Showering is the best way to rejuvenate your mind and body. It takes your lethargy away and refreshes you for the day. Though showering is considered good, how often should you shower? Well, there is no standard rule set that applies to your showering habits. You are free to take a shower when you feel the need for it. However, there are no rules involved, you still need to take several precautions while getting a shower. So, in this article, we are to discuss how often should you shower, their benefits and precautions, so keep reading.
What Happens if You Don’t Shower?
If you don’t shower enough, then you increase the risk of getting fungal and bacterial infections. Even if you don’t get an infection, the bacteria is still there on your body, making you smell odd. Areas like the armpits and the groin harbor bacterial growth more than anywhere on your body. Not showering for days also affects your skin, as it may become dry and itchy.
So, it is not advised to devoid yourself of the shower for too long. If you can’t shower when required, then at least try to get a dry bath. In dry bathing, one can use medicated wipes to clean the skin, armpits, and groin area to avoid bacterial growth and foul smell.
What Happens If You Shower too Much?
Should you shower daily? Not necessarily, because it depends on your level of sweating and also how dirty you get daily. Dermatologists recommend taking a shower at most once a day. Showering more than once can disrupt the working of sebaceous glands in the skin. These glands are under the skin, all over your body and produce essential oils to keep it from getting dry. If you shower more than once or twice a day, then you risk washing off these essential skin oils. The disadvantages of bathing twice a day include flaky, itchy, and scratchy skin.
How Often Should You Shower?
There are no medical standards that talk about when to shower and when not to because it solely depends on a person’s will. People living in hot climates need to get a shower more often than people living in colder climates. In hot environments, it is normal to sweat. Sweating is good for overall health but it also leaves you vulnerable to foul bodily smell and bacterial infections. We should also take into account special circumstances, such as how often should you shower when you have covid? You should shower less often than usual.
Now you may ask is showering everyday bad? Not necessarily, because people working in construction sites, dusty environments, or directly under the sun need a refreshing shower daily. So, for such a category of people getting a shower daily is not bad but how many times do you shower a week? As an answer, we can say that people who are not into heavy work and don’t travel much may opt for getting a shower day every 1-3 days. People living in colder climates may only need to shower 2 to 3 times a week.
General Shower Tips
Bathing daily is good for healthy well-being but at the same time, you should be getting it the right way. Here we are sharing some useful tips that you can also take as pre-shower precautions.
- Lukewarm Water Shower: Take a warm shower which is the most acceptable way to shower for most people. For those who like and want to enjoy the benefits of cold showers, do it only when your body allows it as cold water drops your body temperature rapidly.
- Use a Gentle Soap: Use a soap that is gentle on the skin and does not dry the skin. It is recommended to choose a soap with a moisturizing function.
- Clean all Necessary Parts: While showering, don’t forget to clean your groin area, genitals, feet, and armpits. These body parts have the most bacterial growth. Use mild soap to clean your body.
- Don’t Shower too Long: If you are showering daily then finish it within 10 minutes. If you bathe only 3 to 4 times a week then don’t take more than 15-20 minutes.
- Don’t Be Rude: If you are using a loofah or a skin scrubber then make sure to be gentle while using them on your skin. Loofahs and other tools must be cleaned properly to prevent any skin infection.
- Moisturize: If after getting a shower your skin feels dry then you need to use a moisturizer. Use cold-pressed coconut oil as a moisturizer because it contains healthy fats which are beneficial to your skin. It also contains lauric acid which has anti-fungal and anti-bacterial properties. Avoid coconut oil if your skin is oily or has any medical condition.
Conclusion
Taking a shower with warm water smoothly flowing from great shower heads may be the most relaxed time after a long busy day. However, the showering frequency may depend on the weather, the environment you live in, and the nature of the work you do. Only you know best for yourself when to take a shower and when to go without it. For most people getting a bath on daily basis or 2 to 3 times a week is enough. Though we can’t strictly advise you on bathing, we can tell you that too much showering is not good for your skin health. You would not want to mess with the healthy oil production of your skin, do you?
FAQ about How Often Should You Shower
It depends on your own type of hair. Hair grows on the scalp which also produces oil for keeping them healthy. Over-showering wipes these healthy oils making your scalp dry. A dry scalp is not good for your hair as they start getting brittle in absence of essential oils. Hairs are delicate so don’t wash them more than 2 to 3 times per week. After showering, dry your hair as soon as possible because wet hair is prone to get weaker and brittle over time.
Generally speaking, It’s better to take 2 to 3 showers a week in winter with warm water. Winters make us less active that’s why we don’t sweat as usual. We do sweat in winter but very less. So less sweating means less or no bacterial growth at all. Winters also put a halt to bacterial growth because bacteria don’t flourish in cold environments. Therefore, it is best to bathe in warm water 2-3 times a week and moisturize the skin with a lotion.
If after getting a shower your skin feels dry then you need to use a moisturizer. Use cold-pressed coconut oil as a moisturizer because it contains healthy fats which are beneficial to your skin. It also contains lauric acid which has anti-fungal and anti-bacterial properties. Avoid coconut oil if your skin is oily, prone to acne, or has any medical ailment.
