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While driving back to campus from work last week, a billboard caught my eye. It read, “Save water. Shower tomorrow.” This took me aback, because I don’t think I have ever in my whole life witnessed an encouragement to take less showers. In America at least, the rhetoric is always that you can never be clean enough. Bodily odors are looked down upon, and greasy hair is “gross”. Not showering is associated with several negative stereotypes, and many people I know feel like their day is incomplete without a shower. It is estimated that 2/3 of American adults shower daily. In fact, most people will swear by the benefits of this approach to hygiene, like containment
of body odor, removing dirt from the skin, cleansing of bacteria, and improved confidence. There are also general mental health benefits of having a routine to stick to, and many people use showers to wake themselves up in the morning or wind down in the evening. While these advantages are certainly something to think about, I couldn’t help but wonder what this billboard was getting at.
In addition to common daily showers, the average shower in the US lasts for 8 minutes, using 16 gallons of water, according to . This adds up to about 1 trillion gallons of water used yearly just for showers. Not only is that a lot of water, but it is also not necessarily good for you to be showering daily. Excessive showers is linked to dry skin. Dry skin can cause an increased amount of bacteria to be introduced into your body through the cracks, as well as a weakened immune system due to all the “good” bacteria being routinely washed off.
During the few days we were out of power here on campus due to hurricane Helene, I found myself wishing for a shower. The temperature was getting up there due to the lack of air conditioning. In the cottage, we did have access to indoor lighting because of our skylights, but we still needed our doors and windows wide open. Even with this attempt at ventilation, it was still getting hard to sit, unentertained, in a sauna. This period of time had me welcoming a cold shower (as if I had a choice – we had no hot water). While we do have regular access to hot water and air conditioning now, a cold shower need not be a temporary product of a situation.
Not showering daily may sound extreme to some, and for certain skin and hair types, is just not doable. However, taking colder showers can be a great way to lessen the environmental impact of a person’s need to shower daily. This can encourage shorter showers due to less comfort, in addition to decreasing carbon emissions. Credibly Green reports that using cold water as opposed to hot water can save up to 3 times the amount of emissions. And you don’t have to jump straight into a cold shower. Decreasing the temperature just a little bit at a time can be helpful in acclimating, and a warm shower is better than a boiling hot one!
Are cold showers definitely not for you? That’s understandable. Another way to reduce daily water consumption is called the “navy shower.” These showers, which originated on naval ships where water resources were scarce, are actually not as unglamorous as they might sound. All you do is turn the water off in between steps of your shower!
This method uses only about 3 gallons of water total per shower, compared to the 16 gallon average in the US.
The use of reasoning like this is vital to creating environmental allies. If you present environmental protection as a hassle or work-intensive, people are less likely to make changes. This is exactly what WildAid has done with the billboard I saw, as well as many other initiatives out there, a gallery of which is available at https://www.theenvironmentexcuse.org/media/.
Contrary to the title, I do not actually believe in the merit of bad hygiene. However, mindful hygiene practices and simple habit changes are a stepping stone to a sustainable life and future. At the end of the day, we know our own needs best, so the routine that works for you is the one that you should follow. Even so, we should always be open to trying out a new approach, especially if there are possible benefits to it!
Works cited:
Media Gallery – The Environment Excuse. (2023, February 6). https://www.theenvironmentexcuse.org/media/
Shmerling, R. (2019, June 28). Showering daily — is it necessary? – Harvard Health Blog. Harvard Health Blog. https://www.health.harvard.edu/blog/showering-daily-is-it-necessary-2019062617193
(2023, February 16). Hot vs Cold Showers. Credibly Green. https://www.crediblygreen.com/2023/02/16/environmental-impact-of-hot-vs-cold-showers/
Stonestream. (2022, October 11). What is a navy shower?. StoneStream UK. https://www.stone-stream.com/post/what-is-a-navy-shower?srsltid=AfmBOorXpaPTDH4bKUL9594S5qtXXdUoBd3twNbLpK619tPzVrbGlnDL