# Compression socks and copper **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [December 25, 2024, 3:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/compression-socks-and-copper/1012142 "2024-12-25T03:25:50Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 12\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![dtilque](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/d6d6ee/32.png) [@dtilque](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dtilque)\ **Post date:** [December 25, 2024, 3:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/compression-socks-and-copper/1012142/1 "2024-12-25T03:25:50Z")
What’s the deal about copper as an ingredient of compression socks? How does copper make them better? I see lots of claims that various socks have copper, but I’ll be damned if I can figure out how that would work. You’d think the compression would be a matter of how good the spandex or other elastic material is. I never thought of copper as being especially elastic. ---
**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:** [December 25, 2024, 3:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/compression-socks-and-copper/1012142/2 "2024-12-25T03:28:38Z")
The copper myth has been around for awhile. Personal experience, copper infused socks do nothing. The squeeze is the thing. ---
**Author:** ![md-2000](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/9d8465/32.png) [@md-2000](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/md-2000)\ **Post date:** [December 25, 2024, 6:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/compression-socks-and-copper/1012142/3 "2024-12-25T06:19:23Z")
Copper cures your joint pain. Apparently so do pyramids and magical incantations and vitamin something-or-other and assorted other organic concoctions. And raw milk and avoiding vaccines. As Beckdawrek says, it’s a myth that’s been around since ages, and has no scientific basis other than anecdote by those who promote it. (I was much disappointed when I saw the electrical engineer for the company I used to work for was wearing a copper bracelet.) I assume the bracelet market is saturated - or not distinctive - so now they “infuse”(?) copper in assorted garments for the same effect. ---
**Author:** ![mixdenny](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mixdenny/32/2962_2.png) [@mixdenny](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mixdenny)\ **Post date:** [December 26, 2024, 5:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/compression-socks-and-copper/1012142/4 "2024-12-26T05:07:53Z")
Copper does a good job of killing germs very quickly on contact. Copper handrails are so effective that I read where hospitals have been using them in hallways to reduce germ transfer. ---
**Author:** ![Machine\_Elf](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/82dd89/32.png) [@Machine\_Elf](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Machine_Elf)\ **Post date:** [December 26, 2024, 10:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/compression-socks-and-copper/1012142/5 "2024-12-26T10:11:39Z")
> [@mixdenny](#): > > Copper does a good job of killing germs very quickly on contact. True, but that doesn’t confer any utility when it’s used as ingredient in compression socks. ---
**Author:** ![Sigene](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/df788c/32.png) [@Sigene](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sigene)\ **Post date:** [December 26, 2024, 2:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/compression-socks-and-copper/1012142/6 "2024-12-26T14:19:29Z")
You will note that these commercials go out of their way to NOT say anything about the health benefits of copper…they will just say “it has copper” and you are supposed to recall or determine that this is code for mysterious health benefits that they cannot explicitly say. ---
**Author:** ![eschereal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/eschereal/32/18939_2.png) [@eschereal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/eschereal)\ **Post date:** [December 26, 2024, 2:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/compression-socks-and-copper/1012142/7 "2024-12-26T14:35:38Z")
> [@Machine\_Elf](#): > > True, but that doesn’t confer any utility when it’s used as ingredient in compression socks. Perhaps it would make them less stinky? ---
**Author:** ![Mijin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mijin/32/9369_2.png) [@Mijin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mijin)\ **Post date:** [December 26, 2024, 2:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/compression-socks-and-copper/1012142/8 "2024-12-26T14:43:42Z")
> [@md-2000](#): > > I was much disappointed when I saw the electrical engineer for the company I used to work for was wearing a copper bracelet Did (s)he say that it was being worn for believed health benefits? Copper is a somewhat unique color, both in the tarnished and untarnished state, I can see someone wearing it just as a standard accessory. ---
**Author:** ![Czarcasm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/czarcasm/32/4050_2.png) [@Czarcasm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Czarcasm)\ **Post date:** [December 26, 2024, 2:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/compression-socks-and-copper/1012142/9 "2024-12-26T14:53:04Z")
That’s a big thing when it comes to socks, so if it actually did that they would directly say so. ---
**Author:** ![dtilque](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/d6d6ee/32.png) [@dtilque](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dtilque)\ **Post date:** [December 26, 2024, 2:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/compression-socks-and-copper/1012142/10 "2024-12-26T14:57:39Z")
I suspect the copper color on most of the socks is actually just dye. At least the ones I bought from Amazon don’t say they have copper, but part of them are copper-colored to imply they do. ---
**Author:** ![mixdenny](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mixdenny/32/2962_2.png) [@mixdenny](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mixdenny)\ **Post date:** [December 26, 2024, 6:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/compression-socks-and-copper/1012142/11 "2024-12-26T18:54:57Z")
As for the looks of copper, yes it is a thing. My wife sometimes wears a bunch of copper bracelets because they look nice. Tangent - would socks with copper woven in be a bad idea in a lightning storm? Tangent 2.0 - If copper kills germs would a copper wound condom have any benefit? ---
**Author:** ![Czarcasm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/czarcasm/32/4050_2.png) [@Czarcasm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Czarcasm)\ **Post date:** [December 26, 2024, 7:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/compression-socks-and-copper/1012142/12 "2024-12-26T19:38:46Z")
Rimmed for your safety?