Categories: Parenting

When Should Your Baby Start Wearing Shoes?

Back in the “Good Old Days” of our parents’ time, shoes were a “big thing” for babies. Especially when they started to walk. At that time, their feet encased in leather, hard-soled shoes. The shoes were supposed to support their undeveloped foot and ankle bones and muscles. The first pair of baby’s shoes were often sent off to be bronzed and attached to a wooden plaque to commemorate the occasion. Today, however, pediatricians are recommending a whole new set of rules for parents to follow. Read this informative article and find out when should your baby start wearing shoes, and more!

Infants and Crawling Babies
Babies who are too young to even stand up don’t need shoes at all yet. Once your baby begins to stand, you’ll need to buy your small one a pair of flexible, soft-soled, non-walking shoes to wear when they go outside. These shoes are more for protection and/or warmth than foot support. Pediatricians recommend that infants and crawling babies should be allowed to go barefoot, or just wear socks or booties, as much as possible when they are in a protected environment, such as inside your home. The experts have decided that babies’ feet develop more properly when they aren’t stuck in hard shoes.

Toddlers
When should your baby start wearing shoes? Is it when they turn into toddlers who start to become “on the go” walkers? The answer is, “Yes and No.” Again, according to pediatricians nowadays, a baby’s foot and ankle will become strengthened better by walking barefoot. Walking barefoot also helps good, healthy arches to form. According to modern pediatricians, children should be allowed to go barefoot as much as possible until they reach two years old.

And still, even though they’re starting to be toddlers, the experts recommend your little one’s shoes should still be soft-soled and flexible. They should be so flexible that your baby’s feet can bend naturally when they walk. The reasoning is, that soft-soled shoes won’t cause your child to trip and fall like hard-soled shoes can. Your child will be able to feel the ground underneath them. This, in turn, will help them to learn to walk better. The best shoes are flat and have no heel that will give your son or daughter an unnatural lift.

As for the upper part of the shoes, the material should only be leather or cloth. These materials will allow your baby’s feet to get air so they won’t sweat excessively.

When should your baby start wearing shoes? By the time your son/daughter is walking well, by the time they are nine to eighteen months old, that’s when you should buy them their first pair of real, hard-soled shoes. Naturally, high tops will stay on their feet better and won’t allow their feet to slip out as easily.

Of course, you’ll want to check with and follow the advice of your pediatrician. S/he knows your child the best. This information is based on the general consensus of some pediatricians.