I don't get the point of water shoes - Page 2

[lach]

I cut my foot on a mussel once as a child, and it was the most painful experience of my life... and I've had 2 kids! It was like the world's biggest papercut. That was before there were water shoes, but I really wish I had been wearing them!

We live near the beach, so my kids wear them on the rocky beach. We don't wear them to the pool or anything.

I don't know, I went barefoot a lot as a kid and I don't remember particularly enjoying it. It hurt my feet a lot. I hated walking on hot sand at the beach.

[Fuamami]

We used to go barefoot for much of the summer, too, and I remember that it really hurt at the beginning.

So if you don't go barefoot often, maybe your feet aren't calloused and tough enough?

[Honey693]

My kid would probably love them at the beach b/c she hates the way sand feels. Other than that she just wears flip flops all summer. She doesn't go barefoot b/c the way grass feels freaks her out.

[Mal85]

DD goes barefoot a lot of the time. I put water shoes on her when we're at the lake or in a rocky stream. She's done it barefoot and it doesn't seem to bother her to walk on the rocks, but I don't want her to cut her foot on something.

[earthmama369]

We don't use them for pools or splash pads, but I have used them for the shoreline. Like a PP, we're on the New England coast, and I can think of several times when small friends of ours (and big friends) have had to make unexpected trips to the ER for deep gashes on their feet because of sharp shells or rocks in the water that they couldn't see.

[cschick]

Originally Posted by redvlagrl

All the kids at DD's daycare seem to have "water shoes". I don't really see the point of them. Is it to stop them stubbing their toes? I prefer that she is barefoot so she can feel the ground. I feel that she may stub her toe (not life threatening) but in shoes she could have a nasty trip. I can understand their use for swimming in rivers (unseen rocks etc) but for in paddling pools and splash pads?

Please enlighten me! Thanks

Athlete's foot passes easily from person-to-person in wet environments. Places like splash pads/communal showers/paddling pools are pretty favorable for it because there are areas that are commonly wet but not submerged. As kids we were always told to wear flip-flops around pools and in pool locker rooms/showers, and on splash pads to hopefully avoid it passing around. Now there are water shoes.