I admit it; I am that crazy lady who asks guest to her home to take their shoes off before coming in. Most of us try to keep our homes free from germs and disease bacteria by cleaning, using air purifiers, and even resorting to germ killing aerosols like Lysol. Yet, we then track some of the most deadly contaminates right back in onto our floors via our shoes without a thought. Honestly, I never thought a great deal about the germs on my shoes until I had a baby. Babies’ worlds are right at floor level so they are directly exposed to germs on the floors they crawl on and then put those little hands into their mouths. Then the toddler stage begins and they eat off the floor and put the toys off the floor into their mouths.
So, what are the common things we track in on our shoes…is it really that bad? Well, Yes. According to one study the most common germs found: “Escherichia coli, known to cause intestinal and urinary tract infections, meningitis and diarrheal disease; Klebsiella pneumonia, a common source for wound and bloodstream infections as well as pneumonia; and Serratia ficaria, a rare cause of infections in the respiratory tract and wounds.” They also found that the bacteria transferred from the shoes onto flooring surfaces “90% to 99% of the time”.
Basically, if you wear your shoes inside there is at least a 90% chance that bacteria will transfer onto your floor, bacteria that can cause anything from upset to stomach to death.
So, you may want to think about becoming that crazy person in your family that asks visitors to take their shoes off before coming into your home too.
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