Relax Parents; Children Usually Outgrow Most Problems with Their Feet and Legs

Parents are always on the lookout for any orthopedic problem which they fear their children may be suffering from. Many children, as they grow, develop flat feet, toe walking, pigeon toes, bowlegs, and knock-knees.

However, worried parents need to relax (or at least try to) since more often than not these conditions resolve themselves as our children continue to develop.

Most infants are born with flat feet. As our children develop, so do the arches in their feet. However, if the arch does not fully develop, we commonly say the child has flat feet or weak ankles.

Unlike past years, doctors rarely treat flat feet. This condition does not in any way impair our children or prevent them from participating in all activities, including running, jumping and sports.

As a rule, doctors only treat flat feet when a child reports being in pain. Then, arch supports are often added to shoes, which usually brings relief.

The condition called toe walking, when our children walk mainly on their toes, often is seen in toddlers as they begin to walk. In many children, toe walking begins to decrease by age two as the child continues to develop.

If your child predominantly walks on his or her toes after age two, he may need to be seen by his pediatrician. Toe walking which persists, or is mostly seen occurring on one foot, may indicate medical conditions for which a pediatrician needs to prescribe treatment.

In past years, much attention was paid to our children walking with their feet turned in, called being pigeon toed and measures such as placing children in special shoes and braces to correct this problem were used. Unfortunately, these therapies were never proven to speed up the correction of being pigeon toed.

A child's being pigeon toed is often cause by a continual in-turning of the hips, called femoral anteversion. Most children outgrow this problem as they become older and develop increased muscle control and coordination.

As with flat feet and toe walking, doctors note that if your child is pigeon toed, he or she will still be able to participate in all childhood activities, including sports.

It is often common to see infants who are bowlegged, which is an exaggerated bending outward of the leg from the knee downward. In most children, it is usually corrected as the child develops.

However, it if continues past age 2 or is seen in one leg and not another, your pediatrician must be advised of this problem. Sometimes it may be caused by a vitamin deficiency which is easily treatable. In more severe cases, it might require more serious procedures to correct the problem.

Virtually all children go through a period in which they appear to be knock-kneed when walking. It is believed this occurs as the body of a child, ages four to six years, goes through a natural alignment period. Treatment is rarely required for this condition, unless it persists for a period longer than considered normal by your pediatrician.

Again, most children develop various orthopedic conditions as they are growing. While parents certainly have the right to worry, the good news appears to be that children usually outgrown these problems.