People Who Don't Wear Deodorant or Seemingly Bathe Regularly, Why?
Like, I travel around for work and I've met plenty of people from all backgrounds.
Why is there a demographic of people who don't seemingly bathe regularly, or at the very least wear something to cover up their BO? I could understand if it's an allergy, or even religious reasons (though the people I've met that smell bad are usually you're average American young adult man) but recently (like in the past week, recently) I've met a concerning number of people who don't seem to wear any kind of deodorant or possibly don't even bathe regularly; it's starting to become an issue for me, as I don't even want to interact with them when I can smell them walking up from 3+ feet away yet I need to for work.
Does anyone have any possible insight?
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I look forward to reading what an online community that specializes in Linux and Star Trek memes has to say about personal hygiene...
I'm sorry, personal what? Is there a GitHub link where I can compile that?
Is this a joke I'm too C# to understand?
This had me rolling on the floor.. 😅
When you're so busy remembering to FOSS that you forget to floss 😢
People should shower regularly, but I find the aromas wafting from people who use many fragrance products far more offensive and offputting than someone smelling like a human. Some people's shampoo, laundry detergent and deodorant (not to mention body spray, cologne or perfume) are so strong that I can smell them from 5 feet away, and the odor lingers for several minutes after they leave an area. I don't really care what it smells like as much as that I seem to be allergic to these fragrances, and sneeze, get red eyes, my nose starts running my lips swell a bit. This is why some places have instituted a fragrance-free policy - as many as 25% of people have an allergy to various components of these perfumes. Unfortunately it's a very touchy thing to explain to people as the average person thinks they're doing something virtuous by wearing a bunch of fragrances and it makes them more appealing to be around.
People become nose blind to their perfumes and deoderants so they put on more and more over time to smell the same (from their perspective). My mom has the same issue but claims it's all in my head.
My mom and dad's hair products are about the worst thing imaginable. After they take showers I can hardly go in the same room as them for 3-4 hours and the scent even lingers for 5-10 minutes after they walk out. She said 'huh? it has a scent?'
Every single day, when I am out walking my dog, a jogger comes by smelling of like a shit-ton of soap/perfume/deodorant/body spray - I nearly gag. These guys (and sometimes girls) are so terrified they might smell sweaty when doing something, you know, sweaty, like jogging a couple of miles...it boggles my mind.
Who taught people we have to smell like artificial bouquets of flowers all the time, even when exercising, ffs?
Yeah, and when your body wants to sweat, you MUST stop it. I've wondered with all the different scented products people wear at the same time, why they want to smell like the average of 12 different synthetic flowers.
Detergent and perfume companies
I had a really weird thing years back, never since then.
Middle-aged white women wearing something, no idea what, would gag me out. I don't mean it was merely offensive, I mean I'd hold my breath near them. Made me low key nauseous.
Had that problem for a couple of years, haven't smelled that for maybe 10 years. Anyone have a clue what I mean or what it might have been?
LOL, and you would hate my wife. She's Asian, so I'm not sure she's capable of body odor, but she's so paranoid about it she bathes twice a day and hoses herself in perfume, hair too. I love it up close, but I don't think you would pick it up from 5'.
I've become familiar with several different classes of horrible fragrances that people use. There's the one that smells like salty roses, one that smells like 'old ladies' (this gross light flower-lavender scent?), one that's like a bunch of synthetic grapes and other fruit, the 'cotton candy' kind of dryer sheet scent, some that smell like flowers mixed with burning plastic... not sure which one you might have encountered. I find if I take antihistamines it's more 'huh, I smell that' vs. a toxic emergency, but I prefer to just avoid it. I do hold my breath in some circumstances, like if I have to walk down the laundry detergent aisle in the grocery store.
I actually can smell many people's scents from 5 feet away and still smell their fragrances after they exit an area. I'm probably more sensitive because I don't wear clothes coated in this stuff and sleep in sheets soaked in it.
And this is why I don't do deodorants and perfumes.
And I don't explain as well, I just steer away from that person.
You can find unscented antiperspirant, FWIW
Yes, but they're a lot more expensive than the mainstream ones.
Can’t say I agree with that
https://www.walmart.com/ip/Arm-Hammer-ULTRA-MAX-Solid-Antiperspirant-Deodorant-Unscented-2-6-oz/10810917?wmlspartner=wlpa&selectedSellerId=0&wl13=5229&adid=2222222227810810917_117755028669_12420145346&wmlspartner=wmtlabs&wl0=&wl1=g&wl2=m&wl3=501107745824&wl4=pla-2290367806927&wl5=9007243&wl6=&wl7=&wl8=&wl9=pla&wl10=8175035&wl11=local&wl12=10810917&wl13=5229&veh=sem_LIA&gclsrc=aw.ds&&adid=2222222223810810917_117755028669_12420145346&wl0=&wl1=g&wl2=m&wl3=501107745824&wl4=pla-2290367806927&wl5=9007243&wl6=&wl7=&wl8=&wl9=pla&wl10=8175035&wl11=local&wl12=10810917&veh=sem&gad_source=1&gbraid=0AAAAADmfBIqI9hFYUeEgJZfSJlIYlZqzV&gclid=EAIaIQobChMIhdmf1daBgwMV0mBHAR2fXg5VEBwYAiABEgJra_D_BwE
Holy mother of URLs, Batman!
Here's a cleaned up version without all those nasty trackers attached: https://www.walmart.com/ip/Arm-Hammer-ULTRA-MAX-Solid-Antiperspirant-Deodorant-Unscented-2-6-oz/10810917
Yeah, I clicked it though, cuz... it's from Wallmart, what are they gonna track here, I don't live in the US, lol 😂.
