There are many cultures that put interesting practices into place. In the Tang Dynasty in China, younger women believe that having smaller feet is an attractive quality that provides them with a greater advantage than others. Ever since a young age, these women have bound their feet. It is a way to keep their feet from growing normally and staying smaller.

How it works, around the age of five, children will get blessed and later have older women of their family or a professional foot-binder bind their feet. According to AncientHistory, “The big toe was left facing forwards while the four smaller toes were bent under the foot.” Once this was complete, the feet were left in these wraps of cloth basically giving an unnatural arch to the feet.

After a month or so, there would be a checkup on to ensure that there were no ulcers or problems, rebinding the foot. This process occurs for a few years, usually into their teenage years. Over the course of time, women experience possible toe loss and infections since this is not a natural process that anyone should truly undertake. In fact, this can be quite painful for women to go through.