Effective exercises with flat feet in children

Often children have flat feet, whichhas a negative effect on the entire body. It must be treated. The most effective way for this is exercise. What exercises can help get rid of flat feet, read in the article.

What is a flatfoot?

It is a disease in which the vaults of the foot flatten. In this case, the mechanics of walking are disturbed and complications develop in the joints of the knees, hips and spine.

Platypodia (deformity of the foot) can be observed in children from the moment of birth. The statistics are disappointing. Already at the age of eleven, half of the children suffer from this disease.

The causes of flatfoot

It is impossible to name even one reason at all. The development of flat feet is influenced by various factors:

• Hereditary predisposition.
• Excess body weight.
• Excessive stress on the lower limbs. First of all, these are the kinds of sports, which use a lot of energy.
• Weakness of the muscles and ligaments of the foot, which is transmitted to the child from the parents.
• The consequences of diseases such as cerebral palsy, polio, rickets, which cause paralysis of the muscles and ligaments of the foot.
• Injuries of varying degrees.

Symptoms of flatfoot

Since the parents are in close contact with their children, they can notice some changes when walking, or the child will tell about it himself. Symptoms can be as follows:

• Clubfoot during movement, when the child tucks his feet inside.
• It does not come to the full stop, but only to its inner edges.
• The child refuses to take long walks. He explains this by the fact that he has pain in his legs and back when he walks.
• The surface of the heels when the shoes are worn is uneven, that is, they stagger unevenly: there is much more on the inside.

If the child has at least one of these signs, you should consult a doctor.

Stop without pathology

The physiology of the structure is such that in the norm of the footshould be based on three points located in the area of ​​the little finger, thumb and heel. These points are connected with each other by ligaments, muscle tissue and tendons, which are united in vaults. Depending on the location, the vaults are:

• Longitudinal - pass along the edge of the inner side of the foot.
• Cross - connect the base of the thumb and little finger.

When the disease begins to develop, the arches are flattened. Feet with flat feet in this case have another point of support, which becomes the middle part of the sole.

Longitudinal flat feet

This is a disease in which the height of the corresponding arch is reduced. Longitudinal platypodia is more common in preschool children. It can be suspected by parents when examining the legsthe kid. The skin on them should be pale pink. If it becomes purple-cyanotic, it means that in the feet formed venous stasis. Just pale skin, without a pink hue, means that the feet have poor circulation. In any case, an appointment with a doctor should be immediate.

Flat feet in young children

Often the fullness of a one-year-old child does not causeparental anxiety. For some reason, there is a perception that all babies should be plump. However, this is not the case. If the baby weighs more than twelve kilograms after the first year of life, and its feet tuck inward while walking, you need to consult an orthopedic surgeon.

It is important not to miss a disease likeflatfoot. In the year of life it is not so noticeable, everything is written off as a child, especially since the baby doesn’t have much concern. But as the child grows, the weight of his body increases, which can lead to the progression of the disease: the vaults will become more and more flattened. In the future, with little exertion or long walking, there will be pain in the ankle joints, lower back, knees.

To correct flat feet, you can use medicalphysical education, massage, orthopedic shoes, instep supports, physiotherapy and surgery. What method of treatment to apply depends on the stage of the disease, which can only be determined by the doctor.

Therapeutic exercises for kids

Acquired flat feet are treated conservatively.method. If the child does not walk independently, the parents help the exercises. Simple and painless flexion and extension of the foot helps to correct the incorrect location of the arches, while the feet are sent to the sole and back. As for the outer edge of the foot, it goes inside.

When the child is a little older and will stand steadily on his legs, you need to show him the following set of exercises for longitudinal flatfoot in children:

• To walk on socks and heels, and barefoot.
• Try to move the edges of the feet: either internal or external.
• Scatter a lot of small objects on the floor, and let the child collect them with his toes.
• Gymnastic stick - a simple and at the same time very useful projectile. Need to teach a child to walk on it.

A set of exercises for preschoolers

When a child turns two or three years old, fortreatment of flatfoot can perform a range of exercises. The child, even of younger preschool age, calmly withstands such a load. Exercises for flatfoot in children the following:

• Walking back with shoulders and hands on the belt. But you should not walk with your entire foot, but with its outer edges.
• This exercise is performed sitting with legs straightened forward. Toes should be alternately compressed and uncompressed.
• Sitting on the floor, bend the legs, and then begin to reduce and spread the foot.
• Reduce socks, without tearing off the heel from the floor.
• In the sitting position to roll the ball alternately with one foot, then two.

• Scatter small items on the floor. The essence of the exercise is to grab the object with your fingers and move it to another place.
• Lying on your back, stretch your legs forward. To make sliding movements with the sole on the opposite foot.
• Lie on your back, legs apart and slam soles.
• Lie on your back, firmly hold the ball with your feet, lift your legs up, bend your knees to your chest and make the ball move in a circle.
• Lie down on the stomach, bend the legs, grasp the socks with your hands, press the heels against the buttocks, and pull the socks out.
• In a standing position, grab onto a chair and roll from heel to toe, simulating walking. Socks from the floor while not tearing.
• The last exercise is jumping on the legs: first on the left, then on the right.

When flat-footedness is very important to perform exercises both alone and in the complex. Classes should be daily, rather than occasional, from time to time.

Gymnastics using a massage mat

Exercises for flatfoot in children aredifferent. The category of physical therapy includes classes using a massage mat, on the surface of which there are various origins of irregularities. They irritate the sole of the foot, thereby strengthening the muscles.

Exercises for flatfoot in children are performed.with the help of other devices. Besides rugs, these include balls and various rollers, the surface of which has many soft spikes. Gymnastic devices are designed to roll their feet. Parents show the child the correctness of the exercises.

Massage

Flat feet can be treated with massage. Depending on the degree of the disease, the child is prescribed a course of treatment that includes ten to fifteen sessions. During the year you need to go from two to four such courses. Features of the massage are that, in addition to the feet, all the legs are completely massaged, since other muscles are also involved in walking: the legs, thighs and buttocks.

Preventive measures for the prevention of flatfoot

Any disease is better to prevent than longto heal. For the correct formation of the bend of the foot, you need to walk more often without shoes on a bumpy surface. It is more accessible to the villager. In the city it is very rare to find a road, the surface of which is paved with pebbles. All asphalt and tile. And in the apartments - laminate and parquet. Options for preventive measures are few, but they are. Here are some exercises for flatfoot in children (suitable for prevention):

• First of all, you need to balance the nutrition of the child, so that the right amount of animal and vegetable proteins enters his body.
• A small child should often be put on the ground with an uneven surface: sand, grass, wooden slides.
• Since the apartment has perfectly level floors, you needmake their surface hilly. To do this, just scatter small nuts, put them in a bag of soft fabric, and that's it. Baby happy to jump on the floor. If you do not want to bother, you can buy an orthopedic mat.
• It is better to buy shoes for the baby with arch support. This is a preventive insert in the shoes, thanks to which the foot is delicately formed.

All of the above measures are good, but there are the mostsimple exercises for the prevention of flatfoot. The following is considered the most common and effective today. A gymnastic stick is lowered to the floor; a barefooted baby is put on it, who must move sideways along it, taking added steps. Such a child is taught by adults. The stick should lie across the foot. Exercise helps to strengthen the muscles of the foot.

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