With Team USA’s World Cup soccer victory fresh in their minds, we expect a lot of Montgomery County kids will be psyched to return to or take up the sport this fall. Soccer’s great fun and great exercise, but it also puts a lot of stress on the feet.

3 kinds of soccer injuries

Kids’ feet are prone to soccer injuries due to

• Overuse – running for hours at practice puts excessive stress on a kid’s feet.
• Traumatic injury – a fall, twist, or fight for possession of the ball can pull a ligament, strain a muscle, or crack a bone.
• Improper biomechanics – a child’s particular foot structure may make them prone to certain kinds of injuries. Before they even shop for cleats, bring them to our river region podiatry office for a full foot exam. We’ll check out their bone alignment, range of motion, and muscle strength. We examine the way they walk and can even look at their current shoes to wear patterns that reveal a tendency to certain foot problems. We might prescribe custom orthotics or other kinds of shoe inserts to counteract a biomechanical issue that we find.

Take these steps to prevent injury

Prevent foot injuries associated with soccer, such as heel pain, bone fractures, tendonitis, turf toe, and sesamoiditis, by taking these steps:

• Consider a pre-season foot checkup here at Montgomery Foot Care Specialists.
• Get shoes that fit.
• Stretch well before and after play.
• Ease into the game slowly. Don’t go from couch to 2-hour practices.
• Eat well. Include calcium-rich foods in your diet to strengthen growing bones.
• Soak sore feet in an ice bath after practice.
• Get enough rest. Fatigued muscles are more prone to injury.
• Don’t “play through the pain.” If your child has foot pain or swelling or is unable to bear weight on their foot, make an appointment as soon as possible with expert podiatrists Heidi M. Christie and Dr. Chanda L. Day-Houts. Call us in Montgomery, Alabama at (334) 396-3668 or contact us online.