Flattening in children: causes, prevention and treatment methods

According to statistics, more than 60% of children with flat feet acquire it before school. After school children with this ailment becomes only more. Where does the flatfoot appear? In children, it is congenital, due to the insufficiency of the connective tissue. But flat feet in newborns is rare. Flat-footedness is often the result of erroneous actions by adults. Why does flat feet in children, causes, prevention and treatment methods appear?

Causes of flatfoot in children

First of all, low-quality footwear is to blame. It is possible to scold the unfashionable Soviet children's footwear for a long time, but the medical requirements for the development of models were strictly adhered to. To properly form a child's growing foot, shoes must necessarily have:

• hard back for fixing the heel;
• small half-centimeter heels;
• insoles with instep( small elastic thickening) on ​​the inside of the foot.

What does mass consumer goods offer us? Shoes are bright, fashionable and in places comfortable. But not all manufacturers seem to know about medical norms. Slippers on a flat sole, shoes on "carnations", slippers. Socks from over-narrowed to deliberately stupid. The other extreme is modern sneakers. They are so springy when running and walking, which significantly reduces the load on the foot. And consequently, the muscles do not develop because of uselessness. These factors lead to early development of flat feet in children.

Unfortunately, many parents when buying children's shoes are guided by the price. But cheap footwear therefore costs less, that manufacturers have saved on correct insteps, complex insoles and high-quality materials. The second side of this problem - some parents force children to wear someone else's shoes. Orthopedists do not advise it. Each leg has an individual structure. Therefore, the shoe of the other child, which is worn by the foot, becomes, in fact, the imprint of someone else's foot. As a result, the youngest is not properly distributed load on the feet, which also causes flat feet in children. The health of the child can not be saved! Let the shoes be less attractive, but ergonomic.

Prophylaxis in children of flatfoot

Children need proper footwear not only for proper foot formation. Of great importance is a balanced diet. In its composition, connective tissue is similar to bone tissue. It is also susceptible to rickets, that is, to the wrong phosphoric-calcium metabolism in the body. As is known, with a lack of calcium, the bones become soft and deform under the influence of muscles and weight. And the connective tissue of the foot loses its elasticity and also deforms under the weight of the body. Even in the absence of signs of rickets, it is important to maintain the calcium-phosphorus balance in the developing organism. Do not forget about sunbathing. In winter, if the doctor decides, you can take a course of vitamin D for prevention.

To form the correct elastic arch of the foot, it must be trained. The best training was and will be walking barefoot. Do not be afraid of "dirty" and "cool" sex. It is noticed that rural children walk barefoot more often and the percentage of flat feet among them is low. Of course, in the city on the street barefoot for a long time you will not walk. Therefore, it is necessary to do this under the supervision of adults. For example, walk on grass, earth, sand, stones. In addition to the therapeutic stress of the foot, there is a natural stimulation of the nerve endings - natural massage and acupuncture simultaneously. The difference in potential between the person and the earth is also important. You can argue about "recharging" the energy of the earth, believe in bioenergetics or not. But the fact is that harmful static electricity( accumulated from clothing, hair, friction) when it comes into contact with the ground is discharged. Therefore, leather shoes are useful, and synthetic, especially for children, is unacceptable.

As in the cold season on the street child barefoot can not be expelled, preventive measures should be carried out at home. Sand, pebbles and grass will successfully replace peas, any cereals, special massagers. It is useful to carry the weight of the body from the heel to the toe, from one surface to the other. The child can be wearing socks made from natural fabrics, but not in shoes.

Methods of treatment and diagnosis of flatfoot in children

The following symptoms can speak about flatfoot development:

• stops to the evening tired and sometimes swell;
• the child after physical exertion complains of pain in the feet, the pain can reach the knees;
• heels on old baby shoes are worn on the inside;
• at the child somehow quickly in width the leg or foot has grown, she actually simply was flattened.

At home, you can perform the simplest flat-foot test. Spread something on the fat soles of the child. Let him alternately turn his foot on a white sheet of paper, lying on a solid surface. At the same time, weight can not be transferred from one leg to the other. Now consider carefully the bold print of each of the feet. On the inner edge of the foot, according to the norms, there should be no imprint. If the imprint is noticeable, then most likely, the child has a pronounced longitudinal flat foot. If the impression is not present, but the zone of its absence is less than half of the sole, this may indicate the initial stage of flatfoot.

If symptoms and tests alert you, hurry to the doctor. There are specialists specializing in flat feet - podiatrist. But we still do not have enough of them. The correct diagnosis is to put the pediatric orthopedist. In childhood, you can still cure platypodia. In addition to the above exercises, there are special charging and massage systems. Contrasting baths help, evening warming up of feet in hot water with sea salt, coniferous extract, infusion of chamomile. After the baths, the following massage is useful: gently stroke the steamed feet, and then forcefully pound them with your fist or thumbs. Especially vigorously mash the outer edge of the foot, because it is the greatest load on it. After mashing, wipe the feet with a piece of ice or pour your feet with cold water.

Special gymnastics should last at least 10 minutes daily. A good addition will be massage mats. They can be put in the bathroom: while the child is cleaning his teeth, it is useful to stand this time barefoot on the rug. And it will be even more effective - standing on the outer edge of the soles, rolling from the heel to the toe, rising on tiptoe. It is important to not forget about the health of a child in a hectic.