Very Tiny Feet

Hey M., I would think that as long as she is doing everything that she is supposed to be doing developmentally she is alright. My youngest is now 5 and she has tiny feet. The thing is sometimes it depends on the shoes. She can wear anywhere from a size 9 to 12. But it seemed like it took forever for her to get into bigger sizes. If you are worried about her development ask your doctor, he or she should be able to help you out with those feelings.

My daughter falls in the same category with tiny feet. She was born full term and neither parent is very tall nor does she have any delays. She is 21 months and is just in 12-18 month shoes. Just lets you get a lot of wear out of shoes!

Both of my girls had small feet as well. My husband is 6' and I'm 5'8". Both my girls had small feet as infants. My 2nd was still in 0-6month size shoes at 12months old and didn't grow out of them until probably 18-24 months, but it was never a concern. My oldest is now 5 1/2 and only wearing a size 12. My 2nd is 3 1/2 and only wears an 8 1/2. My 3rd(boy) has huge feet compared to what I'm used to with my girls, but he's still only in size 5 1/2 to 6 at 23 months old. I'm sure if there was something "more" to her having that small of feet, their pediatrician and PT would have said something about it and checked into it.

Nope but wow that's tiny. Was the child born early?

My daughter wore a size 3 at age two (barely 6-12 month size), and now at four years wears only a size 8. She was born early and late to crawl, walk, etc. Her PT always said not to worry, that once she started walking and such they would get bigger,and they did. She still has very tiny feet, but I have talked to a lot of professionals about it and it doesn't seem as though it is a real concern. My daughter does have some health concerns related to her prematurity, but they are basically respiratory related and she is healthy otherwise. Her parents could ask her PT for an option too, but I think I don't think it is a big concern.

Hi M.,

Where is your niece on the growth charts? Is she all-around tiny for her age?

One thing to not get caught up in is how meaningless sizing is in the U.S. for babies' and young children's clothing. Since it goes by ages (0-6 mos, 6-12 mos, 2T, etc.), if the size differs greatly from the child's actual age, people tend to comment that the child is "big" or "small" for his age. And to boot, there is no standardization amongst brands. Right now my son is wearing 12 months to 2T and everything in between.

If your niece's shoe size didn't have an age attached to it--let's say it was a "size 1"--would you be as worried? Do her feet look small compared to the rest of her? If so, I would mention it to her parents. They could bring it up at her physical therapy appts. Good luck.