# Feets! "Be Clean" **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [October 7, 2025, 6:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/feets-be-clean/1023751 "2025-10-07T18:45:35Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Jasmine](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jasmine/32/2964_2.png) [@Jasmine](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jasmine)\ **Post date:** [October 8, 2025, 12:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/feets-be-clean/1023751/21 "2025-10-08T12:31:35Z")
> [@pkbites](#): > > In an incessant pool of your own filth? Icky, icky, wooky, pooh! LOL I knew a kid whose mother wanted to save on hot water, so she would take her bath first, and he would have to take his bath in the same water after she was done. I guess that would qualify as being in “an incessant pool of someone else’s filth”. 😳 ---
**Author:** ![Ellecram](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ellecram/32/18948_2.png) [@Ellecram](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ellecram)\ **Post date:** [October 8, 2025, 1:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/feets-be-clean/1023751/22 "2025-10-08T13:30:35Z")
> [@Jasmine](#): > > > [@pkbites](#): > > > > In an incessant pool of your own filth? > > Icky, icky, wooky, pooh! LOL > > I knew a kid whose mother wanted to save on hot water, so she would take her bath first, and he would have to take his bath in the same water after she was done. I guess that would qualify as being in “an incessant pool of someone else’s filth”. 😳 That’s gross! I only take showers. Too old to get in and out of a tub these days. ---
**Author:** ![Loach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/loach/32/350_2.png) [@Loach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Loach)\ **Post date:** [October 8, 2025, 3:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/feets-be-clean/1023751/23 "2025-10-08T15:02:13Z")
Guess I’m lucky. No sweaty feet. No dead skin. No stink. Maybe I should be a foot model. ---
**Author:** ![TRC4941](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/trc4941/32/6792_2.png) [@TRC4941](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TRC4941)\ **Post date:** [October 8, 2025, 3:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/feets-be-clean/1023751/24 "2025-10-08T15:10:21Z")
I don’t have sweaty, stinky feet. I’ve never had smelly shoes. I let my feet soak in the soapy water that runs onto the shower mat and then kind of rub them around in it. I rarely pick up a foot and scrub it. How about our backs? I only wash what I can reach. I hate back brushes because they always get mildewy. ---
**Author:** ![bump](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/7c8e57/32.png) [@bump](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bump)\ **Post date:** [October 8, 2025, 3:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/feets-be-clean/1023751/25 "2025-10-08T15:24:18Z")
Yep, me too. I basically wash the feet by scrubbing with a soapy washcloth, and then proceed to wash the toes much the same as I wash my hands by using my fingers to get between and behind them to rub the soap around, then rinse thoroughly. There’s a certain amount of setting the example here; my early teen/tween sons have rank feet, and I feel like for all my harping on them, I can’t actually have smelly feet myself. Not that I do anyway, since I wash them daily, but for the past couple of years, I’ve been extra diligent because I’m trying to prove a point. ---
**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:** [October 9, 2025, 1:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/feets-be-clean/1023751/26 "2025-10-09T01:37:21Z")
How is your toenails? Seems like that would be important to a foot model. ---
**Author:** ![Mama\_Zappa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/71e660/32.png) [@Mama\_Zappa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mama_Zappa)\ **Post date:** [October 9, 2025, 1:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/feets-be-clean/1023751/27 "2025-10-09T01:51:39Z")
I don’t scrub the tootsies unless I’ve been doing something to get them filthy. I’d likely fall over and crack my skull open if I tried. If they’re nasty enough I might sit on the edge of the tub and wash them that way. ---
**Author:** ![Lancia](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lancia/32/17174_2.png) [@Lancia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lancia)\ **Post date:** [October 9, 2025, 2:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/feets-be-clean/1023751/28 "2025-10-09T02:29:30Z")
I shower daily, regardless of my plans, schedule, or itinerary. I wash everything. I mean, isn’t that the point of a shower? I use Dr. Bronner’s full-strengrh liquid for my hair and beard, and yes I scrub behind my ears. I have one of those plastic loofah thingies that I use to scrub everything but my back; for that I use a dedicated back brush. I use the loofah on my feet, paying attention to the nail folds and cuticles and of course the area between each toe. Whatever I don’t scrub with the Dr. Bronners I scrub with Ivory body wash. ---
**Author:** ![Sylvanz](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/fbc32d/32.png) [@Sylvanz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sylvanz)\ **Post date:** [October 9, 2025, 2:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/feets-be-clean/1023751/29 "2025-10-09T02:55:10Z")
Ha! My 13 year old grandaughter has _ **the** _ rankest feet I’ve ever had the misfortune of being in the same room with. I tried to get her to use handsanitizer on them. She wouldn’t because apparently that was, “weird.” We tried Wipes, washing them, and I finally bought foot deodorant that was ummm adequate. Daughter and sil _finally_ got their own place. Poof problem solved. ---
**Author:** ![phs3](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/8491ac/32.png) [@phs3](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/phs3)\ **Post date:** [October 9, 2025, 3:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/feets-be-clean/1023751/30 "2025-10-09T03:57:58Z")
> [@Jasmine](#): > > I knew a kid whose mother wanted to save on hot water, so she would take her bath first, and he would have to take his bath in the same water after she was done. I guess that would qualify as being in “an incessant pool of someone else’s filth”. 😳 I’ve read that back in Ye Olden Dayze in the Wild West, when people would pay for their weekly bath, they could pay extra to be first in the tub. OTOH I’ve also read that showering every day is considered (by some, including some with medical degrees) to be a bad idea in terms of one’s skin and hair health. More of “Life is too damned complicated!” ---
