My 17 year old is no trouble at all, never have to push her re homework or revising, lovely nature, kind etc but despite several discussions she isn't showering every day, can go up to 3 days and then we have to keep on.
She is quite intelligent and when I asked her why she doesn't want to shower she has told me that she has read several articles on the Internet that say that we - humans, shower too much. Scientists and academics have undertaken studies and there is no need to shower every day, it drys out the skin and kills off good bacteria and makes us more prone to illness and infection. I explained that she is 17, she sweats a lot, she has greasy hair and has regular periods. That certain areas of our bodies need to be washed every day. I said if she has an issue with washing her arms, legs, body for fear of them 'drying' out (she has no dry skin problems) then she can stand in front of the sink and have a wash with a flannel of her under arms, her private areas (back and front) and feet. The look she gave me said 'not doing that'. I said for the sake of having a 10-15 minute shower why would she want to have a flannel wash? She persisted, in a calm manner to explain the information on the Internet. I got nowhere. She has an elder sister (+7 years) who has always showered daily, so is a good example, but in response to me telling her that, she said 'well we are not alike in several ways and this is no different'. I gave up and walked out (before I screamed). What am I to do? I'm planning on another discussion where I explain that I don't agree with the amount of time teenagers spend on their devices. That I've had a look at some information on the Internet that confirms my concerns so I will be restricting her access to her devices effective immediately! Anyone had a similar problem and how did you handle it?