Some people said they started bathing less during the pandemic

[Demovictory9]

See Fewer People. Take Fewer Showers.
Some people said they started bathing less during the pandemic. As long as no one complains, they say they plan to keep the new habit.

Robin Harper, an administrative assistant at a preschool on Martha’s Vineyard, grew up showering every day.

“It’s what you did,” she said. But when the coronavirus pandemic forced her indoors and away from the general public, she started showering once a week.

The new practice felt environmentally virtuous, practical and freeing. And it has stuck.

“Don’t get me wrong,” said Ms. Harper, 43, who has returned to work. “I like showers. But it’s one thing off my plate. I’m a mom. I work full-time, and it’s one less thing I have to do.”




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Parents have complained that their teenage children are forgoing daily showers. After the British media reported on a YouGov survey that showed 17 percent of Britons had abandoned daily showers during the pandemic, many people on Twitter said they had done the same.

Heather Whaley, a writer in Redding, Conn., said her shower use had fallen by 20 percent in the past year.

After the pandemic forced her into lockdown, Ms. Whaley, 49, said she began thinking about why she was showering every day.

https://www.nytimes.com/2021/05/06/health/shower-bathing-pandemic.html?action=click&algo=bandit-all-surfaces-decay-decay-02&block=editors_picks_recirc&fellback=false&imp_id=212036719&impression_id=696185e0-aed8-11eb-8c5f-f5dd4d517a59&index=0&pgtype=Article&pool=editors-picks-ls®ion=ccolumn&req_id=855022979&surface=home-featured&variant=1_bandit-all-surfaces-decay-decay-02&action=click&module=editorContent&pgtype=Article®ion=CompanionColumn&contentCollection=Trending

[OAITW r.2.0]

1. It's a habit that hasn't changed for me over the past year.

I know when it's time to take a shower.....and it's not every day.

[jimfields33]

2. I do feel for her coworkers

Even though you don’t smell yourself, others do. I can see maybe every other day but once a week??? I have to take a shower everyday regardless of seeing or not seeing people.

[Demovictory9]

3. yeah... she's delusional...shower once every 7 days??

[jimfields33]

4. I think the worst part is she let the world know.

I mean she’s going to get teased daily by this from all walks of life.

[USALiberal]

33. Teased? Are you 15 years old? Nt

[jimfields33]

34. No but be realistic. You think her coworkers are just going to say,

“Wow. That’s cool.” I didn’t say I’d say anything to her, but I’d be thankful for the pandemic so I would not have to be near her.

[xmas74]

30. She said she's still washing up,

Just not showering.

I shower every day,even though I know it's not necessary. If she's washing up and using deodorant and wearing clean clothes she probably doesn't smell.

[meadowlander]

31. Presumably she still wears deodorant and different clothes every day.

Daily showering is bad for your skin and hair, stripping away essential oils. At best it wastes water.

https://www.health.harvard.edu/blog/showering-daily-is-it-necessary-2019062617193

I shower once a week in the winter, a few times a week in the summer (more if I'm doing something particularly active or dirty), wear deodorant and clean clothes and never smell bad.

Different people perspire and generate odors at different rates, etc. Your mileage may vary. But I don't think weekly showering combined with regular handwashing, spot cleaning, deodorant use, etc. is inherently unhealthy or inconsiderate of coworkers.

My beef as an asthmatic is with coworkers who drown themselves in perfume and scented handcream but that's a rant for a different day.

[jimfields33]

32. I understand

I just am not sure it’s wise to announce it at all. I mean here? Who cares. But on a national Platform?

[brush]

5. What's gotten into these people? It's best to shower when going out.

[I_UndergroundPanther]

6. I shower twice a week

Use deodorant and do pta baths in between if I need it.

Nobody has complained.

I think Americans overdo showering in general.

I've been showering twice a week for years.

[smirkymonkey]

20. I think we overdo it as well. Even most doctors don't find it necessary to shower daily unless

you are physically very active and pungent. I find that about 3 showers a week and bird baths on the other days works fine for me since I often don't leave the apartment and when I do, I shower. It's kind of an American obsession to shower to excess.

