Are children’s shoes with wheels harmful?
Heelys-type wheeled shoes are the latest fashion in children, but we must take a series of precautions to prevent them from causing falls or damage to the feet.
When something becomes fashionable among the youngest, it is very difficult for our children not to succumb to that trend. It does not matter what their parents think, especially if they are against it, because what perseveres is what is considered ‘in’, what their friends also like and it will be very difficult for them to change their opinion.
And the latest fashion among the youngest are the sports shoes with wheels , being the Heelys reference brand, which allow them to roll around. Regardless of whether or not we may like them aesthetically, there is the dilemma of whether it is a suitable footwear for children. As much as they like them.
In recent weeks, voices have emerged against this type of footwear, which they describe as harmful to children. It’s true? Can they pose a problem in the future development of our children? Are they not as bad as they are painted to us?
Index
SNEAKERS OR SKATES?
They are not conventional shoes and therefore are not used as such, something that children are not always fully aware of. When wearing the wheels, they lose some of the stability that standard footwear confers and can cause the wearer to end up face down on the ground. And it is that this type of sports could be considered something halfway between a pair of sneakers and a pair of skates. After all, you can walk and skate with them. But would we let our children spend the day with their skates on?
The most likely answer is no, that leaving them with their skates on all day would be a danger and a magnet for accidents . Although in reality the vast majority of parents when their children put on skates or ride a bicycle equip them with accessories that protect them against possible falls.
When children wear sports shoes with wheels, they do not wear any type of protection . They use them to walk down the street, to go to school, even to be at home. Hence, they can actually be more dangerous than skates, because nothing prevents them from getting hurt if they fall.
ACCIDENTS AND CONSEQUENTIAL INJURIES
In Spain, slippers with wheels are a fairly recent fashion, which has begun to populate schools and parks in the last year. However, in countries like the United States they are used to this type of footwear. There have been studies on the relationship between these shoes and accidents.
From visits to the traumatologist, it has been determined that the main evil when wearing this type of sports shoes is to suffer a fall , which can be minor or lead to trauma. The most common is a wrist fracture, probably due to the impulse to put your hands forward when you see that you are falling and carry the weight of your whole body on the wrist.
In our country, more and more doctors are beginning to warn of the increase in injuries derived from the use of this type of sports shoes. As expected, falls occur especially when children still do not have control of them. According to a study from the United States, one in five children who was injured wearing these shoes did so at the time they were released . Something from which we can deduce that they are not as easy to use as it might seem in a first problem.
THE VISION OF PODIATRISTS
Traumatologists aren’t the only doctors who have studied the effect that rolling shoes can have on children. Podiatrists have also noticed the most fashionable footwear among children and have even asked that they not be allowed in schools.
They have done it after a study by the Miguel Hernández University of Elche found that slightly more than 10% of Infant and Primary students use this type of sports to go to class, which means that they spend eight hours a day with them , even more.
In the same it has been found that this type of footwear does not provide the necessary stability nor is it as flexible as one would expect due to the wheels. This element also makes the foot have a slight inclination and the same effect as if you were wearing shoes with a little heel. The consequences are that the load on the forefoot and the pressure on the heel are increased and, in the long run, it can lead to a growth problem or flat feet .
Hence, the recommendation of podiatrists is to reduce the time that children use the sports shoes with wheels to no more than two or three hours a day , so that they do not suffer the consequences of prolonged use.
Dr. Tabriella Perivolaris, Sara's mother and fan of fashion, beauty, motherhood, among others, about the female universe. Since 2018 she has been working as a copywriter, always bringing to her articles a little of her experience and experience as a mother and woman.