Our foot houses 26 bones and 35 joints in a complex structure that are held and supported by various ligaments. A baby’s foot is padded with fat and is highly flexible and becomes more rigid as they start to walk. Parents however sometimes start to worry about the best sports shoes for kids as soon as they are born.

Most toddlers are flat footed when they start to walk or they tend to turn their feet inwards until their muscles strengthen and ligaments become stiff enough to correct the walking. The flat footedness prevalent in toddlers almost always improves with time and is not a cause for alarm.

However, it is recommended not to fit a toddler with any kind of kids shoes as it will affect their walking for a long time to come. A toddler yet learning to walk gains important sensory information about the ground from the soles of their feet though many parents use a very soft covering, shaped like a shoe to protect young feet from basic injury as well as from heat and cold.

The time to start hunting for the best sports shoes for kids is when they are a few years old and have started walking unaided around 2 years of age. Children’s feet quickly grow and one might need to buy kids shoes every few months. A shoe that is too tight will hamper your child’s walk cycle and can lead to other problems like ingrown toenails. If any such problems arise, do please consult the doctor.

Try out any kids shoes before you buy them personally. The shoes should be comfortable in length and width as well as have plenty of room for the toes. The best sports shoes for kids should have a flexible and flat sole that bends near the toe to match the activity required for young children. The front of the shoe should be a bit wider than the heel which will house the foot naturally and the shoes should have a solid heel counter to absorb the jumping that children are bound to do.

It is best not to have intricate lacing or straps which will prevent the natural movement of the foot in any kids shoes. Expensive shoes are not always better and anyways the children shall outgrow their shoes very quickly, so invest wisely.