Scrubbing up on hygiene: how to make the best of your personal care
We all produce odourless sweat, which can become smelly when bacteria in warm, moist body parts collide with the fatty acids, hormones, and proteins in perspiration to generate body odour.
Be honest. When was the last time you had a bath or shower? An increasing number of people are adopting a somewhat laissez-faire approach to washing.
A recent topic on an RTÉ radio show addressed the issue of ‘The Great Unwashed’ and suggested we are becoming a nation of soap-dodgers, with listeners calling in to admit showering once a week or even washing less often. But what about body odour?
We all produce odourless sweat, which can become smelly when bacteria in warm, moist body parts collide with the fatty acids, hormones, and proteins in perspiration to generate body odour.
However, experts question whether we need deep cleansing of every part of our anatomy.
James Hamblin, the American author of , says he quit conventional showering several years ago.
“I now don’t use anything on my hair or skin and just rinse off in the shower when I’m visibly dirty or after a run,” he says.
“You do develop layers of dead skin that need exfoliating, but I just rub my hands together on my face in the water to do that.
“I have always washed my hands with soap — especially now, as that remains an extremely important way to prevent communicable diseases.”
With his minimalist personal hygiene regimen, Hamblin confesses he had to “push through some oiliness and smelliness” and transition gradually rather than go cold turkey. Now his close friends say that he looks — and smells — OK.
However, dermatologists say that if we were to stop washing altogether, the outcome would be decidedly unpleasant.
“A few days without a shower or bath is fine, but several weeks renders the skin more prone to infection,” says Zainab Laftah, a consultant dermatologist.
”Eventually, a thick, brown adherent crust, a condition known as dermatitis neglecta, will start to develop on the skin.”
Overwashing the body has been shown to disrupt our skin’s delicate microbial layer, potentially weakening our immune defences and increasing our vulnerability to allergies, including eczema and conditions such as atopic dermatitis.
Also, using too many chemical-laden gels and soaps can strip the skin of the lipids that keep it supple and moisturised, leading to inflammation and irritation.
“The outer layer of the skin’s surface — the stratum corneum — consists of dead skin cells held together by lipids,” explains Laftah.
“Overwashing with hot water and soaps can remove the skin’s natural oil, leading to a compromise in the skin’s barrier function.”
Lukewarm showers using simple fragrance-free soaps or soap substitute emollients are the kindest way to protect your skin against harsh products and too-hot water.
All soaps work by dissolving grime on the skin. Old-school bar soaps are natural — typically made from plant or animal fats, sometimes with added essential oils — generally plastic-free, and contain fewer chemicals than shower gels.
They are also a greener buy, with research from the Institute of Environmental Engineering at the Swiss University ETH Zurich showing they reduce the environmental burden by about one-third compared to less eco-friendly options such as shower gels.
However, all soaps effectively remove surface dirt and oil — your skin type should guide you.
Block soaps often have a higher pH than the skin’s natural pH, which can disrupt the skin barrier, leading to dryness and irritation.
“Shower gels and liquids typically contain some moisturising agents such as glycerin and oils, which can help to maintain the skin’s natural moisture balance,” says Laftah.
“But be cautious, as many body wash formulations are also highly fragranced or contain preservatives such as parabens and sulphates, which can irritate sensitive skin.”
One area of the body we are not great at keeping clean is our feet.
With 250,000 sweat glands, our feet have more glands per inch than any other part of the anatomy and can produce up to half a pint of sweat a day.
When our feet are cocooned in moist, warm environments of socks and shoes, bacteria break down sweat to produce smelly compounds.
It is essential to wash your feet daily. Simply standing in the shower and allowing soapy water to rinse over your feet is not enough.
“You need to reach down and wipe or scrub feet in the shower, rinsing off soapy residue that gathers in the bottom of the shower tray,” says consultant podiatrist Emma McConnachie.
“Washing your feet daily with an antibacterial soap is ideal, making sure you dry thoroughly between the toes to prevent a build-up of bacteria.”
Each of us loses an average of 1.5l of fluid daily through perspiration, a tenth of a teaspoon coming from the armpit.
“Apocrine sweat glands in our armpits push out protein-rich sweat which is initially odourless but which, left hanging around, is broken down by bacteria on our skin,” says Michelle Spear, professor of anatomy at the University of Bristol and a world-leading expert on the study of human hygiene.
“It is the breakdown products that give rise to an unpleasant underarm odour.”
Buyers have two main choices when it comes to products designed to tackle smelly underarms.
Deodorants break down bacteria in the armpits to prevent or mask an odour, usually with a scent or fragrance, but don’t prevent wetness. Antiperspirants often contain the active ingredient aluminium and temporarily block pours to protect against sweating and odour.
“There’s no right or wrong choice, and it comes down to personal preference,” Spear says. “For most of us, keeping the underarms clean with mild soap and water and wearing sweat-wicking fabrics that don’t hold moisture is key.”
Some people are immune to sweaty pits. A study involving 6,495 women published in the revealed that a lucky 2% of them carried a rare genetic variant, known as ABCC11, meaning they didn’t produce any underarm body odour at all.
A proliferation of products that claim to promote intimate male and female hygiene — from wipes and sprays to scrubs and tonics — have appeared on the market, but do we need them?
Spear says not, claiming that feminine hygiene products can damage the very delicate vaginal pH that is easily disrupted by overly fragranced or highly chemical products.
The vagina is “self-cleaning and has an impressive ability to naturally maintain its own pH balance and levels of beneficial bacteria” without the need for expensive products, she says.
In men, scrotum sweat is typically odourless and you don’t need special products to control it.
“The skin around the penis and scrotum is ‘particularly delicate’”, Spear says. “So fragranced scrubs and sprays can cause irritation for some men.”
She suggests wearing breathable fabrics to minimise trapped moisture, which can cause fungal infections: “But you don’t need to spend a fortune on intimate grooming.”