Dude, I don't live in the US 😒.
That's disgusting. You're seriously telling me you prefer week old BO over the average deodorant? That's exactly why it's called de-"odor"-ant. OP wasn't talking about covering yourself in axe body spray or copious amounts of perfume, he asked why people don't shower and use deodorant.
Yes, because it doesn’t give me an allergic reaction. Clearly you’ve never experienced that but maybe you could imagine the difference.
You know not everyone smells as bad as you do without Deodorant, right?
Like you have a really strong opinion for something that genetically is different person to person both in what comes out and what is perceived.
Different from person to person, yet all the people I could smell all smelled very similar, like sweat and feet mixed with ass and bad breath. Every. Single. One.
There's a bit of a selection bias though.
Obviously you don't smell the people who don't smell, but not all of them wear deodorant.
I have never smelled anyone's natural body odor that smells good. Do you think poop smells good too? That's natural.
Sounds like a you problem. Moreso that everything smells like poop to you if it's not artificially created.
I want to try to be a bit nicer but wow you went from body odor to poop to argue natural smells. Isn't the typically poetic phrase of smells to "smell like flowers" you know...a natural occurrence in nature?
My point is that natural isn't always good. I know, a hard concept to understand. Human BO doesn't smell like flowers
Also means it's not always bad. You can't dictate what people should do and decidedly say it will always be gross off of a "sometimes" like you've been doing in this thread.
You're honestly arguing a lot of "maybe" for what other people say while being very black/white yourself. Might want to check that.
That's a false dichotomy though. The obvious third option is to shower every day and wear clean clothes?
Depressed.
This is the way.
Or Hippies
They're a hippy for having emotions? Yikes. What does that tell you about your worldview?
I am friends with a lot of hippy-archetypical folks… and many of them don’t do the bathing/deodorant thing with the frequency that’s commonly expected by the majority. Just saying they choose to be au natural… and maybe that’s ok.
I’m actually a little surprised that my hot take got so much hate… I inferred was there are multiple reasons that people don’t bath. I posed this as an or… as an alternative. I didn’t suggest depression isn’t a reason.
Oh ok, I misunderstood then. I thought you were playing a little game of word association, not suggesting an alternative. My bad!
I was this kid all throughout my school years.
Parents never taught me any kind of personal hygiene, and my house was filled with a thick smog of smoke, so my sense of smell is still shot to this day. To give an idea how bad it was, I was asking for dentures when I was 14 because my teeth were literally falling out. The water in our house was spotty at best, on top of the hygiene thing, so baths were maybe once every 2 weeks or so. My parents always had a fridge stocked with Coca Cola, but almost never drinkable water.
Besides pointing at my parents, I don't really have an explanation for you, but I've definitely "been there."
It took a lot of effort, but I've come a looooong way since then. Like... unrecognizably so, thankfully - other than the dentures, at least.
If anyone is reading this, and in a situation where their home life or depression or whathaveyou is putting you in this kind of situation: Just know that things can and will get better. I know how difficult and embarrassing it can be when you're deep in it, but all you gotta do is be a little bit better than yesterday (when you're able). It takes time, but it's totally worth it.
Wow thank you for sharing. I grew up poor and grubby too, but my folks were health food nuts, so I think I got spared the worst of it compared to some people I've seen.
I'm so glad things have got better for you.
My girlfriend finds showering and bathing extremely painful due to several very severe skin conditions. She’s also allergic to almost every deodorant that doesn’t cost a ridiculous amount. She doesn’t sweat a whole lot so it’s usually not an issue, and can get away with only one shower a week usually. Her conditions are pretty rare so I’m not saying everyone who doesn’t shower regularly has what she has, but there might be factors at play for some that give them legitimate reason not to shower. Or it could just be laziness
I gotta ask, what is your weather like where you are, because no one could get away with one shower per week where I live (about 26 to 32 Celsius on average), let alone if doing some physical activity, whether for pleasure or work.
During the summer it can get up to 30, during the winter down to -20 ish. -5 up to 20 is the normal range though. Not sure how but she rarely sweats. She’s always freezing cold. Her sweat also doesn’t really smell much, not sure if that’s a pH balance or what, idk much about that.
I don't think you're going to find anyone that admits to smelling bad. I assume people who smell bad do it because they don't know that they smell, so they don't try to change anything.
Yep, that's likely the problem with most people. It's nothing you usually talk about and people won't change problems they aren't aware off. We should probably normalize talking about it without anyone being offended.
Actually, I saw two people saying they prefer BO. Bewildering admission if you ask me
Yeah that weirded me out too. Comes across as someone making excuses for not wanting to practice basic hygiene though.
I prefer it to perfume.
And I saw someone being an asshole regarding their preferences.
Preferences?
Not stinking up a whole room goes beyond a preference into a biohazard warning.
Make that two, I suppose.
What is it with this extremism? People don't instantly turn into heaps of rotting garbage the moment they neglect to put some chemicals on their underarms.
extremism ._.
Yes. Is "biohazard warning" not hyperbolic in the extreme?
So, expecting basic hygiene from people is extremism now?
No, calling a smell that you find unpleasant a "biohazard" is extreme.
If, hypothetically, I found body piercings to be distasteful, wouldn't it be kind of an overreaction for me to demand that paramedics come fix the "stab wounds" on people with piercings that I encounter?
I mean actual shit smell is a biohazard, though. Like if someone didn't wipe well enough, that's a biohazard (very minor, but still).
A lot of people simply don't know proper hygiene because they were never taught it.
A shower doesn't mean let the water run over you for a few minutes and then spray on some deodorant. Lather some soap in to a flannel and scrub every part of your body, and if you sweat badly use antiperspirant.
