Shoes are sometimes neglected compared to clothes and other materials. However, a recent study says that shoe materials can carry coronavirus.

A new report by the US Centre for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) highlights the fact that shoes can carry coronavirus as well.

Sample swabs off the floor, computer mice, trash cans, etc. from the ICU and the general ward were collected in the study. It was found that half of the shoes worn by medical staff contained the SARS-CoV-2 virus. There was a ‘100 percent positivity’ from the floor of the pharmacy where the study took place. There were no patients there.

Carol Winner told the international news agency, “pragmatically, they [shoes] are on the body part furthest from our face, and we do know that the greatest risk of transmission is person to person, not shoe to person”. However, experts have highlighted that shoe materials can carry viruses and bacteria.

Charles Gerba, a microbiologist, and professor at the University of Arizona indicated in his study published in 2008 that an average shoe sole carries 421,000 bacteria, viruses, and parasites.

Experts suggest that the primary cure is to use separate shoes and slippers for home and outside. Try to keep outside shoes out or disinfect them properly.

Dr. Lisa Cross – a virologist, said in a show that a virus can thrive on materials like rubber soles or shoe surfaces from “three to five days”. She suggested, “just only having one pair of shoes to go in and out”.

It is highly advisable not to take your footwear for granted. Try to disinfect them properly either by wiping them or by washing them.