After a brief welcome and introduction by the moderator, Franziska Kuntze from POLOLO, Dr. Wieland Kinz addressed the question of whether wearing barefoot shoes is beneficial, drawing on his decades of experience with international scientific studies – specifically, the measurement of children's feet and shoes. This discussion actually dates back quite a long way – as early as 1782, a scientific paper was published that led to the realization that feet lengthen when walking, which is why shoes should be longer than the feet themselves. A sketch from that time shows the superimposed outlines of a shoe sole and a foot, clearly demonstrating that the shape of the shoe and the foot do not match, meaning the foot has "far too little room in the shoe . "
Barefoot shoes are characterized by a small big toe angle and flexibility of the sole
Dr. Kinz then made a jump to 2014, when the "Nike Free"shoe was brought onto the market that felt like a barefoot shoe - although it was still in the toe area "too tight" been. He showed an illustration with the clearly pronounced angle of the big toe.
The development of so-called barefoot shoes continued, eventually leading, for example, to Vibram's "FiveFingers" models with a straight cut in the big toe area. He clarified that shoes indistinguishable from left to right contradict the natural shape of the foot. So-called barefoot shoes are best defined by the big toe angle (as small as possible) and the flexibility of the sole (as pronounced as possible).
Methodical studies in Asia have led to astonishing findings: In 1958, large-scale measurements were taken on the then still very common barefoot runners in China – from this it was found that shoe wearers are 17 times more likely to have hallux valgus than barefoot walkers.
Experiences from Japan also underline this finding: not a single surgical correction was planned there until 1972 Hallux valgus may have been necessary - but then increasingly as a result of the production of closed shoes that began in 1960.
While the production of traditional open "Japanese Wooden Clogs" and matching socks declined massively from 1960 onwards, the number of closed leather shoes produced increased in the opposite direction.
A twelve-year delay then led to an increase in the number of surgeries performed to correct hallux valgus . It appears that not only shoes with a pronounced big toe angle are problematic for health, but also socks – these should be anatomically correct and perfectly straight.
Feet in socks – what should you pay attention to?
On the subject of socks, he also noted that when measuring children's feet, he noticed that feet in socks were smaller and narrower: first the feet were measured in socks and then barefoot. At the time, he expected that the feet in socks would be longer and wider or at least the same length as bare feet due to the material. To his surprise, it was exactly the other way around: with socks on, his feet were shorter and narrower than barefoot.
Dr. Kinz therefore noted two aspects about socks in the lecture:
- a) The tip of the toe: Most socks taper to a point or trapezoid at the front. This doesn't make sense ergonomically
- b) The size system: Most socks are meant to fit over four to five sizes - they're usually way too short. When it comes to socks, these aspects should therefore be taken into account.
Avoiding misalignments – wear suitable shoes or go barefoot
He was concerned about researching methods to remedy the problem in the National Library of Medicine Hallux valgus, because the focus there was on surgical correction (a good 3.800 publications), while conservative methods are obviously still viewed as of secondary importance (only a good 170 publications).
Dr. Kinz's pointed conclusion for conservative treatment: "Wear appropriate shoes or go barefoot!" Walking barefoot (if the surface and temperature allow it) is simply better than wearing restrictive footwear.
Dr. Kinz then presented a video interview with barefoot shoe expert Alexander Tok, host of the "Barefoot in the PottCast" podcast . He explained that, unlike in southern German-speaking regions, in North Rhine-Westphalia, based on his experience, it is now common practice to stock barefoot shoes in regular shoe stores – including those for sports. The demand for barefoot shoes for both adults and children is increasing.
He described the advantages of barefoot shoes, highlighting their preventative and regenerative effects: Ideally, wearing barefoot shoes can prevent or even correct misalignments to a certain extent. Sustainability is also gaining importance for customers. Finally, he advised keeping the product range small (manageable) and offering various widths from different manufacturers, along with good customer service – including the honest admission that a suitable shoe might not be currently available.
At the end of a lecture, Dr. Kinz also says that his standard work is currently being revised: “Children’s feet – children’s shoes. Everything you need to know about little feet and shoes”, 4th revised edition 2023. The expected publication date is autumn 2023 (ISBN 3-00-005879-6).
In summary for this new edition and the lecture, he stated that shoes and socks that do not correspond to the shape of the child's foot in the toe area are pointless or even harmful: "This means: as straight as possible at the big toe and wide enough so that the toes are not constricted!"
Discussion with amazing insights, including how to correctly measure the inside length of shoes
During the discussion, Franziska Kuntze mentioned that parents frequently visit the POLOLO showroom and express disappointment with the materials used by some other manufacturers (e.g., polyester instead of wool lining, which is neither warm nor breathable). She thus underscored Alexander Tok's statement that sustainability is gaining importance for customers (see also the frequent appearance of children's shoes in the RAPEX list: "Rapid Exchange of Information System" ). However, there still seem to be occasional concerns among customers regarding ergonomics and aesthetics.
At the end, the problem of correct measurement was discussed. Dr. Kinz had asked to cut out a 20 cm long strip of cardboard (representing a correspondingly long foot) - this should now be measured with a suitable measuring device in order to derive a recommendation for buying shoes. Two serious challenges emerged:
A shoe size recommendation based on a measurement is not very helpful because in almost half of all cases it is wrong - there is hardly any manufacturer with the correct shoe size. Rather, it is important to precisely determine the inside length of the shoe and compare it with the respective foot length (determined using a cardboard template), taking into account an allowance of at least 12 mm.
The measurement of the insole cannot always be relied on, as it often does not correspond to the inside length of the shoe (probably for cost reasons) - sometimes manufacturers even offer an insole for four shoe sizes. Franziska Kuntze's comment on this was that POLOLO had had very good experiences with this process in its own showroom - but at POLOLO the insoles are also all adapted to the sizes.
To conclude the discussion
emphasized Dr. Wieland Kinz, that
- the softer a shoe is, the better the foot is trained,
- Socks that are too short can also endanger foot health
- and small children also need the extra 12 mm (like adults) because their feet are much softer and more malleable.
Franziska Kuntze emphasized that
- real and untreated raw fibers such as organic wool or organic cotton are much more breathable and better for the foot climate and the ecological footprint than polyester,
- vegan alternatives when buying shoes are becoming increasingly important for young parents and
- Vegetable tanned leather is chrome-free.
We would like to thank all participants and especially Dr. Wieland Kinz for the interesting training!
Franziska Kuntze & POLOLO team
Figures 1-5: Dr. Wieland Kinz / Figure 6: Primeri GmbH
More information:
CHILDREN’S FEET – CHILDREN’S SHOES
SCIENCE FOR EVERYDAY LIFE
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