N.Z. Children Have Foot Defects

Press, Volume C, Issue 29511, 12 May 1961, Page 2

N.Z. Children Have Foot Defects

In New Zealand postprimary schools, about one in every two girls has some foot defect, says the Health Department’s bulletin, “Health.” Among post-primary school boys the story is not as bad—about one in every 11 boys is so afflicted. Fashion decrees that girls suffer from misshapen feet more than boys. At birth most children have perfect feet. By the first birthday foot defects have begun. From the tenth to the fourteenth year about 50 per cent, have evidence of foot troubles.

Childhood is the crucial time for feet. So much depends on being fitted correctly with the right type of shoes. The child can’t tel! you when toosmall shoes or socks are pressing his pliable feet out of shape. But such pressure, even though it is slight, can cause deformities that may be a source of trouble for the rest of his life. Baby’s first shoe should be soft, pliable, and have a nonskid sole. The best way to buy shoes for the very young child is to draw a close outline of the foot on cardboard cut it out, and try shoes on the cutout

Important Points When choosing shoes for children keep these points in mind:—

Length—A child’s foM demands enough length in the shoe to allow for growing This means three-quarters of

an inch between the big toe and the end of the inside of the shoe on standing. The foot enlarges a quarter of an inch on running. To check length get your child to stand on a piece of cardboard and mark the length of the foot Cut .a strip of cardboard the same length as the foot and push the strip forward in the shoe, noting how much there is to spare at the heel. In the early fast-growing years the foot will have outgrown the shoe before the shoe is worn out. Shoe length needs constant watching. Breadth.—The shoe needs a broad toe and enough width to let all the toes lie snugly side by side without cramping. Test this by picking up a nip of leather in the forepart of the shoe, between finger and thumb. If you can’t do this, the shoe is too tight. There must be enough blocking in the shoe at the toe to allow free toe movement and leave room for growth. Shape.— The shoe must be shaped correctly with a straight inner border so that the big toe lies straight and takes its full quota of weight. Otherwise the big toe will be pushed out of line and this may cause bunions in later life.

Firmness and BupperC— To provide support there must be no “give" in the sole in the middle under the Instep But the shoe should give and be supple across the ball of the foot where the toe Joints bend. Too stiff a shoe makes a child walk with toes out, leading to faulty walking and. posture.