Toe-walking is very common in children below the age of three.A child is just learning to walk and discover their surroundings, so toe-walking is natural. However, if a child is still toe-walking after the age of three, this may be a symptom of some underlying medical issue.Beyond this age, a child should normally outgrow toe-walking behavior by themselves Usually, toe-walking signals some developmental shortcomings like being on the autism spectrum, language delays, and speech delays. Many children are idiopathic toe-walkers, meaning they have no development problems but may continue their toe-walking out of habit. The main shortcoming of this trait is the tightening of the calf muscles. Also, toe walking can sometimes signal heel plate inflammation, cerebral palsy, and club foot. If you are concerned, a visit to the doctor is a must if your child keeps walking on their toes after the age of three. Idiopathic toe-walking can be dealt with at home by trying to engage the child in activities like walking up on a slide, walking with squeakers on the toes, or with heavy boots.If you enjoyed this article, why not also read about why do golfers yell fore or why do your ears pop here on Kidadl.Is it normal for kids to walk on their toes?Yes, it is very normal for babies to walk on their toes, but only until they are three years old. Children who are just learning to walk exhibit toe-walking behavior.Almost all kids outgrow toe-walking behavior after they’re three years old. If your kid seems to walk on their toes, it is developing normally. After the age of three, if your kid doesn’t outgrow their toe-walking pattern there may be some issues that need to be addressed by a doctor. However, as long as your child shows normal physical growth, it’s not a problem.What does it mean when children walk on their toes?Walking on toes is a rather common occurrence for young children. A child is following their instincts when toe walking and it’s an indication that they are trying to learn their surroundings.Toe-walking in children can be classified into four different groups. A child may have a neurological condition like cerebral palsy (muscular dystrophy) and this may be causing the calf muscles to tighten up, not enabling them to reach their heels to the ground. Orthopedic conditions like club foot (congenital talipes equinovarus) or growth plate inflammation in the heel (calcaneal apophysitis) may also cause a toe-walking pattern. There is a structural change that happens in the foot making it difficult or painful for the child to get the heel on the ground.Some children show behavioral traits, like delays in achieving certain milestones. So, a toe-walking habit is also associated with developmental delay and autism disorders.Healthy children with no medical issues also walk on their toes frequently. This behavior is idiopathic and is diagnosed after every other health issue has been ruled out. Idiopathic toe-walking is also termed habitual toe-walking and familial toe-walking since different members of the same family also exhibit these behaviors. About 5-12% of all healthy children are idiopathic toe-walkers and can’t walk with a flat foot. Since there may be family history, there might be a genetic component as well. Even with idiopathic toe-walkers, there are some language and speech delays, some medical issues with motor skills as well as sensory processing, like with movement and balance of a flat foot. The most common symptom of idiopathic toe-walkers is tight calves, which in turn may cause some difficulty in touching the heels to the floor.What to do when children don’t seem to stop walking on their toes?Walking on toes can be a health issue if a child is over three years old. There is no one-stop fix for idiopathic toe-walkers. But one of the common fixes is weight gain as the child gets older. The heavier the body becomes, the more difficult it is to keep the heels off the ground.Idiopathic toe-walking habit has two treatments, surgical and conservative. The surgical treatment lengthens the Achilles tendon. Conservative treatment involves stretching, verbal reinforcement, heavy footwear, ankle-foot orthotics, full-length orthotics, gravel or carpet flooring, full-body vibration, plaster casts that stretch the muscles, and sthe injection of botox into the calf to build muscle tone. A lot of these treatments do not have enough medical evidence to support their use.Presently, the only methods that are supported sufficiently by evidence are surgery and plaster casting. They show great improvements in toe-walkers. A longitudinal study also found that children who had received a casting or surgery may still walk on their toes up to the age of 13. Multiple treatment options with varying levels of success make it difficult for parents and the doctor to choose the right treatment plan.How to stop children from falling on their toes?If you are concerned about this behaviour, there are certain methods that can be used to stop young children from falling or walking on their toes. But first, remember to speak to your doctor about any future treatment or underlying causes. This should be followed up with an occupational or physical therapy specialist and many games and exercises should be developed.To increase the range of motion of calf muscles, you could have the child grab a wedge and walk on an incline or you could hold the child’s foot and stretch the calf and Achilles tendon cord for a minute. Physical therapy activities like heels down, toes up, walking like a penguin, leapfrogging, squatting, hopping, and jumping can also be done.To strengthen the leg muscles, the child can be made to pick up something like a cloth or a marble with their toes, move a scooter board with their feet, walk up on a slide, hold the chair position on a wall, and several other things that may stretch the tendon. To improve balance on the flat foot, parents can have their young kid balance on a wobble board, walk across beams, or stand on an air cushion. To position the feet and lower leg, have the child wear rain boots or any heavy boots, place a wedge near the heels for contact, or use inserts. To increase the sensory exposure, you can tape squeakers to the bottom side of the child’s feet, so there’s audio feedback as well. You could also try wheeled shoes and barefoot walks on the sand or grass to engage the heel. A fun obstacle course made up of blankets could also work. So could painting with feet, using joint compression, wearing scuba feet, and stomping and marching.Here at Kidadl, we have carefully created lots of interesting family-friendly facts for everyone to enjoy! If you liked our suggestions for why do kids walk on their toes then why not take a look at why do boats float or why do leaves fall.
Toe-walking is very common in children below the age of three.