**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:** [October 9, 2025, 4:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/feets-be-clean/1023751/31 "2025-10-09T04:35:23Z")
We are so spoiled. There was a time when a good dip in a pond occasionally was all a person had. Standing out in rain was sorta iffy if it was lightning out. I prefer now, where I have better choices. ---
**Author:** ![PatrickLondon](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/patricklondon/32/4422_2.png) [@PatrickLondon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PatrickLondon)\ **Post date:** [October 9, 2025, 6:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/feets-be-clean/1023751/32 "2025-10-09T06:43:22Z")
[![](https://img.youtube.com/vi/J5mryd5b2Ew/maxresdefault.jpg "How Beautiful Are The Feet Of Them") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J5mryd5b2Ew) ---
**Author:** ![DPRK](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/4491bb/32.png) [@DPRK](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DPRK)\ **Post date:** [October 9, 2025, 8:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/feets-be-clean/1023751/33 "2025-10-09T08:22:35Z")
> [@Jasmine](#): > > > [@pkbites](#): > > > > In an incessant pool of your own filth? > > Icky, icky, wooky, pooh! LOL > > I knew a kid whose mother wanted to save on hot water, so she would take her bath first, and he would have to take his bath in the same water after she was done. I guess that would qualify as being in “an incessant pool of someone else’s filth”. 😳 > [@phs3](#): > > I’ve read that back in Ye Olden Dayze in the Wild West, when people would pay for their weekly bath, they could pay extra to be first in the tub. For real, people, you are supposed to shower, soap up, and thoroughly clean and rinse yourself _before_ getting in the bath. ---
**Author:** ![pkbites](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pkbites/32/204_2.png) [@pkbites](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pkbites)\ **Post date:** [October 9, 2025, 8:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/feets-be-clean/1023751/34 "2025-10-09T08:29:37Z")
> [@DPRK](#): > > For real, people, you are supposed to shower, soap up, and thoroughly clean and rinse yourself _before_ getting in the bath. That’s what I do but only if I am going to shave. I shower then fill up the tub and sit in it and shave using my anti-fog mirror. The steam from the shower makes my whiskers nice and soft and gets an ultra close shave. ---
**Author:** ![Moonrise](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/moonrise/32/14764_2.png) [@Moonrise](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Moonrise)\ **Post date:** [October 9, 2025, 8:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/feets-be-clean/1023751/35 "2025-10-09T08:36:01Z")
I shower daily and by that I mean that all parts of my body get a good scrubbing with soap, feet included of course. If I’m extremely pressed for time, and I have to be out of the shower in under two minutes, I at least thoroughly wash what I like to call the four cardinal points, namely armpits, hands, everything that’s covered by my underwear and feet. That’s the bare (ha !) minimum. ---
**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:** [October 9, 2025, 10:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/feets-be-clean/1023751/36 "2025-10-09T22:26:30Z")
Oh. So pits and privates. Gotcha. 😄 ---
**Author:** ![Dewey\_Finn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dewey_finn/32/4222_2.png) [@Dewey\_Finn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dewey_Finn)\ **Post date:** [October 9, 2025, 10:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/feets-be-clean/1023751/37 "2025-10-09T22:37:57Z")
> [@pkbites](#): > > > [@DPRK](#): > > > > For real, people, you are supposed to shower, soap up, and thoroughly clean and rinse yourself _before_ getting in the bath. > > That’s what I do but only if I am going to shave. > > I shower then fill up the tub and sit in it and shave using my anti-fog mirror. The steam from the shower makes my whiskers nice and soft and gets an ultra close shave. Seems like a hassle to fill the bathtub so that you can sit in it to shave. I just shave in the shower. ---
**Author:** ![pkbites](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pkbites/32/204_2.png) [@pkbites](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pkbites)\ **Post date:** [October 10, 2025, 2:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/feets-be-clean/1023751/38 "2025-10-10T02:22:42Z")
> [@Dewey\_Finn](#): > > Seems like a hassle to fill the bathtub so that you can sit in it to shave. I just shave in the shower. But then you don’t get to have a nice relaxing soak. And it’s much more comfortable to shave while sitting. ---
**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:** [October 10, 2025, 3:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/feets-be-clean/1023751/39 "2025-10-10T03:14:41Z")
I just returned from Japan, where they have really lovely baths, deep and hot. Of course you shower carefully before dipping into that water. Anyway, i sometimes wash my feet when i shower. If my feet are really dirty (I’ve been walking barefoot in the mud) i wash them in the sink by the garage. (One at a time, duh.) Just the soapy water coming off my body is enough to rinse away ordinary sweat. I also wipe the sweat off my feet everything i remove my socks, rubbing the fabric between the toes. Yes, i have sweaty feet. But from time to time i actually scrub my feet. Maybe every other week. ---
**Author:** ![PatrickLondon](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/patricklondon/32/4422_2.png) [@PatrickLondon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PatrickLondon)\ **Post date:** [October 10, 2025, 12:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/feets-be-clean/1023751/40 "2025-10-10T12:52:02Z")
> [@Beckdawrek](#): > > So pits and privates. Gotcha AKA “pits and bits” [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/feets-be-clean/1023751.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/feets-be-clean/1023751.md?page=3)