There can be a lot of disagreement and debate on this topic. The answer is simple, when you need them, you need them. When you don’t need them, you don’t need them. The challenge is working out when you do not need them and when you do need them.
At one extreme some argue that there is no need to use foot orthotics or any type of support in the child foot. They suggest that foot orthotics weaken muscles (they don’t) and that foot orthotics inhibit the growth of the foot (there is no evidence that they do). At the other extreme are those that argue that every flat foot in a child must be treated with foot orthotics otherwise they will be sentenced to a life time of pain and disability (they won’t).
A valuable place to start trying to delve into this topic and the way forward would be this video from PodChatLive:
Proper foot biomechanics is important and the child should not have anything interfere with that normal development. However, if that development is not progressing like it should, then a good health professional will intervene with an intervention that is going to encourage that normal development and deal with any problems that arise. That may involve a custom made foot orthotic at one end of the spectrum or a simple in-shoe intervention such as the Cluffy wedge or it may involve a good pair of shoes, or a supportive pair of shoes (eg the Archies) or it may involved the prescription of exercises. The good clinicians will not disregard one type of intervention with a blanket statement or bias about it and use the most appropriate of a the full range of options depending on the needs of the child.
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