Why would some people choose not to wash?
Our skin is covered in more than 1,000 types of bacteria, plus viruses, fungi and mites. Don’t go bathing in antibacterial hand gel, though: most of these are harmless, and some are beneficial to us. This ecosystem is called the ‘skin microbiome’ and can actually protect us from illness. The bacterium Pseudomonas aeruginosa, for instance, produces pseudomonic acid, which protects us from staphylococcal and streptococcal infections.
More noticeably, the skin microbiome regulates the way we smell. Sweat itself doesn’t smell: the odour filling a packed bus comes from the bacteria that break the sweat down.
So why do some people stink? That depends on the exact population of microbes that live on your skin, since different bacteria break the sweat molecules down into different components. In fact, microbiologist Dr Chris Callewaert, also known as Dr Armpit, has shown that an underarm bacterial transplant from the fresh-smelling to the stinky can eliminate body odour.
Clearly, then, the micro-organisms living on our skin can provide a service that soap and daily showers sometimes can’t. So, some people choose to avoid bathing – apart from handwashing and cleaning off dirt – and let the bacteria do the work instead. The idea is that frequent use of soap products damages the skin microbiome, and we’d be better off if we just let it be. The soap-free often report that, if you can push through the inevitable smelly period when you haven’t showered in a week, you will eventually stop smelling.
What can you do instead of washing?
[blur] Chemical engineer David Whitlock hasn’t showered in 15 years, and instead tops up his microbiome with ammonia-oxidising bacteria (AOB). Drawing inspiration from horses rolling in the dirt, Whitlock harvested AOB from soil and tested it on himself, which reportedly stopped him from smelling. He is now the founder of AOBiome, which sells a range of toiletries containing AOB. The company claims their products, sold under the name Mother Dirt, will “bring harmony and balance back to your skin microbiome”. [/blur]