I remember when I spent a semester as a student in Vienna we were instructed by our program director not to shower every day because the Austrians did not like to waste water and found excessive bathing to be indulgent. I remember asking my Austrian family how often most people showered there and they told me it was about once a week. You could kind of tell when you were in the subway and people were grabbing on to the overhead straps/rails. It was pretty rank.

I prefer baths myself, they are much more relaxing and leisurely. I think I associate showers with getting ready for something I don't really want to do.

[FirstLight]

7. If not going near people, it's not a big deal

I have definitely been doing it less since staying home...

[chowder66]

8. My guess is that some people are taking spit baths in between.

On edit: she says so in the article.

[Demovictory9]

11. oh ok. good.

[Maraya1969]

22. Yea, you can get a lot clean with some soap, a washcloth and a sink. eom.

[Disaffected]

26. And a lot faster.

Combine that with a bit of deodorant and you're fresh as a daisy.

I suppose BTW, the PTA acronym for men would be BAA (?).

[SWBTATTReg]

9. I don't touch anything in a public bathroom, other than the protected gloves I have on when I go

into the bathroom and while I'm in the bathroom, I always always have a mask on, and then don't touch nothing on the way out, including the sink to wash my hands (one has to touch all of the surfaces.

I always use my disinfectant wash that I bring with me instead. The less we touch, the better the chances we are at being safe.

Of course the best solution is to never go out again, but are we being realistic here? You have to get out, go shopping sometimes, go see friends (with social distancing in mind, masks)...life still goes on. Of course I've cut back the number of misc. trips I used to make, e.g., go window shopping, etc. (don't), so I guess I'm saying that one must prioritize the most important trips out of the house, cancel the rest of the nonessential trips.

[bamagal62]

10. I've definitely showered less.

But I’m not telling everyone about it. Although, after day 3, I’ve got to shower! Not sure why we care. Should I also discuss which sweatpants I prefer?

[Laura PourMeADrink]

13. +1. Yes, let's talk sweatpants!!!

[betsuni]

12. Since his retirement my husband has established a policy of bathing every three days.

Saves water, you don't get sweaty if you're not working, and if you're not out in society you're not polluted by other people. Fine with me until warm weather, although by day three I can't wait to take a nice long bath.

[bamagal62]

15. For some reason, day 3 is the day.

[BigmanPigman]

14. When your state is in severe drought it is what you do.

If you don't need to shower every day due to physical smells and odors, than don't. People used to have to wear tons of layers, even in the humid Summer, so they naturally smelled. Also, without indoor plumbing and lack of a hot water heater people heated bath water in a giant pot on an iron stove, poured into a wash tub, washed and rinsed in that same water, then had to do it all over again for the each member of the family. This is not what is necessary in 2021. We have fewer clothes, deodorant, shave under arms, air conditioning and electric fans, and usually don't work physically as much as 100 years ago or even 50 years ago. There is no need for people to shower every day now (unless you work out every day).

It also isn't good for the skin and hair...dries them out.

[BlueTsunami2018]

16. Everyone is different.

I’m fortunate that I’m not a smelly guy. I can go days without showering and you’d never be able to tell. Even when I sweat I don’t stink and deodorant just lasts on me. Some people can be fresh out of the shower and they stink of b.o. within a few hours. And of course there is a wide swath in between, everyone is different.

But everyone knows when it’s time to shower. When we were in lockdown I would shower every other day or every third day. I didn’t necessarily have to, I just enjoy it. When I’m working I have to shower every day because construction work is dirty but I’ll skip a day on the weekends. Some people need to shower much more frequently. I suppose it’s all about your body’s chemistry.

[Lancero]

17. The 'necessity' of deodorant comes to mind reading this.

Back when it was first invented, people couldn't care less about it. Then the companies started up the marketing compaigns saying that using this product will help you keep your job. That campaign was a resounding success, on account of the Great Depression.

We use a excessive amount of chemicals as part of our 'personal care' routines these days, without a care for their environmental impacts. All because we've bought into the marketing.

https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2010/04/100407110819.htm
https://www.hairstory.com/stories/2021/02/26/how-shampoo-impacts-the-environment/

[IbogaProject]

18. The Biome may stabilize

The Biome may stabilize afyrt awhile and even out w the lower frequency. I read an article where someone went a year with out showering or not using soap, I don't recall. And it reported that their biome stabilized and the stink went way down. They got the idea from how horses aren't as smelly as humans.

