They have reason to be vocal. With the increased popularity of Havaianas and other flip-flops, flip-flop related foot injuries are on the rise.

Because of their simple design and little arch support, foot protection or shock absorption, flip-flops are the reason podiatrists see more patients with tendinitis, arch pain and sprained ankles.

"Simply put, flip-flops just aren't good for your feet," says Dr. Christian Robertozzi, president of the American Podiatric Medical Association.

There are, however, a few summer shoes that get the APMA seal of approval: Wolky's Zen, Provence and Ultra Light collections; Chaco's Headwaters, Cross Current, Flipside, and Andale collections; Dansko's Golden Gate, Beacon Hill, Next Gen, Paddock and Stapled Clogs collections; and Rockport's City Traveler and Tourist Trip collections.

Figure it out

Here's your chance to help fix one of fashion's biggest problems: vanity sizing.

Go to the Web site www.sizemeup online.com with your favorite pair of jeans, pants or top in hand and fill out the survey.

Melissa Adelman and Jessica Crowell will appreciate your help. The two UNC-Chapel Hill business students, who recently graduated, came up with the idea as part of a team at the business school in an entrepreneurial competition. They hope the site will eventually work as a comparison tool, helping shoppers figure out their size at different stores and with different designers. So if you're a size 6 at the Gap, you'll be able to use the site to figure out what size you are at Ann Taylor or if you buy a pair of Citizens of Humanity jeans.

As most women know all too well, vanity sizing has been a problem for years. Stores have been increasing sizes so that a traditional size 8 woman might wear a size 6 or a size 4 in different stores.

Judges liked the idea for the new site so much, the team won first prize in the commercial category of the 2007 Carolina Challenge, landing Adelman and Crowell $15,000 to get their business started.

"This will help women find their perfect size on anything," Adelman says.

The problem is, they need to collect the data first.

That's where you come in.

Once they gather enough information about various brands and how they fit, they'll have the final piece to put together their site so it can be used as a comparison tool. To give customers incentive for going online, they'll offer survey takers a shot at winning a shopping spree.

After all the sizing information is collected, customers will be able to use the site to check on sizing for free. However, the team hopes to sell the data to retailers, such as department store chains, so they can better sell clothes to shoppers.

Daddy wisdom

We're honoring style-savvy dads for Father's Day by telling stories about what Dads know about style. Tell us about your stylish dads with an e-mail to samantha.smith@newsobserver.com or letters to Samantha Smith, The News & Observer, P.O. Box 191, Raleigh, NC, 27601.