People can be either born with flat feet or develop the condition after injury or aging.

Normal babies are usually born with flat feet and do not develop a normal arch until ages 7 to 10 years.

Flat feet predict a variety of illnesses, such as stroke, depression, and lung disease.

Flat feet are usually treated with conservative care, with no surgery required.

In 1913, the term flatfoot was first used to refer to police officers who patrolled the streets on foot rather than in a vehicle. The reason for calling the officers flatfoots is that their arches often fell after years of patrol on foot. More apocryphal accounts suggest that the use of flatfoot to refer to a police officer was rooted in stigma: People denied from entering the military due to flat feet often joined the police instead.

However lighthearted the term flatfoot may seem, flat feet themselves can be problematic. People with severe cases—such as those whose feet overpronate when walking—can experience decreased quality of life and poor health.

Flat feet or pes planus occur when the medial longitudinal arch of the foot contacts or nearly contacts the ground. The arch of the foot serves as an adaptive, flexible base that dissipates weight-bearing force while walking.

Between 20 percent and 37 percent of people have flat feet, according to recent research. Flat feet more often occur in men, children aged 3 to 5 years and 11 to 17 years, Asian individuals, the elderly, people with larger foot sizes, and those with obesity.

People are either born with flat feet or develop the condition due to injury or so forth. Children are usually born with flat feet and do not develop a normal arch until ages 7 to 10 years.

The term flexible flat feet refers to the presence of an arch in a non-weight-bearing position, and it disappears during weight-bearing activities. Much like individuals with flat feet, those with flexible flat feet experience impaired functional movement, decreased core muscle strength, and physical imbalance.

Flat feet are also linked to serious health problems. In a cross-sectional study of a random population of Spanish women (n=835), flat feet were associated with a higher score on the Charlson Comorbidity Index. This index assesses the mortality risk for patients based on 19 conditions, including heart disease, chronic lung disease, stroke, depression, dementia, and liver disease.

Most people with flat feet receive conservative treatment—meaning that they don’t need surgery. Instead, these patients may require special footwear or orthotics, as well as other forms of behavioral change, such as avoiding exercises that require high-impact, repetitive trauma like running, gymnastics, football, or tennis. Other conservative interventions include weight loss and diabetes control.

Some causes of flat feet can be successfully treated with surgery, including pathologies such as posterior tibial tendon tear, gastrocnemius tightness, or Achilles tendon contracture. Potential complications of surgery include infection, malunion of bones, persistent pain, and progressive arthritis.

After surgery, most patients need to use a protective non-wearing brace for six to eight weeks. Older or sicker patients may take longer to recover.

By the way, it’s not true that patients with flat feet are automatically turned away from the military. Those without functional impairment are still eligible for enlistment. So much for those old movies where a character dodges the draft thanks to flat feet.

Ghorbani M, Yaali R, Sadeghi H, Koumantakis GA. The impact of flatfeet on the correlation between functional movement scores, balance, agility, and core muscle strength in young females: a cross-sectional study. Sci Rep. 2025 Feb 11;15(1):5077.

Moore J, Tafti D. Pes Planus. [Updated 2026 Feb 15]. In: StatPearls [Internet]. Treasure Island (FL): StatPearls Publishing; 2026 Jan-.

Pita-Fernandez S, Gonzalez-Martin C, Alonso-Tajes F, Seoane-Pillado T, Pertega-Diaz S, Perez-Garcia S, Seijo-Bestilleiro R, Balboa-Barreiro V. Flat Foot in a Random Population and its Impact on Quality of Life and Functionality. J Clin Diagn Res. 2017 Apr;11(4): LC22-LC27. Epub 2017 Apr 1.

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