Foot maturation in children is reached by 5 years old

source article: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/21257173

Gait development begins early! Start good mechanics in your kids! “Based on these results, it would appear that foot maturation during gait is fully achieved at 5 years”

Foot mechanics during the first six years of Independent Walking J Biomech. 2011 Jan 21. [Epub ahead of print]

“the MP joint biomechanical parameters were similar between children (older than 2 years) and adults, hinting at a quick maturation of this joint mechanics. The ankle joint parameters and the GRFs (except for the frontal plane) showed an adult-like pattern in 5-year-old children. Some ankle joint parameters, such as the joint power and the 3D angle α(M.ω) still evolved significantly until 3.5 years. Based on these results, it would appear that foot maturation during gait is fully achieved at 5 years.”