Did you know that the foot is made up of 28 bones, 33 joints, 112 ligaments and 34 muscles?
In order for a person to move easily and not experience problems while walking, this entire complex must work harmoniously as a single whole.
In most cases, flat feet in children are determined by increased extensibility of the ligaments and joint capsules, and muscle weakness. At the same time, the arch decreases. And it seems that the foot is falling inward.
Due to valgus positioning of the legs, the step pattern changes, and the foot becomes not straight, but at an angle to the axis of the leg. If the balance of the body is disturbed, then the anterior tilt of the pelvis provokes a “fall” of the torso forward.
The toes curl to keep the body in neutral and prevent these falls. The muscles on the front and back surfaces of the body are overstrained, the muscle that abducts the thumb outward does not work properly.
All this in the future can lead to Hallux Valgus - a foot disease that clinically looks like a deviation of the big toe towards the little toe.
As the disease progresses, a “bump” forms on the thumb due to the formation of new bone tissue on the outer surface of the bone. And then every thousand steps taken worsens the condition of the “finger bone”, causing discomfort, pain and inflammation.
Flat feet are the main “children’s”, but not the only cause of this deformity. Also influence:
→ Hereditary predisposition
→ Tight shoes and high heels
→ Arthritis
As a rule, people leave the clinic with the following prescriptions for the “treatment” of flat feet and hallux valgus:
1. For active stabilization and pain relief: physiotherapy, manual techniques.
2. For passive stabilization: orthopedic insoles and shoes, toe separators.
❌ But special shoes, insoles, heels and massage will not help form the arch of a child’s foot. Moreover, they cause discomfort and pain in children with mobile flatfoot.
❌ High tops of orthopedic shoes can simply “turn off” the ankle joint. And the child’s body compensates for this by positioning the knee and hip joint, which leads to an X-shaped installation of the entire leg.