulation of soles by means of RootyRUG is very suitable particularly for children.

What has been your experience with it so far?

• We use RootyRUG in our office as a supplement to therapy for children and adults not only with different functional diseases of the movement apparatus where it is necessary to learn the right stereotype of standing and walking by practice but we use is also as a therapeutic device for a wide range of patients with difficulties after injuries.

What is the benefit of this product in your view?

• I see the benefit of this product especially in the possibility of its everyday use in home environment.

Would you recommend RootyRUG to parents of children with disorders of balance and coordination?

• Yes, I would definitely recommend RootyRUG to parents of children not only with different problems related to the movement apparatus but also as prevention of flat feet and bad body posture.

Can RootyRUG help also somehow else?

• It is suitable to recommend also adults to walk barefoot on RootyRUG at home and to use its possibilities to bring relief to their tired feet after the all-day working performance in different footwear.

How do your patients react to RootyRUG?

• The patients usually react positively and they are often surprised how big effect this device may have on the movement apparatus and the organism as a whole.

Thank you for the interview.