"Öko-Test": devastating test verdict for crawling shoes

It's better for babies to crawl barefoot - that's what "Öko-Test" advises all parents after a recent test saw 13 out of 14 crawling shoes rated "inadequate". Four of them should not have been sold at all because their ingredients exceed legal limits.

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"Öko-Test" examined crawling shoes made of leather, synthetics and textiles. The pollutant content was analyzed in the laboratory. Points were deducted for substances such as chrome VI, dye components suspected of being carcinogenic, toxic dibutyltin, polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons and plasticizers, which are prohibited by law for products that babies can put in their mouths.

Stressed crawling shoes withdrawn from the market

Six out of ten leather shoes contained alarming amounts of chromium IV. Synthetic and textile crawling shoes are not a better alternative either, because the testers also found a mix of various pollutants in them. Consumer advocates classified four models that were particularly badly affected as unmarketable, including one each from Sterntaler and Playshoes.

Limit values ​​were not exceeded with their products, but according to "Öko-Test", the clothing chains H&M and Kik also reacted to the poor test result and removed the shoes rated "insufficient" from sale.

The ingredients for "Öko-Test" were only acceptable for a single pair of crawling shoes, which comes from the range of the drugstore chain dm. On the other hand, these shoes have another serious disadvantage: they rub off heavily.

Babies don't need shoes yet

Parents can save themselves the worries about strained crawling shoes and the money for them. As long as a baby or toddler is not yet walking, it does not need shoes. Pediatricians and orthopedic surgeons recommend letting them crawl and pat around barefoot as much as possible so that their little feet can develop vigorously and their motor skills are trained. Non-slip socks are sufficient on slippery or cold surfaces.

The detailed result of the crawling shoe test was published in the October issue of the magazine "Öko-Test".

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