Experts warn trendy ballet pumps can damage girls' feet

Teenage girls and women in their 20s are developing painful corns and callouses - normally only seen in much older women.

And chiropodists say that many pump wearers are in danger of damaging their knees, twisting their ankles and stretching the tendons in their legs.

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The flat-bottomed shoes have become a fashion staple in recent years and hundreds of thousands of pairs have been sold.

High street versions can be snapped up for as little as £10 while designer versions can cost more than £150.

Carol Caven, a chiropodist in Hounslow, West London, has seen a marked increase in younger girls coming to her surgery with serious foot problems - all down to ballet pumps.

She said: "These pumps have recently become so fashionable among young girls in their teens and 20s and they are coming to me with problems they should not be experiencing until much later in life.

"The problem is that they have to be so small because otherwise they would fall off - there is nothing to hold them on the foot. It means that women are squashing their toes into the front of the shoe, causing corns and callouses.'

She added: "Other women wear ballet pumps at their normal shoe size, but these can cause other problems because girls have to walk in an exaggerated fashion to stop them from falling off.

"It means they can't flex their ankles because there is nothing to hold their foot in. This causes a strain on the knee and the tendons. In the worst cases it can mean women roll over on their ankles - causing sprained ankles because there is no support in the shoe."

Harley Street foot surgeon Barry Francis, said: "Like all shoes you should use the right shoe for the job. If you are going to do a great deal of walking on hard surfaces then ballet pumps are not the right thing.

"If you are young and fit then you should not be having a problem with hard skin and corns - these only happen when something is stopping you from walking properly.

"Ballet pumps do not give you much protection and could put you in line for stubbing injuries and people stepping on you.

"Flip-flops are similar - there are many cases of these causing twisted ankles and impact injuries, and I expect a similar number with regard to ballet pumps.

"Women have to claw their toes up to wear them and that does their feet no good."

In the summer Dr Francis has six patients a week coming to him with injuries relating to flatbottomed shoes.