do you wash your legs

[cpl24805254]

so was reading an online news article about a twitter thread,in which people said they did not wash legs in the shower.I am confused why you would leave them out.Is this a thing? one woman said she only washed them when she shaved!Do you wash your legs in the shower?

6 weeks? You did a lot better than me. I cracked after 14 days. The smell was too much. Even my cats wouldn't come near me and kept looking at me in disgust.

So if you have soapy water on you, the soap binds to the dirt and when you rinse it off, the friction of the clean water means the dirt is washed away? Great! I shall start using soap tomorrow! The neighbours do complain about the noise from the sand blaster.

You do need to actually apply the soap so it has a chance to pick up the dirt. Having suds whoosh off you for a couple of seconds is hardly sufficient. You can take the piss all you like but it's hardly rocket science.

How very odd. Why on earth would you wash everything except your legs?

I want to feel clean all over when I shower, which is rather the point of it really. Why leave bits out?

Joking aside just shows we're all different and what works for some people wouldn't work for others. I'm at the perimenopause stage and have to shower every morning and I feel I need to scrub every part of my body because I sweat loads at night! (And change the sheets but that's another thread), Then at work I'm on my feet, don't sit down, (everyone complains about the heat, we all sweat there) so I have to come home and shower again and lather and scrub. Maybe when I retire and go through menopause I'll try the soap and running water down the legs method.
Best wishes to theworldistoosmall, hope you have a speedy recovery.

www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2019/mar/31/how-to-wash-yourself-without-damaging-your-skin
"The problem with soap is that it alters the skin’s pH and disturbs its acid mantle – the barrier that protects us against harmful bacteria and viruses, and also encourages healthy bacteria to live on the skin. You can buy cleansing bars, shower gels or body washes, but opt for soap-free, non-foaming, fragrance-free ones."
Not rocket science, no: dermatology.

I only wash my bits, pits, belly button and hair. I only wash my legs if I've been on a muddy run or something and have actual dirt on my legs. I can assure you that I smell nice and my legs and feet are clean. No signs of dirt or flaky skin!

I think that some people have legs that get sweaty much more than others (my legs don't get damp and sweaty even on a really hot day) and their legs probably would get really grotty if they weren't washed. They are imagining not washing their legs rather than not washing our legs.

No...the soapy water runs down them anyway, I'm not sure they need anymore cleaning than that do they? No sweaty crevices to worry about!

Next time I'm on holiday and go to a water park and waiting in line I'll now know why so many people smell because they're perhaps scared to use the soap

Yes raven, you can use soap free washes instead if you like. But they are formulated to do the same job, i.e. to clean your body. So what's your point?

Oh, actually I don't. But they get a good coating of shampooey water.

[santa]

Perhaps the people whose legs smell have been using too much soap, and scoured off all the good bacteria and protective mantle, allowing harmful bacteria to settle there.

To be honest though, I should think few of us are in the "legs caked with dirt" or "entire top layer of skin removed" categories.

Sakura, my point is that there are different ways to get clean, but actual soap is not such a great idea.

Some kind of cleanser is needed though raven, whether it's traditional soap or something gentler.

Don't worry too much for me Sakura: despite my jokes, I do actually have a pretty good grasp of how to wash myself Just can't resist poking a little fun at the users who are so scandalised by people not using flannels etc!

[Only on Mumsnet - too much soap would give you smelly legs instead of name soap!

Nae soap!

"Or that you can't see the things that need to be cleaned off skin, like sweat and dead skin cells"

My legs don't really sweat unless I'm doing heavy exercise.

I honestly had no idea people worried about "dead skin cells" so much before I read this thread. I've never noticed any build up of dead skin cells on my body anywhere. What does that even look like? The skin on my legs looks perfectly normal and healthy.

A few years ago ds had flaky feet, lots of peeling skin and he eventually admitted to never washing them. He was about 8 though. Boak!

It's a very clever tactic by the cosmetics industry. They get you to scrape off your "dead skin cells" (except the hair on your head!) so that your skin requires mosturiser.
Though if you shave it has the same effect really.

Just can't resist poking a little fun at the users who are so scandalised by people not using flannels etc!

I'm with you there - I got accused of being smelly on the stripwashers thread because I shower every day and don't use a flannel. The horror!

Okwhereisit thanks.

I notice that if I don't rid the dead skin, I need to moisturise as the skin then looks flaky and is flaky. Not sure about the cosmetic tactics, when I need something I use a bit of baby oil.

Surely it's not about sweaty shins or whatever, if you are having a shower you wash everything surely.
I'm still struggling with the non feet washers tbh. How can feet not need a wash when they've been in shoes all day?

As was posted in the last discussion about this on MN that I recall.

www.menshealth.com/uk/style/a758377/do-you-need-to-wash-your-legs/

From the article - We decided to seek expert advice in the form of GP Dr Anand Patel, to see if there was a medical case to be made for washing your legs. In fact, forgoing soap might not be a bad thing after all.

"Soaps and washes clean you by stripping oil from your skin but when it comes to your legs, they don't produce much oil so you end up drying them out rather than helping. The problem is that removing oil can get rid of the protective barrier on your skin, making you more prone to dry skin."

Is Patel suggesting we should all go soap free, then?

"Most people would be better off using a soap free wash for their armpits, groin and crack where sweat, oils and smell-creating bacteria tend to gather. Using water for everywhere else is fine."

I've never had smelly legs but I still want to wash them. I use shower gel rather than soap.