City Footcare NYC

Podiatric Medicine & Surgery

We treat all problems of the foot and ankle.

Foot Odor

Definition:

Foot odor is simply an abnormal smell of the foot.

Foot Odor (bromhidrosis) can be embarrassing and uncomfortable. Fortunately, there are a number of things that can be done to help.

Cause:

Feet can smell as a result of sweat and its trapped inside footwear, and broken down by bacteria.

It is the interaction of sweat with bacteria that cause the smell. Feet have more sweat glands than any other part of the body. They can sweat profusely which can not evaporate (like it can on the hands) due to being enclosed in footwear. The bacteria produce isovaleric acid which is what causes the odor.

A number of conditions can increase the chance for smelly feet, such as a excessively sweaty foot (hyperhidrosis), stress, some drugs and hormonal changes.