Children should wear good footwear on the playground.
Aside from being a fun activity, playing on playground equipment can actually provide a wealth of benefits to children. When children play on the slide, for example, their coordination and arm and leg strength will gradually improve. When they slide down, their sense of balance and spatial orientation develops as well.
Playground equipment can boost your child’s development, but letting them play without comfortable footwear can result in more harm than good. Instead of supporting their physical, mental, and social development, playing without good footwear can become the reason you’re your children can get hurt and suffer from trauma.
Listed below are the reasons why good footwear is necessary when playing on playground equipment:
1. Lessens Susceptibility To Injuries
Whenever your children play on playground equipment, expect that they will jump and run around. They will climb on slides and try out monkey bars for hours, especially if they found a friend. The more equipment the playground has, the longer your children will play with them.
When your children play on playground equipment, their bodies move in different directions with different intensities. These actions can put too much pressure on their bodies and feet, making them at risk of painful injuries.
Investing in durable shoes for your children can lessen their susceptibility to these situations. Good footwear can protect your child’s ankle and feet by providing optimal cushioning and ankle and grip support.
2. Protection Against Infections
Usually, community and public playgrounds do not require children to follow a specific dress code. These spaces are for children – so if your kids want to play, they can regardless of what they are wearing.
However, since sanitation is generally poor in other areas in the world, letting your children play on playground equipment without any footwear is a big no-no. Going barefoot increases your child’s risks to foot infections, parasitic worms, hookworms, and even tick bites.
Your children can also step on rusty nails and broken glass if they play barefoot. In worse cases, your children can suffer from severe itch and rash once they step on poison ivy and other prickly bushes.
Good footwear can prevent all of these from happening. Since your child’s foot does not come in contact with the surface of the playground equipment and the ground, they will be safe from infections.
3. Prevents Foot Problems
One of the biggest mistakes parents make is giving a pair of ill-fitting shoes to their children before letting them play on playground equipment. They think that as long as their children are wearing something on their feet, their little bundles of joy are safe from injuries and other health problems.
However, letting your children wear ill-fitting shoes when they are playing on playground equipment only results in foot problems. Over time, your children can develop fungal nail infection, athlete’s foot, and corn because of an ill-fitting pair of shoes.
And since children don’t usually know how to identify pain associated with foot problems, they will likely inform you about it when the pain already becomes unbearable. Or they might not inform you about it at all, and you’ll just notice that their foot looks different.
Aside from letting your child’s feet rest from wearing shoes for long periods, good footwear can ward off foot problems.
Good footwear doesn’t restrict your child’s blood circulation, allowing their foot to move with ease. When your children wear good footwear as they are using playground equipment, parents like you will not worry knowing that your children are safe from foot problems.
4. Prevents Back Problems
A healthy back is important for your children. A healthy back makes it easy for them to move around and learn essential life lessons that they can use as they grow older.
However, if your children suffer from intense back pain, how can they make friends in the playground? How can they develop their motor skills if playing with the monkey bars causes back pain?
If you want your children to make the most out of playground equipment without suffering from any back pain, buy them a pair of good shoes. Since good footwear supports your child's feet, your child’s spine maintains its alignment and form. This can reduce back problems in your children.
Choose The Best Pair
Good footwear is essential when playing on playground equipment, but this doesn’t mean that you should buy the cheapest footwear you see. To ensure that your children can maximize the benefits of playground equipment, choose a pair that provides arch support and feels comfortable whenever worn.
Aside from the size, paying attention to these small factors can warrant the enjoyment of your children when playing on playground equipment without suffering from blisters or swelling.