Monthly Archives: February 2022

First they learnt to roll, then sit up and now they’re preparing to take those all important first steps. Whilst you wait with a camera in hand to capture the precious moment forever, your mind may flood with questions about their first steps and baby shoes. 

Your child’s foot health comes first and finding the right fit, support and materials to match every step of their development builds a solid foundation for their future.

Whether you are looking for baby first shoes for crawling, cruising or when they are toddlering about independently, we want to arm parents with everything you need to know to make the right decision for your baby’s first shoes.

When should I buy my baby’s first shoes?

It really is your own personal choice as a parent when to buy your baby’s first shoes. There are many types of shoes for infants and toddlers that can be used at different stages of their foot growth, from pram shoes and booties to crawling, cruising and walking shoes. 

To aid in healthy foot development, it is recommended that babies go barefoot for as long as possible and shoes are only a necessity when they are walking unaided outside. 

Over active infants likely won’t care for this advice however, and will want to flex their independence and practice being on their feet as soon as possible.

In this case, lightweight pre-walker shoes that have a flexible sole will aid your baby's growth and protect their tiny toes from hard floors and uneven surfaces before they fully find their feet. 

Once confident on their feet, your baby’s first walking shoes will require a hard sole for support.

What type of shoes should I get?

The type of shoes you should get for your baby will depend on their age and environment.

Newborns

Whilst barefoot is recommended, it isn’t always the safest option and pram shoes or booties may be used to protect tiny feet from the elements. 

Crawlers

The bones in your baby’s feet are soft at this stage, covered with a protective layer of puppy fat to cushion

Every parent knows that children’s feet grow rapidly in their early years and understanding every different problem, including flat feet in children, that can arise during this time can be confusing.

Each stage of their foot development, up to their late teens, will play its part in determining your child’s future health. It is therefore vitally important to know the most common foot complaints in children and how to identify, prevent and correct them. 

Paediatric flat feet is one of the most common conditions parents worry about, mostly without due cause. That’s why we have put together the complete guide to flat feet in children to help reassure, advise, and inform you that your child has a solid foundation for their future foot health.

What are flat feet in children?

Paediatric flat feet, also known as fallen arches, are simply children's feet that do not have an arch. You can identify this by noticing when your child’s foot is flat to the floor; the middle of the foot touches the ground instead of having the usual arch lift seen in most adults. 

Flat feet in children is a common foot complaint that usually doesn’t cause symptoms and will correct itself over the course of their infant years.

If your child starts to show symptoms such as pain and discomfort you should speak with a pharmacist or doctor in the first instance to rule out other causes and to seek out immediate treatment and relief. 

What causes flat feet?

It’s a little-known fact that babies are often born with naturally flat feet and will remain this way far into their early childhood. When we’re born, our bones are still in the midst of growing and solidifying and in the early years, particularly in feet, they remain flexible to an extent. 

Flat feet can continue until around age six, when the arch in the feet develops and the bones become less like cartilage and more like the standard bones around our body. However, around 5% of children do not develop this arch and can continue to have flat feet