But it's recent thing you've noticed. People might be cutting back on things due to budget. Not many people would admit that they're not showering because of financial worries.
I was that person as a kid. I‘m autistic and my proprioception (feeling of body stuff) is all over the place. I didn’t know back then but I do now.
My parents didnt tell me and I had to learn by being bullied for it at school.
Since its not always easy, I have a different take on cleaning:
If you‘re in a bad mood/are broke and cant shower use a piece of cloth and spot clean mentioned areas.
Use deodorant daily, if you sweat profusely like I do, use stronger/prescription deodorant.
I hope that helps.
I was brought up before showers were something that most people had installed, and we just washed at the sink with a flannel cloth. We washed face, pits, bum, and feet twice a day, and only had a bath once or twice a week. I still just do a wash of the important bits at the sink with a cloth if I'm feeling very apathetic.
Exactly.
Fair shout and well written post.
I work manual labour, so it's a full wash for me every day!
Thanks. Appreciate the feedback.
That's not recommended by dermatologists. Soap destroys the acid layer on your skin that keeps bacteria out. As a regular thing, you should therefore only lather on soap where the bacteria buildup is high enough, i.e. under your arms, in your butt crack and other skin folds.
Unless you got super sweaty, you shouldn't soap up your arms and legs every day.
I can't stand the feel of human-produced skin oils building up anywhere on my body. I need to feel squeaky clean to feel clean. But that might be just my own personal mental problems. I never even use lotion. I just can't stand grease and oily substances. Seeing or feeling my own fingerprints on my devices sends me into a rage of wiping everything down with alcohol.
For what it’s worth, scrubbing to get that “squeaky clean” feeling removes the protective layer of sebum between your skin cells. It dries out your skin, and hence, causes your body to go into overdrive producing more oils. As a result, you end up really greasy by the end of the day. After learning this, I backed off the temperature of my daily shower, switched to a pure Castile soap, less of it, and stopped scrubbing vigorously. Now I don’t leave oily smudges on my phone screen, except after sweating a lot. Also, no more itchy, dry skin and cracking knuckles in the winter.
Phones and keyboard are filthy, but it's more about people usually not cleaning them enough and not about people not being clean enough.
The amount of bacteria on thoroughly and often soap-washed skin very quickly rises high because of the missing acid and/or oil layer.
The “only use soap on armpits+groin+feet most of the time” recommendation is not made up.
Fair point. When I said soap, I really meant a body wash, of which pH balanced versions are available.
You also have an oil layer that keeps certain kinds of bacteria out, so don't destroy that one. As said: most days, just lather pits, groin, and feet, simply rinse the rest with water.
Everywhere around the world soap + shampoo should be free. And deodorant should be as cheap as possible. It should be a basic human right.
Add tampons ans pads to that
Copying and pasting my answer from the same question just 2 weeks ago:
https://kbin.social/m/[email protected]/t/638513/-/comment/3647566
Another sucky condition is chronic hyperhidrosis, which causes excessive, sometimes permanent (my case), sweating. I bathe every day, sometimes multiple times a day, and reapply deodorant every 5 hours or so, but even then, if you catch me at an inopportune time, I may well be sweaty.
Ugh that H word right there. I had hyperhidrosis most of my life up until my late 20's. I started using this painful stuff called Drysol which I think just worked by murdering my sweat glands
You may want to have your physician follow on that. AFAIK, studies show that chemical solutions which destroy the ability to sweat also increase severely the risk of cardiovascular illnesses.
Good lookin out m8. I haven't used it in about 15 years, but still
I highly recommend isotretinoin (accutane) for hyperhidrosis. Its primarily prescribed for zits, but off label for hyperhidrosis. Its not fun when you're on it but the changes are seemingly permanent. A full year after completing his treatment and my husband is still much less sweaty and his skin is much clearer to boot.
Talk to your dermatologist!
I appreciate the tip, but looking at the list of adverse effects, I'd rather stay as I am.
be careful with Accutane I went from a normal happy kid to attempted self harm in 3 months. then they took me off it and all the bad thoughts just stopped.
The few people I know with this issue fall into one of two categories.
Access issues. There are some kinds of road blocks accessing a quality shower/bath. Which makes showering/bathing is an uncomfortable activity for some reason. Maybe it's that their shower is really small and cramped, with a low quality shower head. Maybe it's an issue where the water quality is low in the shower they have access to. Low quality water can have an odor people find uncomfortable, or it can dry out their skin making their skin feel dry even while under the water. People naturally avoid things that make them uncomfortable even subconsciously.
Mental Health. I suffer from this occasionally. I love showering, it's extremely relaxing, but for whatever reason the process of getting into the shower is such a huge barrier to overcome. You feel like absolute dog shit. You know that a shower would make you feel better, but for whoever reason no matter how hard you try, you cannot push through the transition of wanting to shower, to taking that first step towards doing it. And it all compounds together to make you feel like an even bigger piece of shit for not being able to do something so basic. Until eventually you've doom scrolled the entire day away and now it's dark out and you're tired and you've got a stress headache because you've barely even ate today either while you just stewed in your own filth.
Well written on both parts, and it's often a combination of both. When you have mental health issues, it can also be harder to get stuff to make a shower or anything else nicer. Be it issues doing laundry, so you don't have completely clean towels and/or fresh clothes to put on afterwards, or having shampoo, conditioner, etc.
I often get stuck because I haven't showered, haven't been able to force myself to do laundry, and/or forgot to buy products. Then you really don't want to leave your home because you get anxiety over others seeing or smelling you, so you're just stuck with that anxiety for days until you manage to do anything about it.
