# Cleanliness **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [January 2, 2024, 5:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cleanliness/995505 "2024-01-02T17:39:22Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 9
**Author:** ![scudsucker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/scudsucker/32/14101_2.png) [@scudsucker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/scudsucker)\ **Post date:** [January 5, 2024, 5:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cleanliness/995505/161 "2024-01-05T17:30:33Z")
> [@Beckdawrek](#): > > Medical facilities frown on barefeet. Both my childrens births I witnessed I was barefoot, but perhaps they make concessions for the kind-of-hippy water birth scenario? The first child got into serious danger and my wife was whisked upstairs for a cesarean, and I followed, shoeless. In that, I guess I was at risk of needle stick injury in surgery, but seeing as I had being having sex with her, it was unlikely I was going to catch anything I had not already. (The weirdest thing about that is that the lead nurse saw me coming dressed in scrubs and asked if I was the surgeon.) ---
**Author:** ![Beckdawrek](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/beckdawrek/32/3647_2.png) [@Beckdawrek](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Beckdawrek)\ **Post date:** [January 5, 2024, 5:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cleanliness/995505/162 "2024-01-05T17:40:09Z")
Omg. I would never go barefoot in a hospital. There are possibilities I can’t even imagine floating around on those floors. I hope you’re never diabetic. They preach about wearing shoes incessantly. I get in so much trouble about it from my podiatrist. ---
**Author:** ![kayaker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kayaker/32/441_2.png) [@kayaker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kayaker)\ **Post date:** [January 5, 2024, 5:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cleanliness/995505/163 "2024-01-05T17:46:55Z")
> [@Beckdawrek](#): > > I get in so much trouble about it from my podiatrist. A buddy of mine _who is not a diabetic_ recently was hospitalized with an infected toe that ended up needing amputated. I’ve been having nightmares about the situation. I’ve never had an infected toe, don’t even understand how your damn toe could get infected, or why they couldn’t just make the infection go away. Poor dude is still hobbling around with a big boot on his foot a month post op. Meanwhile, my daughter’s father in law is a lifelong diabetic who is also an MD. He has other medical issues and has sort of given up. He goes through six-packs of coke each day. He has lost bits and pieces of both feet over the years. ---
**Author:** ![Eyebrows\_0f\_Doom](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/eyebrows_0f_doom/32/3119_2.png) [@Eyebrows\_0f\_Doom](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Eyebrows_0f_Doom)\ **Post date:** [January 5, 2024, 6:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cleanliness/995505/164 "2024-01-05T18:55:31Z")
Walking barefoot in a hospital is so fucking bizarre. Are hospitals in South Africa that different than the US? I can’t imagine anyone other than a homeless person walking around barefoot. ---
**Author:** ![Moriarty](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/moriarty/32/49_2.png) [@Moriarty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Moriarty)\ **Post date:** [January 5, 2024, 6:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cleanliness/995505/165 "2024-01-05T18:59:35Z")
When it comes to feet, and presuming no open sores, keeping them free from dirt isn’t nearly as important as keeping them _dry_. > **[Trench foot](https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Trench_foot)** > > Trench foot, also known by other names, is a type of foot damage due to moisture. Initial symptoms often include tingling or itching which can progress to numbness. The feet may become red or bluish in color. As the condition worsens the feet can start to swell and smell of decay. Complications may include skin breakdown or infection. > Trench foot occurs due to prolonged exposure of the feet to cold, damp, and often unsanitary conditions. Unlike frostbite, trench foot usually occurs at temperatur... ---
**Author:** ![Beckdawrek](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/beckdawrek/32/3647_2.png) [@Beckdawrek](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Beckdawrek)\ **Post date:** [January 5, 2024, 8:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cleanliness/995505/166 "2024-01-05T20:59:13Z")
Oh my lord. Your poor friend. I assume an ingrown toenail could get so infected that it was considered a loss and chopped off. But, omg. I’ll dream about that now. Does he, or did he smoke cigarettes? There’s a disease that can cause a need to chop off toes. I forget it’s name. But there’s an ad that plays about it. As a diabetic I have a visceral fear of foot loss. I can’t imagine a medical person with diabetes just giving it up like that. It might be a form of passive suicide. (WAG). ETA…and let’s not forget COVID toe. Aaaaacccckkk! ---
