Feet are the foundation of the human structure and up to age 5, they should walk barefoot as much as possible, to develop balance, coordination, gait and posture.
Child’s mal-alignment such as:
- Flat feet, Abnormal shaped feet/toes
- In or out toeing
- Claw Toes
- Heel Pain
- Knock Knee
- Bowlegs
- Limp while walking
- Improper Gait and posture
- Sweaty or dry feet, etc. maybe resolved as they are structurally growing from age 6 to 16, prior to entering adulthood.
At any age if the mal alignment results in stiffness, pain, developing hard skin, calluses, warts, blisters, corn under the foot, the problem is severe and must be evaluated by podiatrist/medical practitioner not only to resolve the symptoms but to find and treat the root cause.
It is very important to realize that:
- We should encourage children to participate in all physical activities for challenging all muscle groups & joints.
- Watch out for kids’ complaint of pain in the feet, heel, legs, knees.
- Watch out for unexplained tripping and falling, if it happens frequently, consult your medical practitioner.
- Consider functional/occupational therapy for tight and weak musculature and the use of orthotics for biomechanical alignment to develop correct posture and gait.
- Ensure the footwear that provides stability and motion control during long hours of weight bearing activities.
- Measure children’s feet from time to time. It is important that your kid’s feet are measured at regular intervals by Length x Width & Height and that provide room to wiggle their toes.
- Teaching kids to wear shoe properly at early age is very important.
- As the child grows the foot size increases as many as two sizes in one year. It’s important for the parents to check to ensure the greater toe does not hit the front of the shoe, the shoes are not bulging on the sides; redness around the foot.