Does Your Child’s Shoes Fit Properly?
Connie Vosberg COTA/L and Toni Baartman OSPTI

Eight of every 10 children have trouble with their feet because their shoes don’t fit correctly.  Poorly fitting shoes can cause calluses, bunions, and ingrown toenails. Shoes that do not fit properly can also lead to ankle, knee or back problems. Proper fit is essential, since cartilage in a child’s foot does not completely harden until age 18 or later.

Parents can check for outgrown or poorly fitting shoes by looking for worn areas, turned up toes and other telltale signs. If the toe area of the sole is badly worn, the shoe may be too small. If the toe area of the shoe is turned up the shoe may be too big. If the sides are showing more wear than the rest of the shoe, it may be too narrow for your child’s foot.
With children heading back to school, parents need to look at “good fitting shoes” not “styling shoes” or “fashionable shoes”.
Here are some tips for back to school shoe shopping:

• Make sure there is at least a half inch growth space between the tip of the big toe to the end of the shoe
• Make sure the top line of the back of the shoe barely touches the ankle. If too high it can cause blisters, and if too low can cause the heel to slip out. The sole should be removable. Arch support is also very important
• Need to check for proper flexibility. Shoes should flex in a straight line across the toes. Since one foot if often larger than the other, always measure both feet and size to the larger foot
• Purchase the shoes later in the day since feet swell by 5-8% during the day
• It is always good to let the child assist in selecting their shoes. A shoe should feel good immediately, and it should not have to be broke in. They can have the best of both worlds, fashion and a good fitting shoe

For further information please call OSPTI at 1-218-641-7725.