Personal hygiene habits are, well, personal. Everybody has a different routine when it comes to when and how often they like to wash, brush, scrub, and clean. That's particularly true when it comes to shower frequency. Where one person may think a daily rinse is the answer, another may only feel the need to shower every couple of days, according to a new survey.
YouGov asked 5,713 U.S. adults about their bathing habits. Read on to discover how often most Americans wash themselves and find out how common your shower frequency is compared to others.
RELATED: If You're Doing This in the Shower, Doctors Say to Stop Immediately.
1 | Less than once a week
ShutterstockRespondents who shower this often: One percent
No matter how often you shower, one thing you should never do when cleansing yourself is go to the bathroom.
"If you pee in the shower, or turn on the faucet or turn on the shower and then sit on the toilet to pee while the shower is running, you're creating an association in the brain between the sound of running water and having to pee," Alicia Jeffrey-Thomas, MD, a certified pelvic floor physical therapist with a doctorate in physical therapy, said in a viral video on TikTok.
RELATED: If You Do This in the Shower, Stop Immediately, Doctor Says.
2 | Once a week
ShutterstockRespondents who shower this often: Two percent
While summer is winding to a close, it is not over yet. Which means, one summer shower tip you'll want to keep in mind—especially if you're not a frequent shower-taker by, well, nature—is remembering to rinse off after spending any amount of time outdoors.
The CDC says that taking a shower within at least two hours of coming indoors has been "shown to reduce your risk of getting Lyme disease and may be effective in reducing the risk of other tickborne disease."
3 | Once every six days
ShutterstockRespondents who shower this often: One percent
One common shower habit you want to avoid is leaving the drain uncovered when you are done washing. Why? Because an open drain is an open invitation to cockroaches, entomologist Don Miller told Action News Now.
4 | Once every five days
iStockRespondents who shower this often: Two percent
If your hygiene habits involve a less than frequent shower schedule, that may actually be to your advantage when it comes to staying safe during a thunderstorm, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) says.
"Lightning can travel through a building's plumbing," according to the CDC, and the free ions within your water can conduct electricity, which means that you risk being struck by lightning if you shower while it is storming.
5 | Once every four days
iStockRespondents who shower this often: Two percent
Whether you're on a once every four days shower schedule or not, if you're a morning shower taker, it's important to monitor the temperature of the water if you don't want to damage your skin.
"Your morning shower should be lukewarm and not overly hot," professional aestheticianAlison Angold recently told Best Life. "Very hot water will not only dry out the skin, but will also remove the skin's surface barrier—the acid mantle. The acid mantle is made up of sweat and sebum and gives us an invisible layer of anti-bacterial protection. This protection prevents bacteria from entering the skin, but also protects against excessive dryness, sensitivity, irritation, congestion, and breakouts, so it's an essential component of the skin."
6 | Once every three days
iStockRespondents who shower this often: Six percent
Temperature control is also important if you prefer to take a shower after the sun goes down—at least it is if you want to get a good night's sleep.
"If you take a shower close to bedtime and it's a very hot or cold shower, that temperature can negatively affect your sleep," Rachel Salas, MD, a sleep neurologist at the Johns Hopkins Center for Sleep and Wellness, told The Washington Post. "What you're doing is you're making your body temperature so different from baseline."
RELATED: Never Do This When You Shower at Night, Doctors Warn.
7 | Once every two days
iStockRespondents who shower this often: 20 percent
If you are showering once every two days, you may actually have another hygiene habit that doctors recommend: not washing your hair every day.
Using shampoo every day can apparently strip your hair of natural oils it needs to protect it from breakage and keep your scalp from drying out. This is why Carolyn Goh, MD, assistant clinical professor of medicine at the David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA, told WebMD that it's best to wash your hair every two to three days.
For more helpful hygiene hacks sent straight to your inbox, sign up for our daily newsletter.
8 | Once a day
iStockRespondents who shower this often: 51 percent
While the majority of Americans shower every day, some experts say it is probably not necessary.
“When it comes to concerns about health, however, it’s not at all clear that a daily shower accomplishes much,” Robert Shmerling, MD, clinical chief of rheumatology at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center at Harvard Medical School and faculty editor at Harvard Health Publishing, told Considerable.“In fact, a daily shower may even be bad for your health.”
9 | More than once a day
iStockRespondents who shower this often: 11 percent
If showering once a day can be bad for your health, it stands to reason that showering even more could be an even bigger risk.
In fact, excessive showering can actually "break down the skin’s acid mantle, its natural protective barrier, leaving it vulnerable to bacterial and viral invasion," Considerable reports.
RELATED: The One Time of Day You Shouldn't Shower Right Now, Experts Say.
