Did you know that almost everyone is born with flat and flexible feet? In their first year, babies’ feet grow extremely fast - about 2.5cm! As children get older and start walking, their feet are still flat because the bones, muscles and ligaments are not yet fully developed.Foot developmentThe main arch of the foot, the medial longitudinal arch, begins to form at 3-4 years of age. This arch continues to develop throughout the first 10 years of life and many studies state that the mature foot posture is not obtained until 7-10 years of age (Uden et al., 2017). This means that we should expect our children’s feet to be flat during their first 3-4 years and to then start developing an arch over the next 7 or so years.Factors that can affect foot development
What about those Flat Feet?Flat feet aren’t always problematic. As you can see from above, younger kids tend to have naturally flatter feet and therefore treatment is not always necessary. If your child goes up on their tiptoes you should be able to see their arch form. This is considered “flexible flat feet”. These should not be painful. Ultimately painful flat feet in kids are a problem and non-painful, flat feet in children (or adults!) are not a problem and do not need to be treated unless they are accompanied by any of the points listed below.Here are some reasons why we see kids at PlayWorks Physio for flat feet:
Things you can do to encourage proper foot development in your kids
If you have any questions about your child’s foot development, email us at hello@playworksphysio.comWritten by: The PlayWorks TeamReferences: Uden et al. Journal of Foot and Ankle Research (2017) 10:37
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