Mila Kunis, Ashton Kutcher don't shower every day, laugh off reactions. Should you bathe daily?
To shower or not to shower: That is the question. Because in 2021, the second year of a deadly global pandemic, the people, the celebrities and the internet is mulling over proper bathing habits.
Earlier this month, Ashton Kutcher and Mila Kunis came on Dax Shepard's "Armchair Expert" podcast and became the trending topic of the day when they revealed they don't shower every day... at least not with soap.
"I don't wash my body with soap every day," Kunis said, clarifying she does wash her armpits, feet and most intimate areas daily. Kutcher wasn't much different. "I wash my armpits and my crotch daily, and nothing else ever," he said.
Kunis and Kutcher shared they don't wash their kids, Dimitri 4, and Wyatt, 6, daily either.
"Here's the thing, if you can see the dirt on them, clean them," Kutcher said. "Otherwise, there's no point."
The couple's hygiene practices had the internet divided and brought back memories of the great May 2019 Twitter debate on washing your legs in the shower. They've since poked fun at the uproar ("You're putting water on the children? Are you trying to melt them? Are you trying to injure them with water?" Kutcher joked with Kunis in an Instagram video Wednesday).
Kunis and Kutcher might want to revisit their family's bathing habits as experts agree that adults should be showering every day.
Should you shower every day?
The consensus is yes.
We asked Michelle Henry, MD and Fellow of the American Academy of Dermatology, Breanna Brown, an esthetician at Ella Esthetics, and Corey L. Hartman, MD, FAAD and founder of Skin Wellness Dermatology in Birmingham, Alabama. They all agree that adults should be showering daily.
Younger children should be fully bathed once or twice a week, while kids ages 6 to 11 should shower twice to three times a week, Henry says noting that it's not OK to wait until kids are visibly dirty to wash them.
"If you're waiting too long, then you can get a buildup of dirt, oil, debris and bacteria and those things will cause inflammation," Henry says. "If we allow too much buildup of bad bacteria that we're not washing away, that can flare eczema, and that oil, dirt and debris can clog the pores and cause acne and folliculitis."
When you hit puberty, your body starts to produce a type of sweat that bacteria feeds on, which is what creates body odor and is one reason Henry says adults should bathe daily.
"If you're not sweating a lot or you're staying at home, you tend to not feel very oily. And if you feel like your particular body odor isn't that offensive, then it's a personal decision to not shower every day," Henry says.
If you're hitting the streets – whether it's for a Hinge date (16th time's a charm, right?) or catching up with friends to spill the tea about said date – Brown says a daily shower, preferably at night, is definitely necessary.
When you're out in the elements, your body and even your clothes come into contact with things you touch and pollutants in the air. Even when you're sitting at home, your body still produces oil, Brown notes.
"Your body has so many appendages and nooks and crannies that can harbor bacteria... so you want to be cleansing every day to avoid disease and illness," she says.
What taking a shower looks like
Taking a shower doesn't mean the same thing for everyone – as proven by Kunis and Kutcher.
For some, a shower means a quick rinse with some water sans soap, and for others, it means lathering up the entire body (legs included) with a soapy loofah. So, what is the real definition?
"While water is essential to the shower, it is not necessary to lather up the entire body with soap, especially if the skin is prone to dryness or eczema," Hartman says. "Soap should be reserved for the areas that tend to sweat the most and where skin touches skin like the (armpits), groin and under the breasts in women."
Brown says it's actually more hygienic to use your hands rather than a loofah or washcloth as the latter two tend to harbor more bacteria, but it's up to an individual's preference what method they choose.
Henry personally uses a washcloth and says gentle exfoliation can help keep the pores unclogged.
What Henry does think is necessary, though, is washing your legs as it's not sufficient to simply let soapy water run down your body.
"I am a fan of washing the entire body. So wash your arms, wash your legs," Henry says. "If you're getting in the shower and never washing your legs, then it could be a month and your legs haven't been washed."
Will daily showers dry out your skin?
If you're showering and moisturizing properly, daily showers shouldn't cause you to have dry skin.
"While it is true that over washing can cause skin to become dry, irritated and itchy, the application of an emollient cream can help to replenish hydration and moisture," Hartman says.
The skin's pH shouldn't be thrown off balance if you're using lukewarm water and gentle cleansers, Henry says, recommending Dove and Cetaphil soaps as they're not too aggressive on the skin.
Henry suggests "cleansing for a short period of time so we don't dry out the skin, using the appropriate cleanser and then moisturizing so we give that skin back those ceramides and oils and lipids that it needs to maintain, not only its comfort but its function."