# Front to Back or Back to Front?

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/front-to-back-or-back-to-front/57119>\
**Category:** Factual Questions\
**Created:** [March 7, 2001, 3:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/front-to-back-or-back-to-front/57119 "2001-03-07T15:56:56Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 5\
**Page:** 1

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**Author:** ![C\_Thompson](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/57b2e6/32.png) [@C\_Thompson](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/C_Thompson)\
**Post date:** [March 7, 2001, 3:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/front-to-back-or-back-to-front/57119/1 "2001-03-07T15:56:56Z")

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See me and my old lady well not so old but anyway some how came into this conversation, hell I kwow this sounds sick but which is the proper way to wipe front to back or back to front. Yes we talk about other shit to (no pun intented)but just wanted to see where this would go.

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**Author:** ![Lynn\_Bodoni](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/e47c2d/32.png) [@Lynn\_Bodoni](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lynn_Bodoni)\
**Post date:** [March 7, 2001, 4:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/front-to-back-or-back-to-front/57119/2 "2001-03-07T16:07:34Z")

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Females need to wipe front to back, or run the risk of getting a truly nasty yeast or urinary infection. I don’t know if it makes a difference for males.

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**Author:** ![sewalk](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/b3f665/32.png) [@sewalk](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/sewalk)\
**Post date:** [March 8, 2001, 5:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/front-to-back-or-back-to-front/57119/3 "2001-03-08T05:01:58Z")

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Front to back seems a bit tricky to me since there’s some, ahem, equipment in the way. The other hand would be needed to hold the, ahem, equipment out of harm’s way.

I speak only from personal observation. YMMV depending on the size/shape/orientation of your, ahem, equipment.

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**Author:** ![sewalk](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/b3f665/32.png) [@sewalk](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/sewalk)\
**Post date:** [March 8, 2001, 5:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/front-to-back-or-back-to-front/57119/4 "2001-03-08T05:07:37Z")

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Sorry, I got turned around, I meant to start that last post with “back to front”. I assure you, my, ahem, equipment is in the normal place.

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**Author:** ![C\_Thompson](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/57b2e6/32.png) [@C\_Thompson](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/C_Thompson)\
**Post date:** [March 8, 2001, 8:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/front-to-back-or-back-to-front/57119/5 "2001-03-08T20:01:21Z")

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Sewalk, follow these instructions and it quit easy.  
Grab (not to tight now) your package with your left hand push to your left and proceed with right hand to clean up matters. Not to hard after years of practice.

So I suppose from the responds there is No proper way unless you’re a Female, I guess it just a preference.