Stinky Feet and Athletic Shoes

First of all, she's 6, and you're her mom. Don't let not wearing socks be an option. Tell her that with sandals she doesn't wear socks, but when she puts shoes on, they are a must. Make it a rule. Second, I would get rid of the shoes she has and buy new ones. In my experience, you will never get rid of that smell, and even when she puts clean non-stinking feet in them, her feet will stink afterwards just because the shoes are stinky.

hi,
My daughter had the same problem and my Mother-in Law told me about Coral Calcium. It woeked great. Never had the problem again.
You can get it at wal-mart
Hope this helps!

I agree with everything your other moms are telling you but I found a big "hint" for athlete's foot. Buy the cream they sell for a womans yeast infection istead of the stuff over the counter for athletes foot. I bought Momistat 7 and had my boys put it on their feet and got rid of the athlete's foot so much faster and it has stayed gone! My friends husband has had it almost all his life bad and nothing has touched it until using this method. Socks are a must. Get new shoes.

HI M.,
I spray all of our shoes with Lysol and let them dry, If the shoes are dirty they need to be washed either by hand or in the machine first but the Lysol works great!

C.

I know it sounds weird, but I remember watching a show about this (Oprah), and they said to soak your feet in iced tea for a while each day for about a week I think. It actually worked really well! Of course, stinky shoes will probably bring back the stink in the feet... but the girl who tried it wore a lot of flip-flops and still had stinky feet all the time. Here's a link to some of the info on the message board... http://www.oprah.com/community/message/75933

All of these suggestions are good. I only have one more suggestion for you. Odor-Eater shoe inserts come in an athletic shoe variety. They contain a charcoal-infused base and are very effective. My suggestion does not cancel out the others, especially the ones about wearing socks, checking for athlete's foot and washing the shoes. Buy shoes made from natural ingredients because I agree that a prime source of shoe odor that spreads to the sking of the foot is synthetic fabric in the shoe construction. The very worse offender seems to be a foam lining - neither I nor my mother can wear a shoe with a foam lining because of the odor and downright discomfort of the foot.

NO matter what she does. She has to have socks on. That is the only way not to get the stinky feet syndrome. Unfortunately, you will also have to buy new shoes. Once it is in the shoes, it doesn't come out. Let her pick out some really cute socks but tell her she has to wear them in her shoes at all times.

I'm relplying just on the stinky feet part...my little girl had some aweful stinky feet for a while and It didn't matter what we did even if we didn't go anywhere or wear shoes at all for a couple of days her feet were still stinky--I put some antifungal cream on her feet and the stink went away. She was developing athlete's foot which is a yeast infection so stinky--sure enough then the tell-tell sign of the peeling showed up. We used the cream for about 3 days and it was gone. Cleaned her shoes so it wouldn't respread and had her wear different ones for a week. It hasn't come back (yet) and if it does I will know what to do...that was back in August. She doesn't wear socks a lot because she is only 2.5 but VERY independent--and if she is going to put on her own shoes Okay. If she wears water shoes to the store. Fine. lol. Even with socks you can contract athletes foot--although wearing clean socks and having dry shoes is a good preventative measure. hope that helps.

Hi M.,
We have the same problem at our house. My husband and son use Gold Bond Foot Powder, it comes in a blue little sprinkle thing. It can be found at Wal-Mart in the isle with the feet products that have the pumice stone (I think that's what it is called) and things like that.

Hi M.,
Wash the shoes, even leather tennis shoes, in the wash with detergent and oxyclean powder. If they are leather let them air dry. Use some gold bond powder on her feet and in the shoes if you still have any smell. Don't give her the choice of not wearing socks. The smell is bacteria and can cause worse problems with toenails and skin problems. Socks are a must with enclosed shoes, especially athletic shoes, they aren't an option and you are the parent that has to enforce that. My son tries to wear his without socks and after showing him pictures of what bacterial problems with feet can turn into he now has no problem wearing his socks. They are a must to keep bacteria from growing in the shoe and on the feet.
SarahMM

smelly feet are almost always from bacteria. Treat with with creams (ask doctor as I don't know what a 6 year old could use). then get on her about the socks. Always make sure the shoes are 100% natural fabric or leather. I'd get new shoes and then my sisiter used some sort of ball thing the went inside to dry them out after each use..she was really stinky.

As the mom of 7 kids (ages 22 - 3) - I have had this to deal with alot. The number one thing I have found that causes stinky feet is synthetic materials in shoes. The cute shoes made out of "man - made materials" cause feet to sweat which causes the shoes (and then the feet) to smell & I have tried everything to get rid of the smell. Putting baking soda in the shoes overnight helps; stuffing the shoes with newspaper overnight sometimes helps. Basically, washing the feet, wearing cotton socks - and buying shoes with leather uppers (or canvas) is the only real way I have found to beat this problem.

Baking soda is a good suggestion. Socks are a must. You can also toss the shoes in the washer with some bleach or oxy clean-type solution. Don't put them in the dryer, though. Let them air out. My boys don't like wearing socks either and when they put on their cowboy boots without socks it gets pretty raunchy. The cleaning wipes and baths are not going to help a bit if you don't get the smell out of the shoes, though. She can put her sparkling clean and rose-smelling feet in dirty shoes, and it will ruin the whole cleanliness thing pretty much immediately. Try getting the shoes clean and smell-free first, then work on the socks issue.

Not wearing socks is the problem. It won't be fixed until she starts wearing socks to absorb the moisture. Getting her feet damp without socks on too with the heat or whatever sweat can cause issues with her skin on her feet too. I just know if my kids don't wear socks or get their shoes wet it is a guarantee they will have stinky feet.
I talked with the Dermotologist too as my daughter had a itchy bumpy rash on her feet, he said it was from moisture of not wearings socks!
If the shoes are not 100% leather uppers all you can do is baking soda and lysol, that is what worked for us.
As far as her feet, explain how bad it is for her feet and her skin NOT to wear socks!! Now it is winter time hopefully you can use the weather in your stance on that too.
If you want it to stop, have her wear socks!

well, I don't have any advice on the feet, but maybe try baking soda in the shoes overnight and dump them in the morning? Baking soda is supposed to nutralize odor, so it might work. Good luck!

If she doesn't wear socks her feet are gonna stink.
Maybe you could take her shopping and let her pick out some cute socks. Then, make sure that she always wears em.

A friend of mine sprays the insides of the shoes with Lysol and lets them dry. I have never tried it, but she says it works very well.

socks are wonderful. also baking soda helps with shoes at least

My Husband has horribly stinky feet and the only thing that i have found to help is putting Gold Bond Powder in his shoes and on his feet. Sometimes I have him even put it in his socks when he puts them on as well. His feet get so sweaty and stinky sometimes it turns his socks yellow. Good Luck!

We went to preventing it by rotating 2-3 pairs of shoes depending on the season, and always wearing socks. If it's the look of socks she doesn't like, get her the really low ones. They should at least improve. If not, make sure the shoes are drying out thoroughly between wearings. It takes 2 to 3 days for our son's shoes to dry.

Put soda in her shoes and let them sit a day or so. It'll take the smell right out. As for her feet, if she keeps wearing her shoes without socks they will continue to stink.

for the shoes, try SoluMel from Melaleuca (available through independent distributors). spray them liberally with the dilute to get rid of the odor. it works on other odors, too. she can also soak her feet in a basin of the dilute (it is very safe on skin and doesn't contain any harsh chemicals). good luck!

G.