Do You Need to Shower Every Day?
nytimes.com
nytimes.com
When I lived in a climate that was regularly over 40C, sometimes I showered twice a day. Now I live in a cool climate, and every 2-3 days is usually fine. But if I'm under stress, it's back to daily.
The real answer is that people need to shower enough so that they A) feel comfortable and B) don't cause issues for the people around them. A is a bit fuzzy, and will change depending on what an individual is used to, but most people in most situations won't run into B if they are showering every other day (or even every 3 days) modulo things like "I went for a run this afternoon" or "I worked in the garden all day" etc.
The edge cases are probably rare enough to say "you don't need to shower every day, but if you get particularly dirty/sweaty, then you should shower" and you will be correct for most people. The few people who do need it every day can probably work it out for themselves.
Perhaps the largest exception to this is teenage boys who just really are a biological marvel of smell generation. They should potentially be showering multiple times a day for the sake of those around them.
So it's not that you are unusual in that you sweat profusely (I'd agree that most people probably need a shower after any decently vigorous exercise), you are unusual because you exercise regularly.
[0] https://www.cdc.gov/physicalactivity/data/inactivity-prevale...
Showering in this case may be useful, but the use of soaps/cleansers would still probably not be needed. Sweat is mostly water itself, along with salt and some other minerals (potassium?), so a quick shower—using just water, which is a great solvent—will rinse/dissolve most things from your skin.
Worth remembering that body odour is from bacteria and not the sweat itself. The bacteria is determined (partly) by your genetics and the type of sweat glads you have. Eccrine sweat glands go directly to the surface of the skin (secrete: water, NaCl, K), while apocrine sweat glands connect into hair follicle (secrete: protein, lipids,): the bacteria feed off the latter.
* https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sweat_gland
The gene on whether you have (more) apocrine glands is ABCC11:
* https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ABCC11
Asians are more likely to have to have the gene variant that makes you less smelly (Allele A).
In the Before Times (pre-COVID/WFH) I used to cycle hard to work everyday: I would shower at home, pedal in with the funny-looking lycra, and change at work. I didn't bother showering at work and I didn't stink. (This concern regularly gets mentioned when topics of car-alternative comes up on HN.)
People are much less sensitive to their own body odor than you may assume. Please default to taking a shower before you go to public places unless you have very concrete evidence otherwise.
And honestly, I enjoy my meditative time in the shower to start my day off.
I still shower daily, I just don't always use soap/shampoo.
> Sensitive skin is one of the most buzzed-about topics in dermatology today. It can be painful, debilitating, and inconvenient. Astonishingly, many of the women and men who suffer from problem skin are unknowingly causing it by washing too frequently and using too many skincare and beauty products. Often, we slather ourselves in creams and balms that can actually damage the skin. The miracle products we buy at department stores, specialty shops, and pharmacies have the potential to make us less attractive and prematurely age our skin. In Beyond Soap, leading dermatologist Dr. Skotnicki explains that the best state for skin is the natural state. On its own, the skin is better equipped to fight wrinkles, stave off aging and act as armor that protects the body from infection. Every time we slather, spread, hydrate, or soften the skin, we nudge the skin away from its healthiest natural condition. Skotnicki demystifies the claims of commonly used beauty products and offers a common-sense approach to cleansing the body along with her product-elimination diet that has helped thousands of patients suffering from a wide array of skin conditions, and a skincare regime that will help you maintain skin health, fight aging, and keep your skin reaction-free forever.
* https://www.goodreads.com/en/book/show/35733533-beyond-soap
* https://drsandyskotnicki.com
Besides your hands and your private bits, most folks don't need soap/cleanser/detergents/body-washes most of the time (unless you're in construction or coal mining). Water is a great solvent, and unless there's actual dirt, it's often enough (even after a gym workout).
Interview (TVO is a public broadcaster):
* https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xGl19JJnaK0
* https://www.tvo.org/video/the-trouble-with-soap
The author is a clinical dermatologist and teaches at UToronto.
i am reminded of george carlin: “armpits, asshole, crotch and teeth! if you do it in the right order you can use the same brush for all four!”
I need to shower every day that I exercise and get sweaty, which is most days unless I'm overloaded with work.
This article is like pretty much all these types of articles. The conclusion is "it depends" and "here is why you are showering wrong"
This is my HN-friendly way of telling you to shower daily.
Seriously. The smelly office guy who says "I only need to shower once a week" is real enough to be a cliche.
Fact is, smelly people don't think they smell until it is pointed out to them. Sometime these people are from the same background had never been outside of their own group and so they never know it for their entire lives. I have seen plenty of time when just one person can stink up the entire room and everyone is too polite or just too afraid to call it out.
Those meetings were hell.
I don't care if it's healthier. I was around enough stinky people and I'd die of shame if people talked about me like they talked about them.
Opposite here. I need to shower at night or else I feel dirty when trying to sleep in my bed.
Our skin is trying its damnedest to keep itself in balance and all people are doing is stressing it out, no wonder people end up smelling when the skin is over compensating due to being stripped of all its natural protective oils. Not to mention all the sugar and refined carbohydrates people consume - their body is screaming with inflammation, when all it wants is balance from a good source of healthy nutrition. But we humans know best right... sigh
It also makes doing my hair or cleaning off any excess hair from grooming easier.