Finally, how could we help the 12-year-old girl who cannot stretch out her fingers properly, and whose toes are like hammer toes? According to the family doctor, it’s been caused by shortened tendons, possibly following an infection. First up is the Bowen technique, which is recommended by several readers and practitioners. It’s especially effective for hammer toes, apparently. Calcium and boron might be effective supplements, while the hammer toes could be helped by spongey dividers placed between each toe. One reader recalls having ‘faradic treatment’ many years ago, which involved placing electrodes on her foot, which was then immersed in water. The small electrical impulses straightened her toes permanently. It’s a therapy that seems to have fallen out of favour, but it still might be available through a physiotherapist, she says.