What shoes are best for my child? A question parents ask us daily at KIDSEN and a question so many parents don’t know the answer to. There are so many theories as to what type of shoes your child should wear and it is hard to know what is told as a sales pitch and what is actually scientific fact.
At KIDSEN we try and educate parents and explain WHY a good shoe is so important for your child’s overall physical development. In the early 70s kids shoes were made out of hard leather and you couldn’t even bend them if you used a hammer and tong. Just have a look at the video below….
These rigid types of shoes are one of the reasons shoes were made with width measurments – as the leathers in those times were so stiff they would not mould around children’s feet. Today, a good shoe with soft leather doesn’t require a width measurment. In Scandinavia such measurments don’t even exist.
Fast forward 30 years and childrens shoes look very different. They are now orthopedic, flexible and made from the softest leather. Most parents understand that a shoe needs flexibility, but still don’t always appreciate HOW important this is.
Some facts
- More than 80% of foot problems, bunions and injuries are a result of misshaped and inflexible shoes. It’s vital that children’s shoes allow enough room for natural growth, until foot bones mature. This doesn’t happen until age 18, 19 for girls and 20‚ 21 for boys. Simply put; inflexible, poorly shaped shoes are potentially harmful; restricting natural movement and development of the foot.
- Podiatrists and Orthopedic specialists have long known babies learn to walk best barefoot; growing scientific evidence shows that children’s shoes should be designed on this model.
- 70% of your brain’s information for movement comes from the nerves on the soles of your feet; the more you can feel the ground, the greater your body’s understanding of its surrounding environment and natural movement.
- An Elevated heel of any height on a child’s shoe shortens the Achilles tendon. The beginning of permanent tendon shortening.
- Soles that are over 6mm thick prevent 80 to 90 percent of children’s foot flexibility, thus denying the foot its normal step sequence.
In a nutshell: Let your kids feet develop as nature intended.
At KIDSEN we have very successfully recently introduced a variety of shoes that meet the requirements of ‘barefoot style’ shoes which helps children’s feet develop as they should. I-Walks have been a huge success and we are receiving great feedback from parents daily. More recently the Viva Barefoot by Terra Plana is gaining huge popularity amongst school age children. Developed by podiatrists, they are as close to being barefoot as shoes can get, but offer the necessary protection of a thin puncture-resistant sole.
Benefits can include improved posture, circulation, foot health, and strength. Perfect as a school shoe (as this is what school age children tend to wear all day long) From Spring we will also be introducing more colours and styles.
You can find Terra Plana at KIDSEN – here