Why a foot fetish is such a ‘forbidden fruit’ turn-on, according to its many horny fans

They’re putting their foot down.

Often the butt of the joke, those with a foot fetish have revealed to HuffPost what exactly about feet is oh, so hot.

Some are drawn to the physical appearance of tootsies — painted nails, curved arches, toe rings, certain shoes and socks, or the size and shape, for example — and for others, the allure is in its taboo nature.

According to a 2023 survey conducted by Fun With Feet, a platform where users can buy and sell snaps of feet, more than half of the respondents said the biggest turn-on was how illicit it is perceived.

“The dirtiness and disgust that’s associated with feet in many cultures just makes it all the more appealing,” said one respondent. “It’s like a forbidden fruit that I just want to savor.”

In the same vein, feet are typically hidden by socks, shoes or even some more conservative sandals, only fully uncovered poolside, on the beach or in someone’s house.

“The summertime is the best because everyone is wearing open-toed shoes or sandals,” Jeremy M., who omitted his last name for privacy, told HuffPost.

The 40-year-old first thought he might fancy feet when he caught himself “checking out feet or toes, especially the sexy, bright-painted colored ones,” saying candidly that he prefers “perfectly lined toes where no toes are longer than the other.”

“Some guys like them dirty — for me, I prefer clean feet,” he said, adding that a woman with “well-maintained feet” surely is well-maintained in other positive ways as well.

Sure, some sex snobs might snub foot fetishes, but Jeremy insists that “many men and women actually love it,” at least in his experience.

And he’s not wrong — foot fetishism has become a booming industry.

Last year’s year-in-review from PornHub revealed that Gen Z users searched for X-rated feet content more than other generations, and Fun With Feet reported that “foot fetishes are growing exponentially year after year,” per Vice.

Not to mention, feet pic purveyors profit off the popularity, raking in as much as $45,000 a year on the images alone.

But how people indulge in their feet fantasies varies from person to person.

For Jeremy, some of his previous partners would “sneak their feet under the table at a restaurant and rub them on my crotch when nobody could see it, and I had to act all normal,” he recalled.

”Something about that feeling — it was different than having them just use their hand,” he added.

M.K., who requested to be identified by his initials, told the outlet that he prefers looking at images and videos of feet in the style of anime, with “some actual people mixed in there” on occasion.

“From there, sometimes I look at bare feet, sometimes I like socks, sometimes pantyhose or stockings,” the 32-year-old told HuffPost.

He recalled sexual encounters with more dominant partners who requested that he kneel on the ground and “worship them head to toe.”

“Sucking on their toes and being told what to do — there’s something about that dominance from a pretty woman just making you show her how much you appreciate every inch of her,” he explained.

For those who might scoff at the seemingly unorthodox obsession, M.K. argues that it’s virtually the same as being attracted to “large boobs or a big ass.”

He added: “It’s literally one of the tamest and most common fetishes out there.”