# Why don't people bathe? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [January 10, 2015, 3:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-dont-people-bathe/709475 "2015-01-10T15:01:36Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![Hello\_Again](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/85e7bf/32.png) [@Hello\_Again](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hello_Again)\ **Post date:** [January 11, 2015, 6:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-dont-people-bathe/709475/41 "2015-01-11T18:07:28Z")
> [@PurpleClogs](#): > > But I’m in the camp that it’s usually their clothes. They can shower all they want, but if their clothes are not clean, the odor lingers. I’m with this too, for the majority of cases (I think a few are probably medical conditions/medication side effects). Recently I broke my foot and I’m in a cast. It took five days for #@! Amazon to deliver my shower bench. _I_ got clean easily enough from 6 days of stewing, but my sheets AND comforter were “nuke 'em from orbit” stanky since I spent a lot of unwashed time laying down on them. And that smell kept transferring back to me. Luckily I have the resources to send out my comforter and have it cleaned, because it doesn’t fit in my in-building washer. If I didn’t have a spare comforter, and a person to help/laundry place that does pickups, it would be tricky getting it cleaned in the winter. ---
**Author:** ![burpo\_the\_wonder\_mutt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/burpo_the_wonder_mutt/32/365_2.png) [@burpo\_the\_wonder\_mutt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/burpo_the_wonder_mutt)\ **Post date:** [January 11, 2015, 7:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-dont-people-bathe/709475/42 "2015-01-11T19:04:34Z")
Of course, for much of the elderly, the bath tub/shower stall is a death trap. Hell, I’m not that old and it kicks my ass every once in a while. You can hear it chuckling, if you listen closely. ---
**Author:** ![John\_Mace](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/john_mace/32/185_2.png) [@John\_Mace](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/John_Mace)\ **Post date:** [January 11, 2015, 7:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-dont-people-bathe/709475/43 "2015-01-11T19:44:40Z")
> [@Stringbean](#): > > I prefer to bathe every two or three days, sometimes four even. > > But I don’t have a strong body odor, and can easily get away with it. > > I think the people the OP describes simply don’t know they smell like shit. Yeah, my farts don’t stink either. I don’t know what people are complaining about! ---
**Author:** ![D4S3R](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/3d9bf3/32.png) [@D4S3R](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/D4S3R)\ **Post date:** [January 11, 2015, 10:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-dont-people-bathe/709475/44 "2015-01-11T22:18:18Z")
I have wondered this before, and concluded that they are all married to one of those people that use so much perfume or cologne that it sets your nostrils on fire. What you are witnessing, I believe, is a private olfactory war being waged in public. Any takers? ---
**Author:** ![Melbourne](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/b5e925/32.png) [@Melbourne](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Melbourne)\ **Post date:** [January 11, 2015, 10:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-dont-people-bathe/709475/45 "2015-01-11T22:34:00Z")
> [@PurpleClogs](#): > > But I’m in the camp that it’s usually their clothes. They can shower all they want, but if their clothes are not clean, the odor lingers. It can be very difficult to get odours out of clothes. They put perfumes in washing powders, but that just covers up the problem temporarily. ---
**Author:** ![Melbourne](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/b5e925/32.png) [@Melbourne](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Melbourne)\ **Post date:** [January 11, 2015, 10:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-dont-people-bathe/709475/46 "2015-01-11T22:42:45Z")
> [@Shakester](#): > > I have it on very good authority that if you’re a heroin addict, water on skin feels very unpleasant if you’re anywhere near suffering withdrawal. Which is why most junkies are so notoriously dirty. > > I’m sure there are similar afflictions, water on skin is just not a pleasant sensation for some people. Detoxing from alcohol can make you stink really really bad. And of course you can smell pretty bad just sobering up after a bad night. And regarding diet: not eating also makes you stink pretty bad. Mostly people on carbohydrate exclusion diets, but also people on “detox” diets: the body creates all kinds of noxious toxins when you shift to breaking down fat and protein instead of eating. But on an individual basis, who knows? I was in the department store looking at suits last week, and the assistant reminded me that if you wanted to treat your suit properly, you should only get it cleaned once a year… ---
**Author:** ![Marion\_Wormer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/d07c76/32.png) [@Marion\_Wormer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marion_Wormer)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2015, 12:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-dont-people-bathe/709475/47 "2015-01-12T00:04:00Z")
> [@carnut](#): > > Once upon a time, I had a coworker who’s scent everyone complained about. They’d leave him soaps and colognes as hints to wash. I never smelled anything odd. Because I was approachable, he asked me about all the soaps. I explained what I’d heard but also mentioned that I didn’t notice the problem. He said he bathed and never wore clothes twice without washing them and that he couldn’t smell a problem either. I just said, maybe you should talk to a doctor. > > It’s odd that I couldn’t smell what so many others could. Usually, I notice body odor right away. There are people with the disease [Trimethylaminuria](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Trimethylaminuria). For the people who have it, it’s a horrible disastrous disease. I read an article about a woman who had it, who was even rejected from her church. Her husband and a few others couldn’t smell the odor. She was able to reduce the odor by carefully managing her diet, but people would be unutterably rude to her. ---
