Why don’t Americans take shoes off inside the house?

[Anonymous]

If a person does have sweaty smelly feet, do you make them take their shoes off.

Some people are under arm sweaters, some are head sweaters and others sweat through their feet.

Ugh and it reeked. I had to rip carpets out after a house guest transferred their funk to my stair runners. As the funk lingered long after they left. Pee yew!

They were Brits by the way.

Maybe Asian people aren’t foot sweaters.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I am Asian American and grew up without shoes inside the house and assumed this was the norm. My husband is American and is used to a no shoes household, but he’s not as fastidious as I am about it - if he needs to pop back into the house to get something he will leave shoes on. I don’t make a big deal about it.

His parents however, wear shoes inside all the time, unless it’s something like rain boots or snow boots. Otherwise they’ll put on sneakers or dress shoes, go about their business outside, and keep them on when they return. This includes wearing outside shoes in their bedroom and bathroom, not taking them off until bedtime.

I find this very puzzling as they are very neat and hygiene minded people. They live in a beautiful, expensive house, they pay for weekly cleaning and specifically ask the cleaners to mop all the floors, and they are generally pretty paranoid about things like germs. So how come they don’t mind all the gunk that’s on the bottom of their shoes? They live in a very urban part of DC so it’s not like they only go out to drive , and use public transportation, too.

Is this common among Americans ? If it’s relevant they are in their early 60s. Every time they visit and wear shoes inside our house I am so uncomfortable but I don’t want to be rude and repeatedly ask/remind them.

Do you have guest slippers? Maybe that would remind them.

If they do any walking on sidewalks outside, I agree, it’s gross to be trampling around on the house with shoes. Also weird.

[Anonymous]

I have zero judgments about this issue. I don't find it dirty to wear shoes, cleaner to remove, don't care if comfort dictates being barefoot or having supportive shoes. I'll even go outside barefoot on the sidewalk. I would only have concerns if I had carpet inside and in that case, both shoes and barefeet would gross me out. The only thing I feel strongly about is being anti-carpet.

[Anonymous]

You are free to do what you want in your house and they are free to do what they want in theirs. Why do people who are not me like thinks that are not what I like…is that really a question?

Also, are you really feeling superior based on whether or not you wear on your feet? Do you and your family lick the floor? Walk through piles of manure on the way home? If not, it’s OK to wear shoes inside. We are a mixed household - I grew up where we always wore slippers inside, my husband grew up where you were shoes until bed. Now with us and three kids, he still always wears shoes unless he goes to bed, the rest of us sometimes wear shoes, sometimes slippers and sometimes go barefoot. None of us have caught anything except an occasional splinter.

[Anonymous]

I’m super unstressed about this. We usually take our shoes off for cleaning convenience.

Most of you are totally irrational about germs and contagions.

But I don’t have any carpet because I think it can’t really be cleaned properly and I can see how people with carpet would get weird about it.

[Anonymous]

We take our shoes off, but we are from Europe. Americans just don't have the same culture of cleanliness that Europe and Asia does.

[Anonymous]

I'm American of families with roots in the US going back to the 17th century. Shoes off is definitely, unquestionably, becoming more common. We were never shoes off as a kid in the 80s and 90s but now many people I know are shoes off. And in my house we've gravitated to indoor shoes that we put on just for indoors and swap when leaving the house.

But even I admit it's more psychological than real. Our houses weren't dirty as a kid. We didn't get sick more often as a kid. We have dogs.

The obsession with cleanliness has a great deal to do with cities being quite dirty and polluted in other parts of the world as well as typically warmer average temperatures. But most Americans don't live in dirty and polluted environments. Our cities were much dirtier in the past but shoes also kept your feet warm in the colder houses of the past. So it's a luxury that we can forgo shoes these days

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Blue blood easterners in the business and professional classes would think it exceptionally gauche to remove shoes and walk around a house in barefeet or in sweaty socks.

For my grandparents, having a life where you were wearing dress shoes on paved roads was a sign that you had arrived. Back on the farm, you took off your work boots when you came in.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:If you have fallen arches or plantar fasciitis, then you need supportive shoes on. Walking barefoot on hardwoods exasperates the problem.

exacerbates

[Anonymous]

OP - yes we do offer slippers exactly for the reason of comfort and sweaty feet etc., and obviously we don’t insist on shoes off in THEIR house! I don’t judge them - only curious why they don’t take them off - is it a cultural thing, is there a reason, or is it just the norm and no one gives a thought. Had no idea this is a “controversial” topic, lol.

Most of my friends (Americans and not) take off shoes inside. I singled out the in laws because we are close enough to them to be in their house often and see how they live, and they are the only people we know who are adamantly shoes on if that makes sense. Like even in their bedroom which has carpet. And no dogs or pets in their house.

Why are some people offended if you ask about this ….? If someone asked me why do you take shoes off inside I’d happily explain.

Thanks to the PPs who mentioned the WASP/blue blood thing, that’s interesting and it actually fits their profile.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Blue blood easterners in the business and professional classes would think it exceptionally gauche to remove shoes and walk around a house in barefeet or in sweaty socks.

Maybe I’m not blue blood or east coast enough, but I don’t wear shoes inside my own house but not because of hygiene, just comfort. I don’t expect guests to remove their shoes and don’t find it appropriate unless they’re close friends and it’s a less formal gathering. If it’s raining or sloppy outside, I think people do generally take their shoes off if it’s easy. But it’s definitely not a hard and fast rule.

I get Asian cultures that have been doing this for centuries insisting on it. But people not from a culture like this just come off as pretentious and/or irrationally afraid of dirt when they insist that guests remove their shoes.

[Anonymous]

I do, but I grew up in Hawaii

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:We take our shoes off, but we are from Europe. Americans just don't have the same culture of cleanliness that Europe and Asia does.

lol. Europeans are generally quite filthy. Americans are neurotic about cleanliness compared to most European cultures.

[Anonymous]

We never took our shoes off growing up in New England. We were not allowed to walk around in just socks (slippers were ok). My Dad felt strongly that feet needed protection from stubbed toes, things falling, ???. We are a mostly shoes off family but never ask guests to do it, don't worry about a quick return to the house for something etc.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:If you have fallen arches or plantar fasciitis, then you need supportive shoes on. Walking barefoot on hardwoods exasperates the problem.

I have PF and I’m not sure this is universally true. Unsupportive shoes are definitely the worst trigger - but I find walking barefoot to be neutral. Even supportive shoes for long periods can result in a lot of pain but walking around my house with only socks on all day and sometimes I have pain and sometimes I don’t.