When you live in the countryside, you have to spend several hours getting the bath house ready. During the summer you can go for a swim and it's just as convenient as showering.
In winter however... Washing yourself takes effort.
Sometimes I’ll go a few days when I’m working from home and not going anywhere out of pure laziness. But if I’m going to be interacting with other people, shower guaranteed beforehand.
Same same. Dental hygiene and face care routine is a must twice a day, but other than that I can go a couple of days without a shower. I'll be the first to admit I can get a little stanky, but there are no other people around to witness it. I think the issue with these unwashed people OP mentioned is their willingness to enter the public domain at peak stank, and their inability to notice it themselves.
This is literally what I'm talking about.
HOW do people go out in public if they know they stink? How can they live with themselves not being clean at least semi-regularly? It's baffling to me.
Same. It just doesn't compute to harm your skin when you don't plan to meet anybody. And I don't smell my own body odor anyway. Your skins microbiome and the environment say thanks. OTOH if you're sweating much you should consider a shower because the initial healthy effects of sweat on your skin wear off, when it's clogging your pores with toxins and bad bacteria it washed of beforehand.
It’s when I start smelling myself that I know I am extra stanky.
Believe it or not, most of us don’t actually need to shower every day. If you’re not doing a lot of physical work or don’t work in a place with a lot of grime, you can honestly get away with showering less often. Technically the same goes for deodorant but I wouldn’t go a day without it lol.
I personally shower once every day, but I don’t shampoo my hair nor use body wash all over my body every day. I’ll usually use conditioner only for my hair and I will regularly wash my pits, feet, privates, butt, and ears with body wash, but I only really use shampoo and use body wash everywhere like twice a week or so. I also apply deodorant every day. No comments about bad smells from everybody including a people who will straight-up comment on stuff like that, and I’ve actually got a lot of compliments about my hair :)
I do sort of agree, but also there's a lot of people who don't think they need to shower but really do. I know people who will argue that they only need to shower 2 or 3 times a week but they stink.
Maybe they say 2-3 times a week when the reality is that they’re hedging based on reaction and they actually shower closer to once a week.
That said, I realized recently that I could smell someone else’s unwashed hair. I have no idea how recently they washed it, but now I’m semi-paranoid about how fast that happens. I shower (including hair washes) at minimum every other day, with an occasional weekend spent at home when I’m extra lazy and don’t shower all weekend. I sure hope my hair doesn’t smell like that on day 2.
I think it really varies per person, I know people who genuinely shower twice a week and are fine, but I have one person in my mind now who showers daily and I can tell when I see him in the evening if his shower was in the morning.
And yeah, I can absolutely smell hair grease, it's quite a lot once you identify the smell.
Try an all natural solid bar shampoo. I went from my hair feeling lank and greasy in day two after a wash to only having to wash it twice a week.
I feel like the chemicals in just mainstream shampoo reak havoc on hair and lock you in to a daily use cycle.
You just described my usual routine. If I didn't shower that day, I'll put on some fresh deodorant and all.
I’m not surprised. I forget when I looked up the research, but several hair typed definitely don’t need shampoo as much as people think they do. That we have another product (conditioner) yo undo the damage shampoo does to out hair is astounding.
As for the overall bathing thing, I agree. It depends on what you do day to day, your environment, and genetics. With all three of those factors, some people need to bath more often than others need to.
Most of my washing routine is actually for chronic pain. I don’t need to scrub for smell too much, but hot water feels good on pained areas.
I’d take a bet you were a fast shower person. In and out in 5 min. I know I was just like that as a teen in a house of 7 people. Body odor problem was notable enough that I carried deodorant on me. I, like you, learned this simple trick later in life but shared it with my kids to help them through teenage years.
Part of this is due to the heat opening your pores on your body and the soap doing its job by cleaning out the bacteria and oils that cause the smells. Scrubbing also plays a big role too, lather and rinse using a scrubber!
Doing this has allowed for me to skip shower days and I just need to scrub my head/face to remove oils before bed. I still wear deodorant, but it’s lightly scented because otherwise I have a naturally strong orange(fruit) smell that can get overpowering (to me).
I know we’ve got some cold shower bros out there and don’t worry, this still works in cold showers, just over longer stretches of time. I know this because Mother Nature doesn’t often preheat her rivers while I’m camping, but I still stay fresher than my peers.
Yea... This is something people love to say, but it's not true for 99% of the stank out there. Is there people like that? Maybe, probably, but it's much more likely they just have poor hygiene.
It's the same with people that have bad breath... Somone will comment, well actually there are people with this genetic disease passed down by Attila, that even if you brush 8x a day you still have bad breath!!
Yea... Ok buddy.
Wearing deodorant has nothing to do with bathing regularly.
You can bath regularly and not need deodorant, every body is different. Also depends on the activities done between each bath/shower.
Now some people do not bath regularly and use deodorant or perfume, that never ends up well in terms of odor.
My experiences with stink.
Old people. Some were raised to shower infrequently because regular bathing wasn’t a luxury they had access to growing up. They carry this habit with them now. Source: I used to work with lots of old people.
People from cold climates who move to warmer ones. Sure, in Amsterdam you can shower once a week but move to Australia and you stink. Source: My ex-father-in-law is Dutch, living in Australia.
People who avoid soaps and deodorants because they prefer natural alternatives or ‘splashing and rinsing’. They think they don’t stink. Most girls I’ve met with bad smelling vaginas fall into this category. Source: Dating.
Teenagers who haven’t worked out puberty yet. Source: Used to work in a school.
Re-wearing unwashed clothes too many times. Source: Figured this one myself.
