Baby Feet and Shoes: What to Know

From flat feet to first shoes to barefoot play, here's how to support your baby's feet and what to look for when it's time to buy shoes.

Flat feet in toddlers

Does your baby have flat feet? It helps to work on standing balance to strengthen the muscles in their feet, and upper body rotations to the left and right will help build up the arches. Another great activity is walking or standing on more unstable soft surfaces like pillows, sand, or grass.

Depending on the severity of the flat feet, some babies may need a little extra help via a supportive shoe, an insert, or a brace. If your baby's feet are pointed outward with the outside border of their foot lifting, I would recommend a PT consult. Supporting the foot and ankle from the ground up will optimize your child's balance and alignment so they can stand and walk easier for the future.

What to look for in a new walker shoe

Parents ask me all the time for shoe recommendations. These are my top tips to look for in a new walker shoe: a lightweight shoe, since your baby is still working on the strength to lift their legs to walk; a wide shoe box, the front part of the shoe where the toes will be; a hard rubber sole for friction and more support (avoid fabric soles); a flat bottom to provide stability and decrease the heel-to-toe rocker for standing; high support around the ankle to encapsulate the heel and provide stability; and something flexible.

If your child is turning their feet out and seems more flat-footed, I would suggest a stiffer and possibly higher-top shoe.

Let those bare feet be

Let those baby feet do their thing. As a pediatric PT, I can't say this enough: bare baby hands and feet are powerhouses for development. Babies explore the world through touch, feeling textures, bringing toes to their mouth, grasping, kicking, and wiggling, and all of it helps build sensory awareness, motor coordination, core strength, body awareness, and regulation.

Constantly covering their feet and hands can limit these early learning experiences, especially when they're awake and ready to move. Save the socks and mittens for cold weather or sleep, and let those little toes wiggle free during the day.