Here is the Atlantic article [link:https://www.theatlantic.com/health/archive/2016/06/i-stopped-showering-and-life-continued/486314/|]

[Maraya1969]

23. Most animals don't take on a bad smell if they don't bathe. My dogs don't stink

and I only bathe them occasionally.

Now a Billy goat? Last time I smelled one of them.. But maybe that was hormones trying to catch the lady goat

[beaglelover]

19. That's just gross. I shower at least once a day.

Twice if I’ve worked out. Not bathing is just gross.

[RobinA]

42. Ya Got That Right

I'd shower every day if I were on a desert island.

[bahboo]

21. twice a week whether I need it or not...

don't really sweat that much near the coast...

[Blaukraut]

24. Well, private bits should get washed every day. Simple TP doesn't cut it.

So a bidet if you're fortunate enough to own one, or washcloth and soap at the sink. Oh, and when my hair stays in ponytail shape even after I pull it out of the scrunchy, it's time to shower!

[Disaffected]

27. Agreed but, just make sure

said washcloth is carefully identified.

[Blaukraut]

28. Ha! That's why people should have washcloths and facecloths.

And never the twain shall meet.

[Disaffected]

29. Sound thinking.

I suggest colour coding (with the darker colour used for the naughty bits).

BTW, Family Guy had a clever term for such an item but I'm unable to recall it.

[dalton99a]

25. Kick

Doctors and health experts have said that daily showers are unnecessary, and even counterproductive. Washing with soap every day can strip the skin of its natural oils and leave it feeling dry, though doctors still recommend frequent hand-washing.

The American obsession with cleaning began around the turn of the 20th century, when people began moving into cities after the Industrial Revolution, said Dr. James Hamblin, a lecturer at Yale University and the author of “Clean: The New Science of Skin and the Beauty of Doing Less.”

Cities were dirtier so residents felt they had to wash more frequently, Dr. Hamblin said, and soap manufacturing became more common. Indoor plumbing also began to improve, giving the middle class more access to running water.

To set themselves apart from the masses, wealthy people began investing in fancier soaps and shampoos and started bathing more frequently, he said.

“It became a sort of arms race,” Dr. Hamblin said. “It was a signifier of wealth if you looked like you could bathe every day.”

https://www.nytimes.com/2021/05/06/health/shower-bathing-pandemic.html

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https://www.theatlantic.com/health/archive/2015/02/how-often-people-in-various-countries-shower/385470/

[panader0]

35. I have showered every day as long as I can remember.

I have a well and a septic tank, so any water that I use in the house goes back into the ground.
I work outdoors a lot, I sweat, and I don't feel fresh and clean without showering.
I know a few guys that I have to remind to shower.

[Bettie]

36. If I showered and washed my hair every day

I'd have a brown (OK, getting gray) haystack on my head and itchy, cracking dry skin all over my body.

Daily showers don't work for my skin and hair.

[LisaL]

37. My hair starts feeling dirty if I don't wash it every day.

NT

[BoringUsername]

39. Same here

Plus my hair is all unruly in the morning after sleeping. I have to wash it to get it to stop being a mess.

[BoringUsername]

38. I almost always take a shower in the morning

I feel too gross and unkept when I don't shower. Doesn't matter if I go any place not. If I workout later in the evening I'll take a second shower afterwards.

My kids shower at least every weekday morning. It is part of their getting ready for school routine (even if school is online that day).

[dsc]

40. I teach so when we went to having students in the building in Sept,

I started showering twice a day, once before work and once after work. I used different towels and wash clothes for every shower so was going through 2 of each a day. I am now down to one since I have been vaccinated and will reuse a towel and wash cloth one time.

[LeftInTX]

41. I'm in Texas...I got away with less showers in winter, but it's hot now and I've started going back

to the gym...

Back to showering every other day, at least.

[Kaleva]

43. I shower twice a week and have been doing so for years.

If I have yo go to some event, I'll shower that day.