Americans remain divided on the subject of wearing shoes inside the house. We've all seen this scenario on television: An actor enters the room, throws himself on the couch or bed, kicks up his feet…and he's still wearing his shoes.
Make no mistake. Just like the rest of the world, many of us are thinking the same thing. Oh, gross!
For those who do see it that way, we're correct. Americans realize the dirty costs of tracking all kinds of disgusting stuff into their homes.
The main reason to take off your shoes? Poop.
Most cultures are fully aware that outdoor shoes are unclean, and in many countries, it's considered flat-out rude if you don't remove your footwear. Some hosts won't even allow outdoor footwear inside their homes at all. Except for Hawaii and Alaska, this is a world tradition; the United States has been slow to embrace.
96% of shoes contain fecal matter even if you don't step directly on it. Besides the fact that tracking poop into your home is revolting, it can be a severe health issue for anyone with a compromised immune system, children and the elderly. Shoes make microorganisms reasonably mobile, and you're tracking that all around the house, transfer of bacteria from your shoes to the floor is between 90 - 99%.
If poop isn't enough to get you to unlace your kicks, how about allergies? Footwear carries in a significant number of allergens like pollen, mold, and mildew spores. When allergists have consultations with patients, wearing shoes indoors is deemed a giant no-no.
Still not convinced? How about Ecoli? There are various strains of the bacteria E. coli, and not all will make you sick. But it's easily transferable from person to person, and some strains can make you pretty ill, causing stomach pains, explosive diarrhea, urinary tract infections, respiratory illness, and pneumonia, according to the CDC. Taking your shoes off at the door may be a big help. Consider the fact that a single cell of E. coli bacteria can multiply to over 2,000,000 cells of E. coli bacteria in just seven hours. The fewer infectious organisms you expose yourself or your family to, the healthier they will be.
Spit and mucus, allergens, toxic chemicals, pesticides, herbicides, fecal matter, dirt, mold, urine, and public restroom germs are just a smattering of what you're bringing into your home.
In America, the location has always played into the shoes-on-or-off lifestyle. For those in the northeast and mid-west, snow, ice, and mud make the no-shoes indoor policy a part of life. As such, homes are built with larger foyers or mudrooms to accommodate this culture. In sunny California, where weather is more stable, and real estate space costs a premium (lack of foyers), shoes worn indoors is much more common. If you want to implement what you've read, but going shoeless is not your thing, you always have the option of slippers or wearing indoor-only shoes.
Gator Clean can help your floors get off to a new fresh clean slate. Contact us today to schedule a cleaning.