**Author:** ![Rick\_Kitchen](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rick_kitchen/32/522_2.png) [@Rick\_Kitchen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rick_Kitchen)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2015, 2:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-dont-people-bathe/709475/48 "2015-01-12T02:18:26Z")
Sometimes it’s a matter of diet. A person’s smell may be something they don’t recognize because it results from the food they eat, and they don’t notice it. A woman I used to work with had this situation. ---
**Author:** ![carnut](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnut/32/3531_2.png) [@carnut](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carnut)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2015, 3:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-dont-people-bathe/709475/49 "2015-01-12T03:15:43Z")
> [@Rick\_Kitchen](#): > > Sometimes it’s a matter of diet. A person’s smell may be something they don’t recognize because it results from the food they eat, and they don’t notice it. A woman I used to work with had this situation. The head of HR at a small company complained to me, an employee, about how badly the contractors from India smelled bad. I laughed and said it’s their diet. They think you smell funny. You should have seen her expression. The concept was new to her. I hope it led to other mind-opening thoughts because as head of HR, she needed them. ---
**Author:** ![stui\_magpie](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/stui_magpie/32/11010_2.png) [@stui\_magpie](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/stui_magpie)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2015, 3:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-dont-people-bathe/709475/50 "2015-01-12T03:52:44Z")
> [@Melbourne](#): > > Detoxing from alcohol can make you stink really really bad. And of course you can smell pretty bad just sobering up after a bad night. > > And regarding diet: not eating also makes you stink pretty bad. Mostly people on carbohydrate exclusion diets, but also people on “detox” diets: the body creates all kinds of noxious toxins when you shift to breaking down fat and protein instead of eating. > > But on an individual basis, who knows? I was in the department store looking at suits last week, and the assistant\*\* reminded me that if you wanted to treat your suit properly, you should only get it cleaned once a year.\*\*… WTF? Really? I wear suits to work and I get them dry cleaned roughly monthly. 3 suits each with 2 pair of pants, I rotate the wear so a pair of pants might get 2 days then hung up for a week or 10 days before being worn again. No chance could I leave it that long. I also shower at least once a day, twice if i get all sweaty. ---
**Author:** ![Jamicat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/c67d28/32.png) [@Jamicat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jamicat)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2015, 4:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-dont-people-bathe/709475/51 "2015-01-12T04:04:58Z")
I shower when I’m dirty, like If worked in dirt all day and im just like, Noo. The other time I showered was when I had company in bed, she did too, so that’s a plus. ---
**Author:** ![bump](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/7c8e57/32.png) [@bump](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bump)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2015, 4:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-dont-people-bathe/709475/52 "2015-01-12T04:26:51Z")
> [@carnut](#): > > The head of HR at a small company complained to me, an employee, about how badly the contractors from India smelled bad. > > I laughed and said it’s their diet. I don’t buy that. I went to grad school with a bunch of Indian people, and at work (IT Department), we have a freaking swarm of Indian contractors working for us. The vast majority do not smell bad, but the ones that do… smell like they don’t freaking bathe AND eat funky stuff. These guys who do stink… well, they stink out loud. Like from feet away, and it lingers. That’s not diet, that’s just grunge. The thing I don’t get is how bathing/showering isn’t an automatic habitual thing. I mean, I shower daily whether I “need it” or no, and only occasionally on the weekends do I skip a shower if I’m not doing anything or going anywhere and am just feeling slothful. I can get not shaving daily, but in general, not bathing daily is in the same league of filth as not brushing or flossing your teeth daily, or not wiping your ass or things like that. ---
**Author:** ![Guinastasia](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guinastasia/32/5751_2.png) [@Guinastasia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Guinastasia)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2015, 6:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-dont-people-bathe/709475/53 "2015-01-12T06:01:35Z")
When I was in high school, I worked at this family owned grocery store, and there was this one guy who’d come in, he ALWAYS wore the same clothes, and he ALWAYS reeked of cheap cigars and BO. It was absolutely disgusting. I also once waited on an old woman who smelled so strongly of unwashed crotch I had to leave the register for like, ten minutes after she left, the funk stuck around that long. I can’t imagine not bathing daily. When I was in the hospital a few years ago, I could only do with a sponge bath, and I was about ready to climb the walls, I wanted a shower so bad. And when I was going through a bad spot of depression, I actually took MORE showers. It’s like, I was hiding in my shower. ---
**Author:** ![Broomstick](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/broomstick/32/246_2.png) [@Broomstick](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Broomstick)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2015, 9:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-dont-people-bathe/709475/54 "2015-01-12T09:58:27Z")
> [@bump](#): > > The thing I don’t get is how bathing/showering isn’t an automatic habitual thing. I mean, I shower daily whether I “need it” or no, and only occasionally on the weekends do I skip a shower if I’m not doing anything or going anywhere and am just feeling slothful. > > I can get not shaving daily, but in general, not bathing daily is in the same league of filth as not brushing or flossing your teeth daily, or not wiping your ass or things like that. Everything you mention is a _learned_ behavior. No one is born wanting to bathe daily, it’s something you learn. It wasn’t that long ago that someone bathing daily was a rare thing. Partly that was due to difficulties in heating water on something like a stove, which is no longer an issue for most people in the US. Thus, we are no longer accustomed to BO everywhere and hyperaware of bodily odors that are actually quite normal. ---
