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When a baby is born its feet are quite flat but as the baby grows and learns to walk unaided, arches develop on the inner edges of the feet.
These arches are formed as the muscles of the feet and legs develop in strength while the fatty pads which normally fill this area slowly disappear. Arches don't usually appear until a child reaches the age of three or four years.
If those arches do not develop properly for any reason then the child will have flat feet. This condition is not as common as many parents suspect.
You shouldn't make a diagnosis of flat feet until your child is four years old. The arches are still developing until that time so any such diagnosis would be quite premature.
At that age you can best judge whether or not your child has flat feet by getting them to stand on tiptoes. You should then be able to see an arch developing, even if one wasn't obviously present when your child was standing with his feet flat on the ground.
Teacher: Michael
Many articles taken from 'A word with the doctor', by Dr. John Windsor.
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