Start-Rite Shoes - Precious First Steps

Words by Start-Rite Shoes

September 23, 2024

3 minutes

The second in our series of guest blogs with Start-Rite Shoes

Precious First Steps

In this blog, Start-Rite Shoes looks at the extraordinary development our feet go through from birth to school, and if you want the very best for your child, why it’s vital to protect their feet in the correct footwear throughout childhood. Check out Start-Rite’s extensive collection of leading children’s footwear.

If we had to choose one word to describe baby feet, it could well be ‘scrumptious’. Baby feet are podgy, warm, wiggly and adorable. But, under the surface, they are a fascinating and complex structure of cartilage, tendons, muscles and ligaments that will develop into a vital structure that will take us on extraordinary journeys.

From those tentative, wobbly first stomps to nervous first steps into primary school, the bones in our feet are developing at a rapid pace and will continue to develop until we are adults.

The bones in a baby’s foot start to grow when they are only eight weeks into fetal development. At this point, our feet are mostly made up of cartilage. This soft tissue is tough but flexible, which helps when a baby is still inside the womb, tucked into a small space. Bone development in the womb starts at our big toe and spreads over the arch towards the heel.

The cartilage in our feet develops during early childhood. We are born with 22 soft cartilage bones. When we start infant school, we have up to 45 formed bones in our feet, and some cartilage remains. Our bones don’t form until we are about ten years old and will continue to fuse, form and mature into 26 bones between 16 and 21 years of age. At any point before that, wearing a shoe that doesn’t fit properly can damage the shape of the cartilage and affect how our bones develop.

We are also born with a fat pad under the bottom of each foot, giving the appearance of a flat foot. The familiar toddler's ‘stomp’ is because the underdeveloped structures in our feet and the body above require toddlers to lift their hips up and down to take a step and propel forward. At this stage, our shoes need to be designed with that in mind—to protect podgy, soft, stompy feet!

As young bodies grow, the foot develops quickly, arches and joints develop, and our ability to walk more confidently, like an adult, improves. Our feet constantly send signals to the brain to aid our physical development, respond to changing terrains, and learn from new challenges.

The foot has gauges located around the ligaments and tendons around the ankle that tell the brain the pressure going through the foot. This helps the foot function properly and helps toddlers balance and become more coordinated.

Movement is utterly critical in our development. It enables our muscles, ligaments, bones and tendons to learn and develop together. If we don’t move our gauges, they won’t get stimulated. Running, jumping, skipping and hopping are vital to triggering the gauges and developing strong feet and bodies that contribute to a child’s sense of achievement and confidence.

As pioneers of children’s fitted footwear, we hope we have helped you to see why the correct shoes are so important throughout childhood. Here are the key requirements of shoes for young feet:

1. Children must wear shoes that are shaped like their underdeveloped feet and include all-important growing room;
2. The sole unit section of a shoe must be flexible enough to enable the foot to develop unhindered and aid natural movement but strong enough to protect those precious feet from the terrain below;
3. Targeted protection and perfectly positioned flexibility to allow the foot to develop naturally.
4. Maximum ground feedback allows for balance and stability development.
5. School shoes must be durable enough to withstand every step, kick, skid, scoot and jump of the school day.

Children’s footwear must protect the child and its feet, at every stage, and is a fundamental element to support natural development. We’re proud to have been protecting feet for over 230 years.

Once again, we thank Start-Rite Shoes for writing our guest blog. It's incredible how the right pair of shoes can make such a difference in terms of development throughout childhood.

To further support your child's development of balance, coordination and gross motor skills, take a look at Micro's Biomechanist-approved Nursery Range.