Like many people, you can’t bear to keep your shoes at home (or your guests allowing themselves to do so) because of the bacteria they accumulate all day?
In most countries in Asia, Eastern Europe and the Middle East, removing your shoes when entering someone’s home is more than just a question of hygieneit’s a Mark of respect. In France, this comes down to everyone’s habits. If it’s a relief for some to take off their shoes when walking through the door, it’s a hassle for others. But Is it really dangerous for your health not to remove them? “Taking off your shoes when you get home helps you protect against a certain number of footwear problems such as sores on the feet, corns, Morton’s neuromas but also mycoses. People who wear safety shoes all day are particularly prone to this since mushrooms like dark, warm, damp places” immediately responds Dr Cyril Bègue, general practitioner. In other words, letting your feet breathe can only be beneficial.
“This is not a problem unless”
As far as hygiene is concerned, hypochondriacs are reassured, according to our interlocutor we would not risk much keep your shoes on when you get home. “Our feet go everywhere so we bring back visible dirt likely to dirty our interior, and invisible things like micro-organisms and toxins. But we bring them back in such small quantities that it does not pose a problem, unless we are immunocompromised or have young children.” According to him, taking off your shoes when returning home is more common sense rather than a health necessity. An opinion shared by Jack Gilbert, professor at the Faculty of Medicine of the University of California, interviewed by The HuffPost US : “The risk of infecting yourself or someone else at home remains very, very low“.”There is not a single recorded incident of anyone contracting a pathogenic infection from residual dog poop that may have been brought into a home or even transmitted into a home from another person.”
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A study that he carried out showed that the microorganisms present under our shoes were “completely transformed with each new environment they found themselves in.” In other words, by going from the street to the parking lot then onto the lawn, the bacteria attached to our shoes have already changed. On the other hand, if you want to avoid viruses and other germs at home, you should pay attention to your hands: “The best way to avoid bringing too many unwanted microorganisms into your home is to wash your hands because of germs of all kinds abound there !” concludes our interlocutor.
- Forensic analysis of the microbiome of phones and shoes, Microbiome, May 12, 2015