People who prefer to stink. When you don’t bathe and don’t use deodorant, you get used to the icky feeling and the smell to the point where you prefer it, and a shower and soap then makes you uncomfortable (itchy/tingly). Source: Ex-girlfriend.
You missed one: depression
That last one... How did you put up with that?
Especially with the smelly vagina point earlier in the list. 🤢
If your vagina smells bad, you should go to your doctor in case you have an infection. Vaginas should smell neutral to mild. That said, You're really not supposed to use any kind of soap in or directly around a vagina, so it's a bit concerning that you mention lack of soap and smelly vaginas in the same point. Vaginas are self cleaning and using soaps (especially with any kind of fragrance!) Can lead to serious issues. Clean with water and a newly washed wash cloth (only if you use non scented, mild detergent) or water and a clean hand. You should not clean anything past the exterior.
Let your body clean itself out with your natural lubricant, and then clean the outside with water daily.
A deodorant does not replace washing your body. The combination of both smells is the most terrifying. I hate the smell of all deodorants, so don't use them. But I shower sufficiently, you won't smell me from a distance. Promised.
How much distance are we talking about?
You choose. Plus I bet I won't like to smell your deodorant. Like most perfumes others are applying. Worst is if deodorant or perfume is used instead of washing yourself. This last comment is not on you by no means.
Same. Haven't found one I like the smell of yet. I'd rather shower more often than use them.
Really? The Bearglove scent from Old Spice smells JUST like jolly ranchers it's crazy.
Alun stone changed my life for that reason
The older I get, the more I sympathize with Agent Smith from the Matrix. What is it with people and their stink?
If only the codes to Zion's mainframes were the solution.
Mainframe sounds like an Axe spray scent name.
We’re obviously not getting the hint!
Next week's post:
Why do guys named Steve not shower regularly or wear deodorant?
I'm a Reddit moderator with over 2 million karma I don't have time to bathe. When I do bathe it's useing a garden hose because I weigh 450 pounds
So svelte! You must be the envy of all the other moderators!
Depressed autistic
sorry, i shower twice a day and wear deodorant but i just sweat so damn much that i end up smelling within a few hours no matter what :(
My advice is to use a body wash or soap with salycitic acid. It's in products for preventing or treating acne - the salycitic acid kills the bacteria that causes body odor. You can also apply a toner with salycitic acid directly to your armpits (Stridex pads work well for this - they even make ones that are larger for use on the body). I do this and have zero B.O. Some people use other antibacterial soaps like Hibiclens or Paroxyl.
Also make sure that you are wearing clean clothes (wearing the same tshirt a couple of days in a row is taking a chance).
ETA: This won't help reduce sweating but it will help with the bacteria that feeds on the sweat.
How about anti perspirant? Or is that what you meant? I'm a major fan of Arm & Hammer everything. Works, not perfumy, inexpensive, all that.
Your body is supposed to sweat. I shower twice a day rather than block my pores.
You might want to try a medication for hyperhidrosis.
What's your job that you're running into so many people with poor hygiene?
If you have ever worked on the floor of a casino, you would be appalled at the amount of disgusting pigs who gamble.
I didn't use to either shower or bathe but it was a mental health issue: I went though both depression, which didn't help, and I didnt have good showering habits due to being kinda aquaphobic. If water hit my face at all I would think I'd die (pretty dumb I know). Nowadays I bathe pretty much daily. Having a detachable showerhead helps a lot so I don't have to deal with water on my face.
It appears that a number of people in this comment section just downvote everyone that does not use deodorant for any reason. As a test: Deodorant never quite grew on me, I started hating the rather extreme and sometimes even pungent smell as a teenager. I shower (twice) daily to every third day depending on season, daily routine and other factors.
It's especially weird to me that they're so much harder on the ones who skip deodorant than the ones who skip showers. Aren't showers what actually takes the smelly shit away instead of masking it? I wouldn't be surprised if I found out these threads are created and/or maintained by deodorant marketing.
Pretty much my thinking. I'd rather have someone take care of personal hygiene than of their body odor. Save for a very few special cases where you really have to use deodorant, it is perfectly normal and acceptable to wash regularly and only deodorant sporadically when really necessary. I personally even prefer a person's "natural" (not implying that natural = good) smell to no smell at all. If you want to impress, use perfume.
Alum stone
It seems my test was successfull. Probably the same 4 people everytime.
I can almost smell you from here
Oh right now you definitely can, I am currently very sick and can barely get out of bed. Smelling non-sick is NOT a priority right now.
I shower and wear deodorant everyday, but around late afternoon the deodorant just gives out and I start to smell
You need a different deodorant. I'm a pretty heavy sweater and changing to Certain DRI "prescription strength" was a game changer for me.
I had this issue and I started using acne body wash instead of the aveeno I normally use. I use the dove men’s care spray on deodorant and have no issues. Trimming / shaving underarm hair helps as well.
Time for another shower then. In summer I'll take at least 2 showers a day if not 3
Not always possible, unfortunately. I do my best to shower in the morning and after work before I go anywhere, but if you're catching me in the late afternoon I'll probably be pretty ripe.
I find wet wipes handy for that. Just chuck a packet in your pocket, and give yourself a quick wipedown when you're in the stall.
You may want to try using an antiperspirant instead of deodorant.
I did in the past, been trying to limit the chemicals I put on or in me . Aluminum free deodorant definitely doesn't work as well as antiperspirant+deodorant
Drought. When you live in the bush and only have tank water for everything, drinking water comes before showering/bathing. When things are bad, shower once per week and use a bowl of water and wash cloth to freshen up the rest of the time. Still end up with a smell though. You can smell the drought on the people in a rural areas when you go into town.
