The way babies are dressed has changed a lot in recent years, with parents being able to choose between lifelong baby clothes and more modern clothes such as jeans, patterned shirts, etc. Similarly, the booties have given way, for those who want it, to slippers and baby shoes, less flexible but more current aesthetically.
Experts from the Nisa Pardo de Aravaca Hospital, in Madrid, wanted to give their opinion about children's footwear and when talking about baby footwear they have advised that they never wear shoes, however modern they go with them.
A child's foot is in continuous growth and training and the choice of footwear is important to promote proper development. When choosing a shoe we tend to be guided by aesthetic issues, however, and although it is important (you are not going to put your son some horrible shoes that you do not like), the aesthetic should be in the background, because the important thing after all is the foot of the children.
According to Javier Ferrer, podiatrist of the mentioned hospital:
Fitting a baby, even if it is beautiful, is completely harmful, since the bone structure of a child takes time to fully consolidate. So if we cover them, when they have not yet been developed, we are damaging their optimal development.
As they comment a baby who still does not crawl should not wear any shoes to allow your foot to grow and expand without annoying "stops" that can alter their development, so they say that to protect them from the cold it is enough to put socks or booties on them.
From my point of view, and agreeing that children are better off barefoot (my children only fit to go outside), the recommendation is a bit exaggerated. In the photo above you can see my son Jon when he was little carrying some Puma that are made of cloth. There is no rigid sole and the top is offered by the shoe's seam. Let's say they would be like a fat sock, although less elastic.
The important thing then is be sure, always, that the footwear does not fit small, which does not press on your fingers when you put it, because then we will be doing something harmful to your feet. It is different if we talk about a stiffer shoe, but as far as I can see, baby shoes do not have a sole and are usually very soft.
So more than forbidding a baby to wear shoes (in winter some socks seem to me insufficient to safeguard from the cold) I would recommend put shoes or slippers just to leave home and always having the absolute certainty that they are not small or press his foot anywhere. Now, I am not a podiatrist, just a father who tries to use common sense, choose you, dear reader, what to do with your baby's feet (look how polite, I even tell you about you).
