New research reveals what shoes might track inside your home
PHILADELPHIA (CBS) -- Shoes off inside the house: it's a rule many families have and it's something more might want to consider. This comes on the heels of some new research on what you might be tracking inside.
City sidewalks can be filthy, new research focused on the Upper East Side of New York City and found some pretty disgusting stuff. Experts say the findings are good reminders about what's potentially lurking on the bottom of your shoes no matter where you live.
The Upper East Side of New York City might be one of the fanciest neighborhoods but its sidewalks are disgusting, according to new research.
"The most novel thing about our study is that people are tracking these things indoors," Professor Alessandra Leri said. "On their shoe soles."
Dr. Leri co-authored a recent study about contaminants on Manhattan sidewalks, specifically in any standing water.
"We found astonishing levels of enterococci," Leri said. "Which are a fecal indicator bacterium."
The intestinal microbes detected are mainly from canine waste.
"30,000 bacterial cells per one hundred milliliters of water," Leri said. "The EPA has a benchmark that they use to close beaches and that benchmark is 110 cells per milliliters of water."
Doctors say some of the bacteria found in the study can cause heart disease, and E. coli is linked to a variety of potentially dangerous infections. The research found the germs found on the sidewalk could also be tracked inside with carpeted surfaces collecting the most bacteria.
"The easiest thing you can do to avoid tracking this into your home is to remove your shoes at the doorway and leave them there," Leri said.
Doctors say it's especially important for families with babies and small children who often play on the floor to keep potentially contaminated shoes at the door.
Another study in the Journal of Cleaning Science found harmful bacteria on 96% of shoes.