**Author:** ![kayaker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kayaker/32/441_2.png) [@kayaker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kayaker)\ **Post date:** [January 5, 2024, 9:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cleanliness/995505/167 "2024-01-05T21:36:49Z")
> [@Beckdawrek](#): > > Does he, or did he smoke cigarettes? He smokes cannabis. > [@Beckdawrek](#): > > I can’t imagine a medical person with diabetes just giving it up like that. It might be a form of passive suicide. (WAG). Excellent guess, likely correct. His diabetes is the least of his problems and I’m surprised he has survived the other health issues. ---
**Author:** ![Mangetout](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mangetout/32/19_2.png) [@Mangetout](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mangetout)\ **Post date:** [January 5, 2024, 10:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cleanliness/995505/168 "2024-01-05T22:07:10Z")
> [@Nyvaak](#): > > Are the benefits more than aesthetic? What would happen if I quit _washing_ dishes entirely? If I simply wiped them with a relatively clean cloth till no visible food or grease was left and then put them away (a plan I am NOT actually considering) would I suffer any increased incidence of food borne illness? Probably not a lot would happen if you are wiping them until completely dry; bacterial pathogens generally require moisture to reproduce. You might have trouble completely wiping away strong flavours like garlic or hot pepper, so there are aesthetic reasons for washing dishes that you would probably notice once in a while. And there are some types of food where you would probably find it quite difficult to wipe all traces away - egg yolk for example, is basically varnish when it dries. ---
**Author:** ![Mangetout](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mangetout/32/19_2.png) [@Mangetout](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mangetout)\ **Post date:** [January 5, 2024, 10:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cleanliness/995505/169 "2024-01-05T22:10:32Z")
> [@kayaker](#): > > I told him he could leave his shoes on if he did one thing. He had to remove one shoe and lick the sole from front to back. He didn’t have to think long before just removing his shoes. I wouldn’t lick the sole of my shoe (or anyone else’s), but I also wouldn’t lick the floor in a no-shoes house (or any house really), so I’m not really sure what the shoe-licking challenge really demonstrates. ---
**Author:** ![Beckdawrek](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/beckdawrek/32/3647_2.png) [@Beckdawrek](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Beckdawrek)\ **Post date:** [January 5, 2024, 10:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cleanliness/995505/170 "2024-01-05T22:22:51Z")
I used to say I’d eat off my floors. Not so much now with the grandkids in and out. I wash my dogs feet if visible filth is apparent when we come in. We have a pan by the garage entrance door just for this. They all know to submit to this indignity. ---
**Author:** ![Mangetout](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mangetout/32/19_2.png) [@Mangetout](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mangetout)\ **Post date:** [January 5, 2024, 10:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cleanliness/995505/171 "2024-01-05T22:52:22Z")
I suspect you’re kidding yourself if you think floors can be particularly clean (I mean, unless you’re pursuing some absurd thrice-daily disinfectant wipedown or something). There are good reasons not to wear outdoor shoes indoors and to wipe dog’s feet when they come in from the garden, but floors are inherently dirty because the air itself is full of dust and germs, and gravity exists (so those things tend to settle on the floor), plus your clean feet, however recently you washed them, aren’t sterile. ---
**Author:** ![Beckdawrek](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/beckdawrek/32/3647_2.png) [@Beckdawrek](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Beckdawrek)\ **Post date:** [January 5, 2024, 10:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cleanliness/995505/172 "2024-01-05T22:58:33Z")
I wasn’t really gonna eat off them. But I went through a couple of years of serious OCD about it. Like I really mopped twice a day. I was obsessed with the right mop and the cleaning solutions. I discovered Swiffer wet jet. Got sicker. Got more people in the house. I’m a bit desensitized to it now. I still worry. Not as bad. Aww, shit. Now I wanna mop the floor. ---
