Simple Steps Stop Stinky Shoes

Excerpt from FC&A's Old-Fashioned Cures and Proven Home Remedies.

Often it's your shoes and not your feet that smell bad. Perspiration and bacteria generate just as muchj odor in your shoes as they do on your feet, so make sure your footwear is well ventilated. Wear open-toed shoes and sandals when you can, and stay away from tight shoes and boots.

You need to air out your shoes for at least 24 h ours after each wearing, so don't use the same pair two days in a row. Alternate athletic shoes so they can dry between workouts. Always wear socks - especially when you exercise - to soak up moisture. If shoe odor won't go away, get rid of the shoes.

You can use baking soda, cornstarch, and essential oils to make an inexpensive, odor-absorbing foot powder. Sprinkle it in your shoes at night, shake them around to spread the powder, and dump it out in the morning. Or make reusable sachets from a handful of powder and the feet of an old pair of pantyhose. Fill, then tie off the ends and put them in your shoes each night. Replace the powder when it loses its pleasant aroma.