2-Year-old with Smelly Shoes - What to Do?

My sister's kids have really stinky feet, always have. She says it really helps to put a dryer sheet in their shoes - you can cut them in half and do a pair with a single sheet. I can't stress enough that her kids' feet could clear a room! lol.

Good luck!
D.

The weird thing is, I've found that as soon as anyone in my family gets the inside of their shoes wet, they start to stink. So, I have puddle/rain sandals and non-puddle/rain sandals for everyone. But you can reduce/eliminate the smell with Dr Scholls foot odor eater spray. It is called something like that, but you can spray the shoes before and after use to reduce the smell. Then I recommend scrubbing them once a week.

Also,never tried it, but I know people who do, you can put a quick swipe of deodorant on the feet to help eliminate smell too.

i had the adult version of these shoes and although they are waterproof they smell HORRIBLE after they get wet! I know this has happened to everyone so i dont think its your child. If they have stinky feeet otherwise it could be because they release toxins through the feet and he has too many (does he eat healthy food?) seriously its the shoes. Baking soda bath time for the KEENS!

Tevas have this tendency to smell bad, too. I think it has something to do with bacteria in the rubber material. Anyway, we wash the Tevas a lot in the washing machine and make sure they have plenty of time to air out. A friend recommended dipping them in vinegar and setting them in the sun. I haven't tried this, yet, but it makes sense.

I hear that cyclists and runners sometimes use alcohol on their feet (and armpits, if you can believe it) to sanitize, but I don't know what the long-term effects would be.

My son wears Keens, too, and we have the same problem. It's bad, especially when he kicks his shoes off in the car and the a/c is on so the windows are closed! I thought it was just my son since his feet do sweat pretty easily, but based on another reply, I guess it's the bacteria in the rubber. I'm going to throw the sandals in the laundry, but it's his only good pair of sandals, so I'll do it over the weekend when he can wear crocs or go barefoot while they dry.

I'm a pediatric therapist and your question made me chuckle. I see quite a few little ones who have stinky sandals that could knock me over! I don't have any advice as to a remedy but just wanted to let you know you're not alone!!!

Hi E.,

We have found that we need to purchase two pairs that our son can alternate wearing ie. wears one pair one day and the other pair the next and so on. This allows time for the shoes to air out. We also have put baby powder in his shoes over night to help with the odor.

Blessings,
L.

If sandals are machine washable, add baking soda to laundry machine. If they are real bad, you can presoak in baking soda diluted in water before washing. Dry outdoors in the sun if possible. That always leaves a fresh scent that can't be matched.

Hi so your son has stinky sandals? Try sprinkle some baking soda on them and see what happens.

I know this sounds weird, but I've seen many recommendations on it. Put the shoes in a freezer bag and freeze them overnight. Any odor-causing microbes will be killed.

Your son must be loving all the raein we've had-more puddles. I don't know what Keen's are but my daughter had a major foot odor problem a few months ago. I could not stand to be in the same room with her and her shoes were awful! Horrible thing to say but so true. I had posted for help and got a ton of stuff. We had her wash her feet a lot more often and bought her 2 more pairs of shoes so she didn't wear the same ones everyday. I also had her spray her shoes with Tea Tree oil. I had oil from drugstore.com that did not cost a ton of money and I put it in a travel spray bottle. I don't know if that did the trick but not any where near as bad now. Also, the post about vinegar may work. I use it in my laundry for towels and when I wash her shoes.

I had the same "problem" last year with my little guy. Basically, when your son's feet sweat, the soles of the Keen sandals do not absorb the perspiration (they don't absorb anything). Anyway -- the soles start to smell after awhile. You can machine wash them (on gentle) and air dry. It will freshen them -- but it's a process that you'll have to continue to do all summer long.

My daughter had Keens last year (loved them) and now has Tevas (great sale)! Both have a tendency to get really stinky. The freezer suggestion mentioned actually worked for us. Also washing them and air drying outside overnight. Another thing we've tried that works is odor eating powder -shake powder into shoes and leave outside overnight then just shake out before wearing. Inevitably their feet and sandals are going to smell because of all the wear and sweat but these suggestions done a few times a week will help :)

Crocs (the real name brand ones) are what I have found to have no stink - they are made from a special material (antimicrobial I think) to prevent stink and they really work for us!!!

Hi E.,
Not sure what Keen sandals are, but rather than dealing with smelly sandals, try throwing them in the wash with your laundry and when done, just let them air dry. Then try a little Febreeze spray. Worth a try.