Shoe odor is not only an embarrassing and unpleasant condition for a person, but can also be a sign of infection, such as athlete’s foot or toenail fungus infection, which is why proper feet hygiene is very important in order to prevent more serious conditions. If you want to remove shoe odor, there are several practices that you can make use of, including ultraviolet shoe sanitizer products, such as SteriShoe, which can also be extremely useful as part of a treatment for tinea pedis, onychomycosis or people with diabetes who are concerned about developing the mentioned conditions. Below you can find five essential steps that any person can take in order to eliminate shoe odor and maintain a suitable hygiene of their feet.
The very first and obvious step would be washing your feet and that doesn’t just mean rubbing them superficially in the shower. Loosing all the dead skin cells and bacteria that accumulates on your feet daily requires a more thorough process. So you need to use a brush or any abrasive washcloth to exfoliate the whole surface of your feet, as well as an anti-bacterial soap. And you need to pay extra attention to the skin between the toes, as that is the most common place of infection. The next step would be properly drying your feet. Bacteria and fungi need moist environment in order to grow, such as water or sweat, which is why drying your feet completely is very important. Again, be very careful with the areas between the toes.
Another effective way to eliminate shoe odor is to use deodorant. You don’t even need special deodorant, you can just use the same one you apply under your arms, but a different stick for every area is advisable. If you are really concerned about the odor or it is resistant to the deodorant, or you just want to be extra thorough, you can always make use of vinegar and rubbing alcohol to do the trick. You can put little drops of this mixture over your toes and in-between them and then spread it. There will be no side effect for your skin and it will surely help you remove shoe odor, as the vinegar is a powerful disinfectant, just as the alcohol is.
The fourth step would be changing your socks daily. Again, this may be an obvious statement, but bacteria and micro-organisms that result in bad smell have a proper environment in socks, especially in coloured ones. Also, washing your socks needs to be done carefully and you might want to turn them inside out when you put them in the washer, so that the dead skin cells can be completely washed away from the fibers. Furthermore, you should always wear absorbent socks, such as wool or cotton socks, so that they can absorb some of your feet sweat and thus reduce the level of moisture. If your daily schedule allows it, it is recommendable to change your socks even several times a day and, more importantly, never wear shoes without socks if you want to eliminate shoe odor, unless you are wearing open shoes.
The last basic step to remove shoe odor would be washing your shoes regularly, even if you use a shoe sanitizer, such as SteriShoe. You can even use the washing machine if it’s more convenient, just make sure that they are fully dried before you put them on.