**Author:** ![scudsucker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/scudsucker/32/14101_2.png) [@scudsucker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/scudsucker)\ **Post date:** [January 5, 2024, 11:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cleanliness/995505/173 "2024-01-05T23:58:29Z")
> [@Eyebrows\_0f\_Doom](#): > > Are hospitals in South Africa that different than the US? I imagine that the ones I attended are equal to the US, I have an expensive medical aid, so I go to the best. Well… I have not needed to actually go to hospital since my son was born 6 years ago. The free public hospitals may be different, but remember, Groote Schuur, the largest public hospital near me was the place where the first ever heart transplant was done by Dr. Chris Barnard. So not too shabby. ---
**Author:** ![Beckdawrek](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/beckdawrek/32/3647_2.png) [@Beckdawrek](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Beckdawrek)\ **Post date:** [January 6, 2024, 1:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cleanliness/995505/174 "2024-01-06T01:50:46Z")
And you were barefoot? Why? What is the reason you’d be in public barefoot? I love barefeet. I go barefoot. But to a business or public place seems kinda nekkid, somehow.😳 Unless you’re a lifeguard or swim coach. Dancer(maybe)? I don’t get it. ---
**Author:** ![kayaker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kayaker/32/441_2.png) [@kayaker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kayaker)\ **Post date:** [January 6, 2024, 1:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cleanliness/995505/175 "2024-01-06T01:52:47Z")
> [@Mangetout](#): > > I suspect you’re kidding yourself if you think floors can be particularly clean Each weekend we use this steam-cleaning “mop” sorta thing on all non-carpeted floors. On Wednesdays and Sundays I run an expensive vacuum cleaner over the carpets that collects an insane amount of stuff the birds use for their nests. Twice a year I run a carpet cleaner over all the carpets. I lick things less clean than my floors on a fairly regular basis. But that’s just me. ---
**Author:** ![scudsucker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/scudsucker/32/14101_2.png) [@scudsucker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/scudsucker)\ **Post date:** [January 6, 2024, 1:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cleanliness/995505/176 "2024-01-06T01:55:17Z")
Comfort. I grew up in a farming area. Children only wore shoes to school. It is what I am used to, and it is no dirtier than shoes, as I wash myself pretty often. Possibly less dirty than shoes. And it is much easier to clean a foot than a shoe! ---
**Author:** ![kayaker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kayaker/32/441_2.png) [@kayaker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kayaker)\ **Post date:** [January 6, 2024, 2:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cleanliness/995505/177 "2024-01-06T02:00:16Z")
> [@scudsucker](#): > > the largest public hospital near me was the place where the first ever heart transplant was done by Dr. Chris Barnard. I was on an elevator at Presbyterian University Hospital in Pittsburgh with Thomas Starzl and his wife. He was considering an offered position and she was vehemently opposed to the position. > **Summary** > > He took the position. ---
**Author:** ![Beckdawrek](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/beckdawrek/32/3647_2.png) [@Beckdawrek](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Beckdawrek)\ **Post date:** [January 6, 2024, 6:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cleanliness/995505/178 "2024-01-06T06:10:24Z")
So. Some guy is sueing Dunkin’ Donuts because a toilet exploded on him in their restroom. I wouldn’t bring a lawsuit. 'Cause I would’ve DIED! I’ll have nightmares now. Dirty filthy public toilets, going around exploding and shit…mumble, grumble …🤢 ---
**Author:** ![puzzlegal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/puzzlegal/32/3827_2.png) [@puzzlegal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/puzzlegal)\ **Post date:** [January 6, 2024, 12:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cleanliness/995505/179 "2024-01-06T12:41:16Z")
I’m surprised he’s suing. I would have expected their insurance company to have offered enough money that he went away quietly. ---
**Author:** ![purplehorseshoe](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/purplehorseshoe/32/2996_2.png) [@purplehorseshoe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/purplehorseshoe)\ **Post date:** [January 6, 2024, 1:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cleanliness/995505/180 "2024-01-06T13:14:02Z")
> [@Beckdawrek](#): > > let’s not forget COVID toe What in hell is that? [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cleanliness/995505.md?page=8) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cleanliness/995505.md?page=10)