Odd Ball Facts

Among my many favorite books you will find "Uncle Johns's Legendary Bathroom Reader". In a world fraught with down-in-the mouth news you can always find something in this tome that will make you smile.

Today's topic was 'Why Your Feet Smell'. He quoted a podiatrist, Dr. William Rossi. Here are some of the interesting facts according to Dr. Rossi:

1) Your feet don't smell, it's the shoes. He claims that societies that go without shoes do not have foot odor.

2) There are more than a 250,000 sweat glands in a pair of feet. (I wonder who did the count???) That is more than the entire human body, including the underarms. Plus, the glands release about one gallon of moisture a week. (Once again, I have to wonder who did the measuring????) Most of this moisture evaporates when you go shoeless.

3) The wearing of shoes creates a buffet for hungry bacteria. The food smörgåsbord includes: salt, vitamins, glucose, fatty acids and lactic acids. After having an orgy and the glutinous bacteria become satiated, something has to be done with the leftovers. They are broken down and excreted...yep, you guessed it...foot odor can be loosely classified as bacterial poop.

4) The cure. Well you could buy odor eaters by the case or foot powder or sprays. One of the best things you can do is change shoes frequently and not wear the same shoes over and over. See, Imelda Marcos was onto something healthy.

So grab your wallet, purse, whatever and head for your nearest shoe department. You can always tell your partner, spouse, or significant other that you are doing it in the name of health.