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Here’s Why You Should Take Off Your Shoes the Minute You Enter the House

From avoiding toxins and bacteria to dirt and noise, there is everything to love about making your home a no-shoe zone.

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Toxins

While chemically engineered plant food might be beneficial to your garden, there could be unintended consequences to your health if you wear your outdoor shoes inside. A study in Environmental Science & Technology found that itโ€™s rather easy for residue tracked in on your shoes to settle into the nooks and crannies of your carpet. Herbicide 2,4-D can last up to a week after application, and, according to the National Pesticide Information Center, exposure can cause minor skin rashes and even gastrointestinal upsets. Think of that the next time you lie down and crash on your floor after a long day. On a related note, here’s why you should never sit on your bed with outside clothes.

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Bacteria

Research from the University of Houston found that 40 percent of shoes are contaminated with the diarrhea-causing bacteriaย Clostridium difficile, and 70 percent of sterilized boots pick upย E. coliย after walking outdoors.ย Wear your outdoors shoes in the house and youโ€™re likely to spread bacteria in your home. Other researchย has shownย that more than 90 percent of the time, bacteria on shoes transfer to the tile floors of a home. Carpets fare even worse.

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Filth

Beyond just those particles invisible to the naked eye, there’s dust and dirt to consider. Who wants built up residue from your shoes making a mess of your floors and carpet. To enjoy a clean and tidy home, invest in a good welcome matโ€”and use it. Here’sย how to clean every type of shoe in your closet.

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Respect

โ€œThe act of removing shoes is not only for sanitary reasons; it’s also a sign of respect,” says interior designer Jenny Nakao Hones, co-author of Feng Shui: Truths, Myths & Misconceptions. “You are respecting the hosts, the environment or structure, and others that use the place,” she adds. “Removing shoes is also an equalizer, in that you are all the ‘same’ in your ‘bare’ feet.โ€ And: โ€œAlthough taking off your shoes at the door is a simple physical act, it mentally prepares you to make the transition of leaving the outside energy at the door and reminding you that you’re entering a different space.โ€ This is why Marie Kondo always wears white.

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Damaged floors

Abrasive soles of shoes can cause floors to become scratched and dinged. Limit the constant need to vacuum and shampoo carpetsโ€”and keep deep cleaning to a minimumโ€”by changing into house slippers at the door. โ€œItโ€™s easier to maintain your floors, and they last longer with less wear and tear,โ€ says Hones. Check out these other reasons why you should ban shoes in the house.

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Noise

This will be a familiar one to anyone who lives in an apartment with an upstairs neighbor: Shoes are loud. Shuffling around the house just feels more relaxingโ€”and sounds more relaxingโ€”muffled by the softness of socks or slippers as opposed to rough, hard-soled shoes or boots. Here are 23 annoying noises you hear in your houseโ€”and easy tricks to eliminate them forever.

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Healthy feet

โ€œWithout the confinement of shoes, your feet can breathe and have free range of movement,โ€ says Hones. โ€œYou can feel the earth, and thus feel grounded. Using your feet and feeling the floor allows you to improve muscle strength and flexibility. You also stimulate pressure points on the soles of your feet. In traditional Chinese medicine, these pressure points are connected to our organs, which means youโ€™re helping your organs function.โ€ And, please, keep your tootsies happy by fixing these shoe mistakes that make your feet hurt.

Reader's Digest
Originally Published in Reader's Digest