Top 10 Tips for Treating Children's Feet

You worry about your kids' eyesight, eating habits, and overall health — but don't forget about their feet. Learn 10 tips for treating and preventing foot problems in kids. You make sure that your children’s teeth, ears, skin, and other body parts are healthy and clean. But what about their feet?

“The feet are often neglected when it comes to taking care of kids’ bodies,” says Elizabeth Kurtz, DPM, a podiatrist in Chicago and spokesperson for the American Podiatric Medical Association (APMA). “It’s important to pay attention to children’s feet from the [time they’re born] to head off problems down the line.”

Kids’ Feet: Keeping Them Healthy

These 10 tips can help ensure successful development and optimal foot health for kids:

1.Look carefully at your newborn’s feet. Be on the lookout for anything unusual. Problems you notice at birth may not disappear by themselves. Early treatment can often correct abnormalities, such as club foot, a congenital condition that occurs in about one in 1,000 births. “Casting a club foot within a few days after birth can often prevent the need for surgery,” says Paul W. Esposito, MD, professor of orthopedic surgery and pediatrics at the University of Nebraska College of Medicine in Omaha.
2.Lightly cover your baby’s feet. Tight covers can keep your baby from moving freely and could even retard normal development, according to the APMA. “Kicking and moving the legs and feet around helps strengthen the muscles in preparation to walk,” says Dr. Esposito. Activity gyms for babies can also help strengthen little feet.
3.Let your toddler go shoeless. When kids first start to walk, going without shoes indoors is good for normal development. “Walking barefoot or wearing just socks strengthens the muscles in the feet and helps develop the grasping action of the toes,” says Esposito. Plus, your little walker will enjoy the sensation of various surfaces — like lush carpet or cool tile — beneath his feet.
4.Watch for lingering toe-walking. Walking on the toes is usually normal when kids first start to walk, but if a child walks exclusively on the toes after age 2, tell your pediatrician. Persistent toe walking could be linked to cerebral palsy, muscular dystrophy, or other nervous system problems, says Esposito.
5.Cut toenails straight across. This will help prevent painful ingrown toenails. Signs of an ingrown toenail include pain, redness, and swelling. If an ingrown toenail does occur, ease the pain by putting a little bit of cotton between the skin and the ingrown toenail, suggests Dr. Kurtz. Then head for your pediatrician or a podiatrist. A simple in-office procedure can safely fix the problem.
6.Keep feet clean and dry. Preventing bacterial and fungal infections starts with good hygiene. Thoroughly wash your kids’ feet at bath time. Afterward, dry them well between the toes to prevent athlete’s foot, a fungal infection that thrives in moisture.
7.Buy well-fitting shoes. Always take your child with you when purchasing shoes. Kids’ feet need to be measured every single time, since they grow so rapidly. Too-tight shoes can cause blisters, corns, calluses, or ingrown toenails that can become infected. “If your child is constantly taking her shoes off, that’s a red flag that they may be uncomfortable,” says Kurtz.
8.Prevent foot injuries. Walking barefoot outdoors on dirty pavement exposes kids’ feet to splinters, cuts, and severe injuries. “The main reason I see children in the summer is for splinters and foreign objects in the foot,” says Kurtz. Another potential problem is plantar warts, a condition caused by a virus which invades the sole of the foot through cuts or breaks in the skin. Wearing shoes when playing on pavement or hazardous environments can prevent this problem.
9.Cover cuts. Wash minor cuts, scrapes, and scratches on the feet with soap and water and keep them covered with a bandage until they’ve healed. It’s a myth that exposing injuries to fresh air will help them heal better. “Exposure to fresh air means exposure to germs,” says Kurtz.
10.Show and tell. Kids learn by imitating. Clean and properly dry your feet and have your child copy. Also demonstrate how to cut toenails to prevent painful problems. “Many adult foot problems start in childhood,” says Kurtz.
Explaining why good foot hygiene is important and showing your kids how to care for their feet is good medicine for a lifetime of foot health


By Jan Sheehan
Medically reviewed by Pat F. Bass III, MD, MPH