Limburger cheese. Skunk. Vinegar. To a lot of people these are considered pretty bad smells, but they all have their fans as well. One smell that probably has no true fans is smell feet. Medically it’s known as bromodosis and it’s primarily caused by having damp, sweaty feet and wearing the same shoes day after day.
If sweaty feet is one of the leading causes of smelly feet we should take a bit to cover why foot sweat causes so many issues. Of all the body parts, the feet get the least amount of fresh air, especially in winter with heavy, water proof shoes. When your feet are sweaty and don’t have any fresh air that moisture has to go somewhere. In this particular case, the moisture goes to the bacteria that live on your skin that break down the sweat and give off that lovely, pungent aroma. If you work in a position that requires a lot of standing on your feet or are particularly stressed out your body tends to react by sweating more.
So now that we know the why of foot smell, let’s figure out how to treat and prevent those odors. One of the keys to preventing foot odor is to keep your feet, socks, and shoes dry. So try to avoid wearing the same pair of shoes everyday and make sure your socks are dry before wearing them again. The use of drying powders in your shoes is also an effective way of cutting down on the amount of moisture in shoes. On cold, damp days make sure to thoroughly wash and dry your feet to wash off as much bacteria and sweat as possible. If you already have an issue with foot odor they make a number of specially formulated anti-bacterial soaps to reduce excessive amounts of bacteria. If odors manage to beat even the toughest of treatments, at some point consider visiting a doctor for some prescription grade treatments.