Function

CHILDREN NEED HEALTHY FEET

Small steps have a big effect.

Babies have the prettiest feet. And the healthiest. 98% of all children are born with perfect feet. And yet, only 30% of adults manage to keep them that way. What can parents do to ensure their children's feet develop in the right way?

Well-padded into life

Children's feet are not miniature versions of adult feet. Babies have thick fat pads under their soles, and in the first three years of life their feet are almost flat. When learning to walk, all children initially move with a bow-legged ‘wobble’. Their new upright gait and its resulting weight bearing on the feet, produces changes to their cartilage and joints, which slowly form longitudinal and transverse arches. The complex adult foot is only fully developed when we reach puberty.

When things get too tight

Children’s feet deform easily because they are constantly developing. They are especially at risk from ill-fitting footwear. Faulty foot posture can be observed in 12% of all kindergarten-aged children. This is often the result of their feet growing so fast that their shoes are too small for them. This forces them to ‘pull in’ their toes. But the well-intentioned precaution of giving your children oversized shoes also leads to cramped foot posture. This is because the child is forced to use ‘muscle power’ to hold on to the loose shoe.

Strong feet require training

Orthopedists recommend that children should walk barefoot as often as possible to allow their feet to develop as they should. In situations where children’s feet need to be protected from cold or injury, shoes should be wide enough — especially in the toe area — to allow for an optimal ‘rolling’ motion.

Our specialist: Sandra Utzschneider

Professor Sandra Utzschneider, who provided these tips on how to keep your kids’ feet healthy, is one of the few highly qualified specialists with training in both adult and pediatric orthopedics. She was head of pediatric orthopedics at the University Hospital, Munich. Today, she cares for the foot health of children from all over the world in her Munich-based private practice.