Snow and ice causes chaos on Corstorphine road. Photo by
Peter McIntosh.
Wearing socks over shoes helps prevent slips on icy
slopes, an Otago University study has found.
Researchers recruited walkers on two Dunedin hillside
footpaths in 2008 for a randomised controlled trial.
Half of the pedestrians were given socks to put over their
footwear, while those without socks over their shoes were the
control group.
The study found pedestrians with the socks found the slopes
less slippery and had increased confidence.
"Wearing socks over normal footwear was associated with a
statistically significant improvement in traction," the
researchers said in an article published today in the New
Zealand Medical Journal.
The practice of wearing socks over shoes is popular in the
city and advocated by Dunedin City Council as a way to avoid
slips on icy mornings, but has never been scientifically
proven.
