Selena Gomez Would Think Twice About Kissing Benny Blanco's Dirty Feet If She Knew These Health Facts

By Amanda Ray Byerly
Benny Blanco and Selena Gomez attending a basketball game between the Los Angeles Lakers and the New Orleans Pelicans at Crypto.com Arena Allen Berezovsky/Getty Images

Selena Gomez gave everyone the major ick when she tenderly kissed her husband Benny Blanco's feet during an appearance on his "Friends Keep Secrets" podcast. Then, later in the episode, the celebrity seemingly doubled down, declaring that her relationship with Blanco was "probably so healthy and one of the greatest things of life." Emotionally? Maybe. Physically? Eh, perhaps not so much. 

Unfortunately for Gomez, merely one week prior to foot-kissing-gate, Blanco faced major scrutiny after he was filmed rocking some extremely dirty feet while recording his aforementioned podcast. Eventually, the chatter around his feet got so foul that he had to take a moment to publicly defend himself and his dirty dogs during an appearance on "Jimmy Kimmel Live!" on February 26. "First of all, it's the facility's fault. It's not mine," he protested. "I have great feet. Someone zoom in on my foot," he demanded as he held up his right foot for the audience and viewers at home to inspect. "Look at that clean foot! Are you kidding me?"

Alas, according to a 2019 study in the International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, after swabbing the soles of 40 participants, researchers found that even among those who washed their feet twice per day, they still had "around 8,800 bacteria living in each square centimetre of skin." In contrast, those that only cleansed their feet every other day "had over one million bacteria per square centimetre." Woof. The fact that Blanco's feet were recently documented looking like he hadn't washed them in many, many days doesn't exactly bode well for Gomez and her presumed affections for her hubby's tootsies. Suffice to say, Gomez probably wouldn't be so eager to kiss them if she knew all that.

Feet are 'breeding grounds for microbes'

A close-up of a hand scratching itchy, bare feet Pormezz/Shutterstock

According to Holly Wilkinson, a lecturer in wound healing at the University of Hull in the U.K., feet are "breeding grounds for microbes." (Sorry, Selena Gomez.) "The foot — especially between the toes — is quite a moist, humid, and warm environment," Wilkinson told the BBC in March 2025. 

Unfortunately, per Wilkinson, feet are usually the one body part people are most likely to miss in the shower. "A lot of people think that if you have a shower and you kind of just let the water trickle, that that's washing feet, but it isn't — you need to actually physically wash your feet with soapy water," Wilkinson advised. Additionally, during an interview with The Healthy, Dr. Rosmy Barrios, M.D. warned about what really happens when you don't wash your feet, citing foul odor, fungal and bacterial infections, and even dry skin as byproducts of less-than-stellar feet hygiene habits. "It is important to thoroughly wash your feet with soap and warm water, paying special attention to the areas between the toes and the soles of the feet. If you do not wash your feet regularly, you may experience a range of negative effects," Dr. Barrios cautioned. 

As for those kissing said unwashed feet (like, say, a famous singer, actor, and businesswoman), they're also not in the clear. According to Kevin D. Huff, D.D.S., athlete's foot, a fungal skin infection, is highly contagious and can spread to the mouth, resulting in an oral yeast infection, also known as oral thrush.

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