**Author:** ![Anaamika](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/5f9b8f/32.png) [@Anaamika](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Anaamika)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2015, 2:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-dont-people-bathe/709475/55 "2015-01-12T14:39:49Z")
It is a learned thing. Somewhere in my teen years - I can’t remember when - I found showering in the morning made my hair more tractable and woke me up. But i was already trained to bathe/shower daily, it was just the timing of it that I chose. That being said, it is still odd to me that someone, after 3-4 days of being unwashed, would not think to take a shower, especially if they have all the amenities. Especially women. Not that men don’t stink, but we women have added…responsibilities, I suppose is a polite word. I remember my dad once telling me about this woman who came to his gas station many years ago, and she hadn’t showered or bathed for like, 12 years. He said her hair was this matted…thing on her back (she still kept it long) and it was just gross. She was from some kind of hippei commune, though. ---
**Author:** ![overlyverbose](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/9dc877/32.png) [@overlyverbose](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/overlyverbose)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2015, 4:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-dont-people-bathe/709475/56 "2015-01-12T16:53:15Z")
My brother-in-law showers regularly and reeks about 2-3 hours after a shower. It’s not that he’s not clean, but just a combination of his body chemistry and possibly faulty deodorant. He’s also extremely hairy - not sure whether that makes any difference, but it might. Also, sometimes very large people or even people who aren’t flexible, whether due to injury or illness, can’t get to all the “nooks and crannies.” Thinking about that makes me wonder what the hell I smelled like when I was pregnant and working around a very heavy uterus in the shower. ---
**Author:** ![cwthree](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/9de0a6/32.png) [@cwthree](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cwthree)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2015, 5:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-dont-people-bathe/709475/57 "2015-01-12T17:29:40Z")
> [@flatlined](#): > > Sometimes the odor is diet related. I used to have a bf who showered at least once a day and also changed clothes at least once a day. I always knew when he ate at his mom’s house because he would reek for days. This made me remember when cwSpouse was taking the dietary supplement MSM (M something Sulfur M something). The sulfur can show up in perspiration and on the breath. Good grief, he stank. Fortunately the supplement want helping him anyway and he gave it up without an argument. ---
**Author:** ![GrumpyBunny](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/bc8723/32.png) [@GrumpyBunny](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GrumpyBunny)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2015, 5:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-dont-people-bathe/709475/58 "2015-01-12T17:44:33Z")
> [@bump](#): > > I don’t buy that. I went to grad school with a bunch of Indian people, and at work (IT Department), we have a freaking swarm of Indian contractors working for us. > > The vast majority do not smell bad, but the ones that do… smell like they don’t freaking bathe AND eat funky stuff. These guys who do stink… well, they stink out loud. Like from feet away, and it lingers. That’s not diet, that’s just grunge. Where I’ve worked, the Indians will usually gently mention the need to bathe daily if there’s a problem with a newbie. Now, 100 dishes of Indian food in the microwaves every day at lunch kind of freaks people out… I’m pretty lucky in this regard – I have lifelong sinus problems (and now polyps), and I’m “blind” to some odors entirely. Someone really has to reek before I notice. ---
**Author:** ![foolsguinea](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/foolsguinea/32/14751_2.png) [@foolsguinea](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/foolsguinea)\ **Post date:** [January 13, 2015, 2:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-dont-people-bathe/709475/59 "2015-01-13T02:32:44Z")
> [@John\_Mace](#): > > Yeah, my farts don’t stink either. I don’t know what people are complaining about! To be fair, some people do have relatively little body odor for various reasons. ---
**Author:** ![bump](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/7c8e57/32.png) [@bump](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bump)\ **Post date:** [January 13, 2015, 3:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-dont-people-bathe/709475/60 "2015-01-13T03:34:27Z")
> [@GrumpyBunny](#): > > Now, 100 dishes of Indian food in the microwaves every day at lunch kind of freaks people out… Actually, the Indian co-workers are the single most awesome thing about potluck dinners at my company. We’ll have the usual variety of things like scalloped potatoes, green beans, chips, dips, etc… and then huge plates of samosas, tandoori chicken, those weird little cake balls in syrup, 2-3 different kinds of rice side dishes as well as biryani and all sorts of other things that are awesome, but that I don’t know what they’re called. What kind of freaks people out is when people (no idea what nationality) bring in day-old fish dishes and microwave that shit; it’ll pollute half the floor of the building with fish stench. And on the whole, I like fish, but some of these dishes have horrendous fishy odors. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-dont-people-bathe/709475.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-dont-people-bathe/709475.md?page=4)