Regular bathing isn't what you want, frequent bathing, that's important. What good is it if someone bathes with great regularity on the first of every month?
One of the common definitions of “regularly” is “frequently”. E.g. “We used to meet regularly, but less and less as time went on.” This is also why frequent customers are called “regulars”.
edit: "Happening or doing something often" is even the first definition of the Cambridge English dictionary. Misinterpreting OP's use of "regular" just feels like Stack Overflow level pedantry.
I bet you are great fun at parties
I shower every 2nd day. The 2nd day of Christmas and Easter.
I shower when I feel like I need to. Usually every 2-3 days, unless I've been sweating or working in a dirty environment. Wife says I never stink and she has the nose of a god damned bloodhound. Guess it depends on body chemistry and the PH balance of the skin. I use gentle soaps. I do wear antiperspirant everyday though. So I dunno. But I did find this:
https://www.health.harvard.edu/blog/showering-daily-is-it-necessary-2019062617193
Thank you. I am a 2-3 day showerer as well. I do wash my face every day, wash my hands regularly of course, and wear antiperspirant deodorant. I tend to shower when my hair has finally become oily enough that it's noticable, of if I start smelling bad, but my body somehow doesn't produce much of a smell. It's not that I'm just used to my own smell, I've had it confirmed by plenty of people. Even on day 3, I'm generally fresh. I do try to put a hard day 3 limit on myself, though. Times when I've pushed it to 4 days have not been so great lol
For much of my adult life I've smelled good with or without deodorant and rarely sweat much. Lately whether because of a hormonal change or something wrong I'm unaware of, my smell has changed completely. No amount of deodorant helps, no amount of showering helps. In fact, I often end up using deodorant as a last resort, because whatever bacteria is taking over seams to turn all types of deodorant into vinegar & onions in a matter of minutes, as if it's feeding off the deodorant. The smell seems to be improving over time, according to other people, not just me. But it has given me additional sympathy for people going through this. When its bad, I can lather my body head to toe in the shower 4 times and come out smelling the same as I went in. Sometimes smells are hard to tackle. You shouldn't assume it's a hygiene thing.
Go to a doctor
Sounds like illness or diet. Better to see a doctor.
I live in a tropical country, showering daily or more than once/day is a necessity (at least it is to me). As for a decent and safe deodorant, try Milk of Magnesia.
So I shower relatively regular and definitely before I go out meeting people. But deodorant I keep forgetting since I started working from home when Covid began. I don’t go out often and for going to the grocery store I don’t care, so it’s not ingrained into me anymore. But I don’t think it’s so important since I just showered anyways.
Yeah, leaving the house was always my cue to shower and now that that’s not as regular of a thing I’m all out of whack!
How do people not smell bad?
My clothes are drenched within a few hours, if I’m sitting somewhere then there is a puddle under my feet in less than 30 minutes
Even in the shower I’m dripping/have BO while using soap
Wait... what? Do you live in the Amazon or something? You should probably go see a doctor
Yeah the Amazon is a trip. I was down there for about a week, and except at night, there was no point at which I was not basically dripping with sweat. I'm told that your body eventually acclimates and it becomes less of an issue, but a week was definitely not long enough for me.
Canada
I was told not to worry about it
Excessive sweating is definitely something you should worry about.
That's irregular. Have it checked by a medical professional and get a second or third opinion if you already were at the doctor.
There is cases where the underlying reason can not be discovered. Those are usually harmless. Pretty much all cases where an underlying reason can be determined can be tested for and for almost all of them should get you medical treatment. They reach from not good to serious danger to your health.
That answer doesn't mean shit when it's actually affecting your well being. I hope you can find a doctor who takes you seriously.
Are you on any meds? I was once taking a medication (an NSAID) that caused excessive sweating, and it took me longer than I'd like to admit that my new med and my sweaty head were related.
Try acne body wash. It made a big difference for me, before switching I was using aveeno. I use the Amazon brand version of this: https://www.neutrogena.com/products/skincare/body-clear-body-acne-wash-pink-grapefruit/6805370.html
Make sure you’re using a wash cloth, loofa, etc not just your hands. Scrub well.
I was once a stinky man and while I don’t want to use this as an excuse, I had a not so great childhood and struggle with mental illnesses. I’m still not always the best at taking care of myself but I’m better than I was and I make sure I’m mostly clean.
I never talk to anyone so i have no incentive to other than my own comfort. I do feel more comfortable when i'm clean, but my mere comfort often doesn't feel like reason enough when executive dysfunction makes a shower is a 1-hour affair, plus i have a weird anxiety around thriftiness so i don't like to "waste" the warm water and soap.
Same reason why the house isn't as clean as it could be. It would be cleaner if anyone came in here ever, but no one does, so the only reason to vaccuum is my own satisfaction, which isn't worth the time and effort.
All told i end up showering every ~5 days in winter and once a day in summer, and i never touch the perfume bottles. I actually don't really get the point of perfume or deodorant tbh, seems like the solution to BO is a shower.
I don't get how showering is less than an hour affair for any women at least. Between washing my hair, washing my body, shaving under my arms, and shaving my legs, that's easily 30 minutes. And then the whole applying moisturizer so my skin doesn't totally dry out from the shower, toweling off, lying in front of a fan to actually feel dry, and semi drying my hair, that's an hour (plus my hair is still wet for hours after). This does not include the time spent convincing myself to shower. I shower twice a week. Less if I don't have anything going on that week/ I get to stay home.
I don't, because my hair is naturally straight, but a lot of women also have to completely reset their hair with every shower too, blow drying, straightening, curling - whatever they do to look professional again.
