Should Little Girls Wear High Heels?

Jan. 27, 2010— -- A growing trend in children's fashion is raising eyebrows -- and ire -- in communities all across America.

Little girls, some as young as 3 years old, are wearing shoes with heels, and not to play dress-up.

Suri Cruise, the daughter of the Hollywood mega-couple Tom Cruise and Katie Holmes, has been photographed several times wearing shoes with little heels -- or kitten heels. Heels are also a must-have on "Toddlers and Tiaras," the TLC reality series about child beauty pageant contestants.

The heels aren't just for the famous. "Good Morning America" checked online and found hundreds of heels that were up to 2 inches high. They were being offered for girls as young as 3 months old.

Heels for girls have become very popular, and come in a variety of styles, Amanda Kingloff, the lifestyle director of Parents magazine, told "GMA."

"People say they're only for special occasions, for church, for weddings, but little girls are so into it," Kingloff said. "They want to show it off, they want to be as sophisticated as their moms."

But some question the trend, worrying that placing little girls in heels may jeopardize their physical development or place them in physical risk.

Kingloff said it's hard for little girls to keep their balance when they are wearing heels.

"It's just not practical, it's not safe," she said.

The trend does pose potential health risks.

"We're dealing with a foot that's in development, which means the muscles, the tendons and the ligaments are certainly not as strong at that age as they are at age 18," said Dr. Rock Positano, a foot disorder specialist at the Hospital for Special Surgery in New York.

There's also criticism that the fashion statement may send the wrong message, that it may sexualizing little girls.

Keep grown-up clothes in the dress-up pile

Just say no

"GMA" parenting contributor Ann Pleshette-Murphy says high-heels should be part of playing dress-up or special occasions for little girls, not part of their everyday wardrobe.

If it's dress up, that's great," she said on "GMA" today. They should be relegated to the dress-up pile... You're not a grown up, you can pretend to be a grown-up."

And although parents can try to keep their girls from wearing heels during physical activity, Pleshette-Murphy points out, "When are your girls not physical? They run around all the time."

Pleshette-Murphy is primarily concerned with the psychological message high heels send to little girls, saying they can "push a child to grow up faster than she's really ready to."

"I think it is a sexualizing thing," she said. "It really is not ok."

At the end of the day, it's up to parents to make the decisions about their children's wardrobes.

"When they're clamoring for it, just say no," she said. "Stick by it if you feel this is important."

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