16 Nov Concerned about your child’s foot posture when they are walking or at rest

Been told not to worry about your child’s foot posture, because they will grow out of it, but you can see it’s not really improving…

Did you know that at birth, a newborn baby only has 1 out of 5 mid foot bones just starting to form? The remaining 4 mid foot bones start to form between 3months to 9 months old. However, it is not until 5 years old when all the 5 mid foot bones are fully formed and solid. This is why when babies are born their foot is soft enough to look all curled and twisted. Often new parents would notice that their newborn baby’s turned in foot or turned out foot does not seems to straighten up over the first few months or even the first year of life.

So here are 3 Common Foot Postures which should be assessed and treated early to prevent a life long deformity of the mid foot bones.

1. Tip Toe Walking where children walk on their toes like a ballerina.
2. Duck Footed where the inside of the foot is collapsed and the foot is turned out and children look like they are waddling when they walk.
3. Pigeoned Toed where the foot turn in and children trip over their own toes when walking.

Many parents are told to wait and see as little ones will outgrow the above 3 Common Foot Postures. However, in reality many children do not grow out of these postures and left untreated, it can actually affect the development of the mid foot bones, toes, ankle bones and calf muscles leading to knee pain and back pain and even bunions at a young age.

Instead, parents should be seeking advise from an Expert Paediatric Physiotherapist to assess their child as all these above foot postures can be corrected effectively when detected early.

If you are concerned about your child’s foot posture, reach out to My Favourite Physio on (02) 9790 4233 to find out how our Expert Paediatric Physiotherapists can help your child improve their foot posture and prevent future foot and ankle problems.

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