I absolutely do use deodorant though, and I also clean under my pits with a washcloth between showers if I ever start to smell anything past neutral
Yeah but look at all the stuff you do besides showering, the shaving and hair care and such. I'm genuinely just talking about the shower itself. There's convincing myself to shower, then there's watching youtube videos with my clothes off, then there's spending too long in the hot shower because i don't want to step out into the cold bathroom, then there's drawing shapes on the fogged mirror, etc
I think my expectation for quick showers comes from my upbringing? For a few years growing up we had the toilet, sink and shower all in the same bathroom, and that bathroom was being used by like 6 people. So every minute spent in the shower was inconveniencing someone else. idk
Not all that every shower though. Ponytail or shower cap. I shower as you describe twice a week, yes, but also each evening just jump in and wash underarms, crotch, hands, feet, face. Yes lotion, night cream for face (Retin-A) deodorant and sleep. It's relaxing and sheets stay nice, I wake up clean enough to just dress & go.
You don't have to do your hair or shave every time you shower.
I just don't like them. I like the natural body odors, even with women, I hate it when they cover that up with some heavy perfume.
you don’t like showers
I do, but not excessive showering. Sure, once a day in the summer, 2 or 3 times a week in the winter, I think that's fairly normal.
Gross. This person prefers BO to deodorant.
It's how we're meant to copulate, as mamals. We smell each other. Deodorant and perfumes just cover that shit up, so I could say the same about people that use them.
And yet perfume and soaps were some of our earliest inventions.
We’re meant to go shit in the woods, but I bet you live in a house.
Seriously. You're right. Their logic is basically, "we're animals so we should behave like animals." I'm glad I don't run in to those kind of people most of the time. Few things are as unpleasant as people with serious BO.
Each to his own I guess 🤷.
Soap, yes... for hygene... and not one of our earliest inventons (if you're thinking of speers and the wheel, that sort of thing). Perfume... have no idea to be honest. Yes, it's been around for thousands if years, but I have no idea if it's even close to the invention if soap (time wise).
I have shit in the woods, more than a few times, it's great, you should try it, it's really a just great, whish I could do it more often.
And no, I live in a condo.
Some people don't require deodorant or anti perspirant. I doubt my Asian wife could sweat or smell bad if she tried.
Some ethnicities have less or different body odor. So some people just don't need much or any deodorant.
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4724538/
The average American young adult man can have many ethnicities, sometimes mixed, even
I mean I was trying to be nice, but like 99% of the smelly people I'm talking about are your average pasty white American nerd.
I've come across plenty of people belonging to other ethnicities and just like with white people it's a wide range of smells. From perfume-y and pleasant to absolute reeling of sweaty feet in flip flops.
For me, it was because my mountain bike gear was being washed on cold as heat screwed up the Eva foam in the knee pads and body armor. The jersey also got washed cold, so bacteria never got killed off. When it got hot, the heat would activate the smell, but it's hard to tell when you are going fast down a trail.
Once I started washing everything possible on hot, it stopped a lot of the smell.
I assume people are doing that with non-mtb clothing and getting similar BO results. So it's quite possible it's also not necessarily them, but their clothes.
This doesn't make any sense...there is a huge movement to use cold water to wash clothes, and hot water unless it's extremely hot, isn't staying hot enough to kill off bacteria. Were you using detergent correctly?
Yup, always the same amount (Pods). The only thing that changed was the temperature of the water.
It doesn't make sense if you think the heat is here to kill bacteria. However, heat helps detergents do their job, and most likely helps loosen biofilms given their composition.
Personally; I manage my BO. If I can lift my shirt up, pull my head inside the shirt, and smell my own armpit odor, then I'm in need of some DO.
I've been using a Dove branded Spray-On (AP/)DO for Women and it's effective. By combining the acts of applying DO, then, changing clothes; I don't particularly sweat over much.
I Do Shower on an As-Needed Basis. That's saying that I do shower, without committing to any specific showering pattern or timing basis. If you try to imply I don't shower regularly you will look foolish.
If I stink, then it's either uncommonly hot and humid or I have not yet had the opportunity needed to shower. The hows and whys of this are not important; but generally if I choose not to shower, it's probably for a good reason.
I do suffer from some allergies and disabilities. I won't comment on what they are specifically, but they do exist, so I keep my fragrances light and unobtrusive; and I try to shower only when I can manage to handle doing so. I'm not going to uproot or upset my health, focus, peace or routine just to take a shower to please someone arbitrary; but I do allow the people whom I live with and love to remind me gently should I forget about addressing my BO in the chaos of life.
This isn't saying that I don't care. It's saying I'm imperfect, I have a life, and I do get overloaded sometimes.
My momma used to say that if you can smell yourself, other people have been smelling you for days.
Don't know what your issues are, but I have aquagenic urticaria. There are waterless, alcohol based 'soaps' that I rely on heavily.
Some people also just don't smell. I found that hard to believe, but my GF a) never sweats and b) even when she does, it's not smelly.
I've noticed a lot of people don't do things the way I do them and it bothers me too!! Stomp your right foot with me if you agree!
I shower once a day. I don't generally wear deodorant. I get away with it I think because body odor is largely impacted by meat intake. I swear I don't smell bad, I've asked others. This is the Internet and so no one will believe me unless OP comes to my house and smells my arm pit.
I've encountered plenty of smelly vegetarians and vegans.
How sure are you they weren't just being polite?
I am 100% sure that I don't smell bad and people are not just being polite. I definitely would have been called out by now.
And again, no one will believe me either way. This is the Internet.
Diet plays a role, but I've found it's far more down to the spices one consumes. I'd bet the strongest component is hormones and genetics.
