Try Before You Buy?

Before you head into the dressing room, know how to safely try on items so you’re not bringing home more than you bargained for.

• Undergarments: Your safest bet is to avoid the in–store audition. If you must, try them on over your undies. Wash your hands thoroughly after handling underwear regardless.

• Hats: Sure you like to model that baseball cap before dropping the dough, but how many other fans have taken it for a cranial spin? While lice is usually considered a kids’ disease, adults aren’t immune — those little buggers thrive on human blood and require nothing more than direct contact with your scalp to start their infestation. The good news is they usually die within a day, but if a carrier tries on a hat right before you, the parasites could upgrade to your hospitable head.

• Shoes: It’s best not to buy shoes without trying them on. But if you do so without socks, you could risk contaminating with fungal foes. Wash the socks when you get home and spray down the interior of your new footwear with a disinfectant to clear out infectious stowaways.