Free Remedies

If removing your footwear at the end of the day calls to mind the scent of a postgame locker room, you may be suffering from what is scientifically known as bromhidrosis-sweaty, smelly feet.

While neither painful nor contagious, foot odor causes unmitigated social suffering to those who are burdened with it. Under normal conditions, each of your feet produces half a pint of sweat by means of some 20,000 sweat glands. In most people, this perspiration evaporates. In people with bromhidrosis, however, more sweat is produced, and it doesn’t evaporate as easily. The result, odoriferous feet.

If you suffer from this problem, don’t worry. You don’t have to stand for it anymore. Simply follow these suggestions for keeping your feet drier and sweeter smelling.

Wash well. Those sweat glands on the soles of your feet produce perspiration composed of water, sodium chloride, fat, minerals, and various acids that are end products of your body’s metabolism. In the presence of certain bacteria, these sweaty secretions break down, generating a foul smell. Obviously, washing away the bacteria will short­circuit this process. “Washing your feet often with a deodorant soap and drying very carefully can temporarily make your feet smell sweet,” says Joseph C. D’Amico, D.P.M., a podiatrist in private practice in New York.

Wash wisely. How often should you wash your feet? Enough to remove the offending bacteria but not so often that you remove all the protective oils from your skin. For strong foot odor, you may need to bathe your feet several times a day. However, if you notice that your feet are becoming scaly and cracked, cut back on the number of washings.

Soak the sweat out of them. Suzanne M. Levine, D.P.M., a podiatrist in private practice in New York, suggests the following treatment for sweaty feet. First, alternate footbaths of hot and cold water to help decrease blood flow to your feet and reduce perspiration. Next, dip your feet into another footbath containing ice cubes and lemon juice. Finally, rub your feet with alcohol. In hot weather, when your feet tend to perspire more, this form of treatment should be repeated daily. If you have diabetes or any other condition that causes decreased circulation, do not try this treatment at all.

Salt your tootsies. For extra-sweaty feet, try adding half a cup of kosher salt (it has larger crystals than ordinary table salt) to a quart of water and soaking your feet in the solution. After soaking, don’t rinse your feet, just dry them thoroughly.

Treat them like underarms. “The key to controlling foot odor is to use either an antiperspirant or a deodorant right on your feet,” advises Levine. Foot deodorants, like underarm deodorants, contain antibacterial agents that can kill bacteria. They won’t stop the sweat, but they will eliminate the odor that ensues when sweat meets bacteria. Antiperspirants, on the other hand, stop the sweat and the smell at the same time.

Take a powder. Spray or put on foot-deodorant powder. Be sure it contains aluminum chloride hexahydrate, advises Levine.

Sock ‘em away. “Clean feet need clean coverings,” notes Mary Papadopoulos, D.P.M., a podiatrist in private practice in Alexandria, Virginia. Wear socks that let your feet breathe. (Some experts advise cotton or wool, others suggest acrylic, try different fabrics until you find the one that seems to keep your feet driest.) If possible, change your socks at least once during the day, and don’t wear the same pair two days in a row. Contrary to conventional wisdom, white socks are not sterile and do contain dye, so they are not necessarily preferable to colored socks.

Shoe it away. “Stay away from solid-rubber or synthetically lined shoes, because they don’t allow your feet to breathe easily, allowing odor-­producing bacteria to flourish,” says Levine.

Wash your sneakers. Some shoes-such as sneakers and other canvas footwear-should go right in the washing machine, says D’Amico. Let them air dry rather than throwing them in the dryer.

Let your shoes breathe. Try airing out your shoes between wearings, too. If you can, alternate shoes on a daily basis so that you don’t wear the same pair two days in a row. Loosen the laces and pull up the tongue on the pair you’re not wearing, and let them dry out in the sunshine.

Sprinkle your shoes. Sprinkle the inside of your shoes with cornstarch to help absorb moisture and keep your feet drier.

Eat wisely. “Eating certain strong foods, such as onions, garlic, scallions, peppers, and even curry, can cause strong foot odor,” says D’Amico. The odoriferous products pass through the blood­stream and eventually concentrate in the perspiration. While this effect is not restricted to foot perspiration, it certainly won’t help a case of smelly feet.

Keep calm. Stress and anxiety increase production of sweat, giving those nasty little bacteria even more to feed on. “A level of stress so high that it produces foot odor should be dealt with right away, because other parts of the body are probably feeling the toll, as well,” says Levine.

Tagged under:  bromhidrosis, foot odor, General Ailments, smelly feet, soles of your feet sweaty feet

Filed under: General Ailments