shoes

Ask An Organic Mom

No Shoes Indoors for the Family! What About the Family Dog?

November 11, 2008 at 10:51AM By Alexandra Zissu | comment

One of my most frequent suggestions on how to reduce indoor air pollution, exposure to chemical residue, and general grime - take off your shoes before entering or just after entering your home - seems like a total no brainer. It's common sense that you shouldn't trudge through the New York City subway (as I do), then track in that truly grim dirt and grime to where your baby is crawling. It used to require some coercing of our friends when they came over back before we all had kids to get them to go shoeless in our home. But now everyone I know with kids takes off their shoes. So much so that our preschool teacher keeps having to remind parents to keep their children's shoes on when they arrive at school. These kids just aren't accustomed to wearing shoes inside.

But there's a population of greenies who hesitate re jumping on the shoe-off bandwagon: dog owners. Why bother taking off their shoes, they ask me, if their dogs are trekking in the same gunk they're supposed to be minimizing?

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tags: shoes, dogs, indoor air pollution, dog paw wipes

Just What Is a Croc Made Of, Anyway? (And How Safe Is It?)

May 19, 2008 at 9:12AM By Lexy Zissu | comment

Warm weather means warm-weather gear. I’m currently fielding questions about and eyeing the least toxic/most natural alternatives for everything from beach toys to charcoal to bug sprays to weatherproof outdoor furniture. One thing I’m currently having some trouble finding the right alternative for is shoes, specifically shoes that can go from sidewalk into playground sprinkler to beach and back to sidewalk. I want them to hold up in water and I don’t want them to degrade when sun/sea/sand particles start to beat them up so that they’ll be leaching whatever material or dyes they’re made of onto (blistered, sometimes scraped) little baby toes.

There’s one big contender in this category and it’s one most parents seem to choose. When the weather heats up, all little feet seem to be sporting Crocs. But what are these colorful cushy things made of? Good question. The company didn’t email me back with an answer when I inquired. Which is never a good sign. Maybe my credentials aren’t fancy enough to write back to? Maybe they’re made from something they’d rather not share?

In the absence of direct response, I resorted to research. Their site says: “Think Crocs are made of rubber? Your friend is adamant they're plastic? You're both wrong. Crocs are made of PCCR, a closed-cell material that virtually eliminates odour. No one will clear a room with smelly feet if they are wearing a pair of Crocs. The material also discourages sweating, making Crocs even more comfortable.” A quick Google reveals nothing, as PCCR is some sort of “proprietary” blend Crocs makes, likely a petroleum-derived foam. ...

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