Dear Prudence,
My boyfriend has a habit of rubbing his index finger between his toes and then smelling his fingers “to make sure they don’t smell.” He will also do this with his balls. I realize it’s relatively normal for people to want to make sure they don’t smell. However, he’ll do it repeatedly, five to 10 times! Then, without washing his hands—because according to him, “If it doesn’t smell, that means it’s clean”—he will then go and touch household items! Granted, it’s usually after he’s showered recently (minutes to several hours), but it still grosses me out. How do I help him realize how gross it is?
—Scratch and Sniff