As they are one of the parts of our body most prone to the creation of bacteria and fungi, it is not a good idea to wear the same pair of socks more than once without washing them.
It’s quite common to wear the same pair of jeans, a sweater or even a t-shirt more than once before washing. But what about your socks?
If you knew what really lives inside your socks after just one day of use, you might think twice before wearing them.
Our feet house a microscopic rainforest of bacteria and fungi – generally containing up to 1000 different species of bacteria and fungi. The foot also has a more diverse range of fungi living on it than any other region of the human body.
The skin of the foot also contains one of the largest quantities of sweat glands in the human body.
Most bacteria and fungi present on the feet prefer live in the hot and humid areas between the toeswhere they feed on nutrients from sweat and dead skin cells. The waste produced by these microbes is the reason why feet, socks and shoes can smell bad.
For example, the bacteria Staphylococcus of man produces alcohol from the sweat it consumes, which causes a odor similar to rotten onion. A Staphylococcus epidermidison the other hand, produces a compound that smells like cheese. THE Corynebacteriumanother bacteria from the foot microbiome, creates an acid described as having a goat-like smell.
The more our feet sweat, the more nutrients are available for foot bacteria to feed on and the stronger the odor will be. How socks trap sweatthis creates an even more favorable environment for odor-producing bacteria. And these bacteria can survive in the tissue for months. For example, bacteria can survive on cotton for up to 90 days. Therefore, if you reuse unwashed socks, you are only allowing more bacteria to grow and proliferate.
The types of microbes present in your socks don’t just include those that normally inhabit the foot microbiome. They also include microbes from the surrounding environment – like the floor of your home, the gym or even the ground outside.
In a study that analyzed the microbial content of clothing worn only once, socks showed the highest microbial count compared to other types of clothing. The socks contained between 8 and 9 million bacteria per sample, while the t-shirts only contained around 83,000 bacteria per sample.
Analysis of the species profile on socks shows that they harbor both harmless skin bacteria and potential pathogenslike Aspergillus, Candida e Cryptococcuswhich can cause respiratory and intestinal infections.
The microbes that live on your socks can also be transferred to any surface they come into contact with – including your shoes, bed, sofa or floor. This means that the dirty socks can spread the fungus which causes athlete’s foot, a contagious infection that affects the skin on and around the toes.
This is why it is essential that people with athlete’s foot do not share socks or shoes with other people and avoid walking with just socks or bare feet in gym changing rooms or bathrooms.
What lives in your socks also colonizes your shoes. Therefore, it may be best not to wear the same pair of shoes for too many days in a row, so that sweat has time to dry completely between wears and to prevent the growth of bacteria and odors.
Foot hygiene
To reduce bad foot odor and the amount of bacteria that proliferate on feet and socks, it is recommended to avoid wearing socks or shoes that make your feet sweaty.
Wash your feet twice a day can help reduce odor by inhibiting bacterial growth. Foot antiperspirants can also help as they trap sweat, thus inhibiting bacterial growth.
It is also possible to buy socks with direct antimicrobial action against the bacteria present on the feet. Antimicrobial socks, which contain heavy metals like silver or zinc, can kill bacteria that cause bad smell. Bamboo socks allow for greater air circulation, which means sweat evaporates more easily, making the environment less conducive to odor-causing bacteria.
Antimicrobial socks may therefore be exempt from the single-use rule, depending on their ability to kill bacteria and fungi and prevent sweat build-up.
But for those who wear cotton, wool or synthetic fiber socks, the ideal is use them only once to avoid bad foot odor and infections.
It is also important to wash socks properly between uses. If your feet do not have an unusual odor, simply wash them in warm water, between 30 and 40°C, with a mild detergent.
However, this method does not eliminate all bacteria and fungi. To completely sanitize socks, use a detergent with enzymes and wash them at 60°C. The enzymes help to detach microorganisms from the socks, while the high temperature eliminates them.
If low temperature washing is unavoidable, iron socks Using a hot steam iron (which can reach temperatures of up to 180–220°C) is more than enough to eliminate any residual bacteria and inactivate the spores of any fungus – including the one that causes athlete’s foot.
Drying socks outdoors is also a good idea, as UV radiation from sunlight is antimicrobial to most bacteria and fungi present in socks.
Although socks are frequently reused items of clothing, it is best to change them daily to keep your feet fresh and clean.
