Reducing showering to protect skin and climate... A new idea is making its way around the world

With soaring energy bills and growing environmental concerns, is it still necessary to take a daily shower despite consuming large amounts of water?

It is not necessary, according to dermatologists, provided that some hygiene rules are adhered to.

According to the French Ifop Institute for Public Opinion Studies, three-quarters of French people (76%) say that they take a full shower every day, like their German neighbors (77%), while the percentage of those among the English does not exceed 68% and the Italians 53%.

But this type of daily showering raises your energy bill and also has an environmental impact.

According to the Observatory of the Water Information Center, each shower consumes about 57 liters of water, or nearly 40% of the total daily use of the French individual.

Here is the question, is it really necessary to shower every day?

Paris dermatologist Marie Jourdain answers this question by saying, "We don't have to shower every day from head to toe."

The doctor, a member of the French Society of Dermatology, explains that the skin is a living organ that renews and "cleans itself" in some way.

The surface of the skin is covered with a layer of water and lipids that form the first protective barrier against infectious agents and pollution.

This layer is also necessary to prevent dehydration.

And Mary Jordan stresses that "the skin is a system that must maintain its balance, like any other system."

Skin should be washed if it is "inundated with aggressive agents" such as pollution or perspiration.

But, as a general rule, "it is sufficient to wash the areas that contain greasy sweat, which are more susceptible to bacterial colonization, such as the armpits, the spaces between the toes, and the intimate parts."

On the contrary, "over-showering can cause dryness and even eczema," says Jordan.

- A movement to reduce showering - Since the nineteenth century and the scientific work of Louis Pasteur, it has been known that bathing eliminates a large part of the bacteria responsible for epidemics.

But today, "in our offices, we see many people who shower excessively, several times a day, often because of viruphobia," says Laurence Netter, a dermatologist and venereologist in Paris.

"The risk is altering the hydrolipidic surface layer that normally allows skin to stay healthy," Netter explains.

Therefore, dermatologists recommend focusing on the parts where microbes and sweat reside, using a minimum amount of detergents or foaming agents that attack the skin.

"If we adopt this type of hygiene and shower every two or three days, it's fine, as long as we don't sweat a lot or exercise," says Lawrence Netter, adding, "This is the perfect combination of good hygiene, healthy skin and low energy consumption."

Mary Jordan points out that "washing the whole body with soap once a day is not necessary."

A full shower takes between 150 and 200 liters of water.

Although it is often an occasion for relaxation, it is often too hot or stretched for too long, drying out the skin by upsetting the balance in the skin's composition.

In the face of the trend calling for more showering, a movement arose about a decade ago in the United States called "unwashed" (not to wash), based on reducing showering for environmental reasons and to preserve the skin.

Alexandre Meunier, 31, who heads an association called "un dechet par jour" ("a piece of rubbish a day"), applies these principles.

"I only shower three times a month, when I'm sweating," he says.

"In recent months, I simply found that it did not affect me negatively, and in the current context, every drop counts," he told AFP.

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