Woman Questions Her Cousin's Hygiene After Learning She Only Showers Every 4 Days
Your shower routine is influenced by your overall daily life, and it looks different for everyone.
Prostock-studio | Shutterstock After learning about her cousin's questionable shower routine, a woman took to the internet to ask others how often they stay on top of their personal hygiene.
While the woman said she showers daily, her cousin opts to go days without showering until she completely stinks.
The woman’s cousin says that she only showers once every 4 days.
The woman took to the subreddit r/NoStupidQuestions to ask others how often they shower. She wrote that her 18-year-old cousin, who often stays at her house, only showers once every four days, and that it is certainly noticeable.
“She stinks like BO and I don’t know how to tell her nicely,” the woman wrote. “I always offer her or ask if she’s gonna take a shower I bought her all the stuff that she likes to use.”
The woman’s cousin is steadfast in her belief that everyday showers are too frequent.
Now, the woman is asking other people how often they shower and if taking one every day is really necessary. She also encouraged commenters to share their gender since she believes that makes a difference.
“Female - basically daily. I skip the odd day when I’m not physically active and won’t be in public, but if I’m going to be around other people, I always shower,” one Redditor shared.
“I’m a long-distance trucker. I shower whenever I get the chance. Last week was 4 showers in 5 days, the 2 weeks before was 4 in 11 days,” another user commented.
“Male. Daily in the evening in spring/summer/fall. Every other day typically in the winter unless I feel the need to shower more. will note that while it isn’t an excuse, there was a long period of time where I also showered infrequently and it was mostly due to mental health issues causing me to have limited to no motivation to take care of myself,” another user wrote.
As mentioned above, several factors determine your shower routine.
Maybe you work construction, requiring you to shower daily. Or maybe you work from home and don’t need to shower as frequently.
People who struggle with mental health issues such as anxiety and depression may have difficulty prioritizing self-care, and showering could be the last thing on their minds for days.
So the burning question is, how often should you really shower?
According to dermatologists, people should aim to shower every two to three days.
However, it really depends on the sensitivity of your skin, how much you sweat, and how oily your skin is.
"You should be showering, bathing, or cleansing yourself every two to three days,” Dr. Mary Stevenson, a dermatological surgeon and associate professor of dermatology at NYU Langone Health told Today.
“Though, if you're working out or engaging in an activity where you are sweating a lot, you may have to shower more often.”
However, you should avoid showering more than once a day unless absolutely necessary to prevent your skin from drying out.
"You can actually make yourself more prone to infection if you over-wash because the skin is protected with some really nice natural bacteria and things that protect it and you want to preserve those," Dr. Angela Lamb, director of the Westside Mount Sinai Dermatology Faculty Practice, explained to TODAY.
Believe it or not, there are some healthy oils and bacteria that can enhance your overall skin health. Scrubbing them clean multiple times a day isn’t good for you.
Still, you should do your best to stay on top of washing yourself when your BO starts to become noticeable. Your peers, family members, and colleagues will surely thank you for it!
Megan Quinn is a writer at YourTango who covers entertainment and news, self, love, and relationships.