Daily showering/not showering discussion (Loose Women)

[Mothership4two]

That MN perennial favourite 'showering' was under discussion on today's show and it made me smile because it seems to come up all the time on here. They said a daily shower is not necessary contraversial and two to three times a week is fine: their point was that daily showering is expensive, not great for the environment, might not be good for you as dries out skin and hair. They all were in agreement but Nadia said she likes a daily shower "not to do with being dirty" but as she likes water. I assume a well done to one of their researchers may be in order?

After all the 'heated debates' I have witnessed it just tickled me. A bit like someone you know appearing on TV 😆

Have also made a duplicate post (in Telly Addicts) which I know irritates some posters. Wasn't sure where to put it. The do you/don't you shower generally gets plonked in AIBU but I don't have a question so that would be pointless.

Meant to be light-hearted BTW

I smell if I don’t shower daily. But I exercise several times a week too, and get sweaty.

I don’t wash my hair every time though, just rinse every second shower.

They didn't mention exercising!

It's bullshit. People get environmental dirt on them from the air and sweat/oils on them from their own bodies. Of course people need a daily bath/shower. The skin/hair argument is totally nonsense. Thats what moisturizer and conditioner were invented for. So people could be both clean and unshrivelled. No reason to be a dried out itchy flaky raisin at all.

Of course they're right about it being more expensive than not showering daily, but that doesn't mean it's not needed. Healthy food is more expensive than junk. Growing children required the purchase of new clothes that fitted. A property with a bedroom for your children is more expensive than a one bedroom flat. All these things are still needed, even though you can survive without them.

Humans existing is bad for the environment. Perhaps we should all put an end to our existence in the name of savings the planet? Or maybe thinking what's best for the planet has to be weighed up with what's best for us.

Unless you're in a situation where you're choosing between water to drink and water to wash with, people should shower/bath daily. Not doing so is deliberately scummy. Skipping your bath/shower should be a last resort only if you can't help it and have no choice. Like if there's zero spare water or you're too ill to do it.

They can say whatever they like on a TV show it's never going to change my opinion.

They can say what they want, but it's absolutely horrible sitting next to someone who smells. I know a lot of people can't smell themselves, either - the cleaner you are usually, the better you can recognise a bad smell, IMO.

I loathe showers and bath every other day. I wash on the days I don't bath so I don't smell.

Well thinking about the environment IS important IMO and is only going to become more so. Hypothetically humans ceasing to exist would be great for the planet! 😆

Dermatologists and friends with eczema do say it's detrimental for your skin.

I truly hope this thread stays light and doesn't turn into another angry bun fight on here. Will ask MNHQ to take down if it goes that way

Sorry for the nay-sayers but Michaela Straken is on saying same thing!

There are other ways to keep clean other than shower which was mentioned ie use a flannel and wash which uses far less water. I also don't agree with use of shampoo/conditioner/moisturiser as a reason to wash more frequently.

I know you can do a flannel wash, and I do if there’s no alternative. But I’m a menopausal woman, who exercises too, I need a shower in the morning and like a bath or shower before bed.

Gross. Brits need to shower more not less. This is why the tube is utterly minging on a hot day.

Most societies encourage daily bathing.

They must be super wiffy then @MILTOBE especially sitting all morning in a greenhouse 😄

Child of the 70s/80s here when weekly baths were the norm and people didn't honk any more then that they do now and TBH don't notice smelly ppl that much now but no longer wedge myself on public transport

Don't be daft, you can't police how a thread goes fgs, it's a free speaking forum 🤔

Child of the 60s/70s - yes people did honk more. Anti-perspirant was less popular and many houses did not have showers.

I don’t take long in my daily shower, but I do enjoy being clean.

When were you last on the tube? People are pretty clean I find.

I do think people smelt a bit more in the 70s / 80s than they do now. And a few people say that’s rising again.

Personally I think you should wash face, feet, pits and bits everyday (I guess you could get away with every other day if you are literally sitting around). I tend to do that in the shower but sink works fine.

Unless you’ve been exercising or it’s very hot you don’t need to wash top to toe everyday, that is a bit mad.

It's not daft to hope it doesn't turn nasty! Also goes against MN talk guidelines. I can but ask.

Nastiness is really unnecessary on here @Remoteaccess or any time.

If posters want to rehash the usual arguments and unpleasantness I'll step away as that's contrary to my intentions and boring IMO.

Well due to incontinence, I really need to shower in the morning, plus it helps wake me up! Not sure if whiffy people are whiffy due to not washing that day or the coats and jackets they wear.

DH and I talk about how much we smelled of second hand smoke growing up, I imagine everyone was more smelly in lots of ways. We’ve moved on though.

Im menopausal as well and need to shower every day, twice would be ideal.

My revolting old boss obviously still had a Sunday bath and would get more and more ripe as the week went on. He was a revolting man though.

The tube doesn’t smell except rarely in high summer.

Overwashing gives you eczema - neurosis shows in the face too.

I’m a child of the 70s and we definitely had baths every day!
I don’t feel clean if I don’t have a wash in the morning - preferably a shower but, if that’s not possible, a thorough pits and bits clean at the basin with a flannel.

when i was at junior school (70s) we played out every day, walked to and from school and played outside at lunchtime. We climbed trees, built dens, played running aruond types of games etc etc. If we got actual dirt on us it was a flannel wash.

And then once a week was bath and hairwash night. And i remember hair washing vividly because we had a bath with those rubber shower attachment things for hair washing, which we did after the bath by leaning our heads over the side of the bath. And you always had to wash twice, the first time the water was absolutely filthy and the shampoo didn't have so many suds. Second wash very bubbly and squeaky clean afterwards. Then we discovered conditioner so the brusing afterwards wasn't such an issue.

The air was absolutely filthy back then, what with leaded petrol etc, aside of all the grubbiness that came from being a mostly-outdoorsey bunch of kids (except for Tuesdays at 4:30, then all the kids just piled in the nearest house for Spiderman. And if a mum was about we often got squash and biscuits too.

I STILL dont have a shower I live in a social housing flat and its a bath, These flats were built in the 70s Loose Women need to tell my housing association not me

IME people were no whiffier 50ish years ago, maybe I just grew up in a cleaner part of the country to some? Some people seem to relate not showering to not washing which is probably not generally the case.

@Deathraystare is right sometimes coats can smell. being drying out of some materials can have a musty smell and also with smoking outside smokers coats will smell of cigarettes.