Meat intake? I'm a vegetarian and if I don't use deodorant, my pits stink within hours.
No idea. Personally I never had much of an issue with it.
Vegans are always hilarious. They blame so much on meat and pretend they’re better for not eating it.
I had a vegan ex once, I remember her getting drunk and throwing up going “This can’t happen I’m vegan” as if somehow her super diet made her beyond a mere mortal and gave her a super stomach.
You remind me of her.
I'm not claiming I am better than anyone else. I have one perk to this lifestyle. I have many more downsides. I need to take supplements because I've been anemic. I fart constantly.
I'm allergic to eggs and lactose intolerant. I will eat dairy. I usually have to stick to yogurt. I don't eat meat because as a child we had to push expiration dates and got sick a lot. Meat just grosses me out. My wife is not a vegetarian. I'm not in this for moral reasons. I don't fault anyone for eating meat. I'm not pushing a lifestyle here. I'm just saying I don't smell much.
And, I do throw up. I'm a lightweight when it comes down to drinking. I also generally don't like other vegetarians because they do act superior. I like to point out random facts that are in opposition of their view, and call them out. Then when they play the moral high ground card; I can do the same.
I eat a lot of meat and have confirmed with people that I don’t smell (I don’t wear deodorant). Diet can play a part I’m sure, but meat isn’t it.
I was told by others that it was diet. But I never cared much to do research on that.
Apparently it could also have to do with the microbiome on the skin too, there are a couple companies developing probiotic deodorant based on the flora of people who naturally don't smell very bad. It's a balance of good bacteria versus stinky bacteria and I can see how things like antibiotic use and diet can have an impact on that balance just like it does in the gut, but a decent portion of it does seem to be genetic.
That's pretty cool. I didn't know that was a thing.
I rarely ever eat meat (and almost never red meat) and my BO still smells if I don't shower or use deodorant daily
I'll smell you. I'll smell you so good.
Whoosh
I find the ones drenched in foul smelling deodorants smell far worse.
I don't apply deodorant at all. Maybe before I know I'm about to be active, but even without it, it's fine, I shower after anyways.
I know I will let myself go when I'm in the midst of being deeply depressed, but then again I usually don't get much past my bed then. So that could be some of it.
I used to have a buddy that stank to high heaven, good dude overall, but damn did he smell. Turned out that he never washed his clothes. Once he got in the habit of doing that the problem resolved itself quickly.
The only other thing I can think of would be some Andrew Tate types going on about some made up benefits of 'natural male musk ' or something like that. Not sure if anyone is doing that, but I could see some men taking to that advice.
I had a workmate who was quite eco consious and used to rinse his clothes in cold water and then put them on the line. He was fine mostly, I never noticed a smell, but we had to have a chat when his 14 year old son got a meeting at school about how badly he smelled.
Some people just don't know the norm.
am smell good without deodorant
I am not of those you are describing but in general: Some can have (afaik) genes that do not necessitate the use of deodorants.
Obviously those ones are not whom op is complaining about
Lazyness
Not being aware of it (nose blind)
Those are my calls (for now).
Never tried using deodorant. I didn't like the idea of using it. Showering has been enough for me. (I'm 32)
Nowadays I have a skin condition in my armpits so I don't think it would be wise to use that stuff anymore anyway.
I don't use deodorant because they all use aluminum salts, and I'm allergic to aluminum.
That's not a good reason though. There are plenty without aluminum. Toms and Native are two I know of without searching. Also it easy and cheap to make homemade with coconut oil.
I have this same allergy, and arm & hammer naturals also makes good deodorant without aluminum salts. Agreed, not a great excuse not put some on
Antiperspirants use aluminum. Standard deodorant does not.
And there is your answer. Some people stink because they fill their head with pseudo scientific nonsense to rationalize not engaging in basic hygiene tasks.
Bingo. Why did I begin to stink when I hit puberty even though I showered twice daily and lived in a temperate climate? This person makes it sound like no one would stink if they simply never start using deodorant, when the reality is that people start using deodorant because they realize that they stink without it. For centuries, people around the world have used perfumes to cover their BO before (and after) deodorant became available. Why would they need this if they simply don’t use deodorant?
I also know a woman who swears that you never actually need to wash your hair. Your head will stop producing as much oil and you’ll naturally have beautiful hair. She is a lovely, smart, confident, and attractive woman, but her hair is greasy and stringy AF.
The beauty is that it’s a closed epistemological system, like a religion.
If someone smells when not using deodorant it’s because of the original sin of having used deodorant! They need to be cleansed with iodine baptism in order to receive the graces of the blessed bacteria.
That way you can always rationalize away smelly people you meet and not worry about your own odor.
If you read it, you know it does not support your assertions.
But the problem is, Corynebacterium colonies stink. They smell heavily of the smell we associate with body odor.
The article you linked even says so.
My issue is not whether people that don’t use deodorant have bacterium 1 or bacterium 2. It’s that they stink.
If you don’t use deodorant, you have smelly armpit bacteria.
That’s a wild exaggeration. And runs directly contrary to what is written in the article you proffered as evidence.
You are spreading pseudo scientific disinformation.
Bacteria come from the environment. I don't understand how the iodine treatment you recommend prevents future exposure.
Why do so many comments look like AI now.
Nah man. An LLM could never cook up something this disconnected from reality. This is a one hundred percent organic hallucination.
Deodorant is for children. I wear an antiperspirant and perfume
Many people are allergic to antiperspirants.
I got a reaction when I switched from deodorant to antiperspirant, but it went away in like a month.
imagining a body builder applying purfume after washing off at the gym
"I WEAR IT BECAUSE I'M NOT A CHILD. YOU WANNA GO?!"