You might want to read this. It just might change the way you take a shower.

Who doesn't enjoy a nice hot shower after a long day? Everyone has their own method or way they like to take a shower. Some like it blistering hot, while others just like it comfortable. Then, you have those, like myself, who like to wash their hair first, then wash their body with shampoo or vice versa. In any event, no matter what order you do things, or how you like to take a shower, the goal for everyone is all the same- to wash off all of those nasty, stinky, germs and walk out fresh and clean. However, depending on how you wash your body in the shower, you could be walking out with even more germs and bacteria than you walked in with.

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Throw These Out of Your Shower!

If you are one of the millions who use body wash and/or shower gel in the shower, you most likely pour it all over a fluffy loofah and start scrubbing your body. You think you are washing off your body and getting rid of the germs and bacteria. However, you're actually defeating the purpose of washing off your body because that very loofah is covered in bacteria!

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According to Business Insider, loofahs are a perfect breeding ground for bacteria. A study published in the Journal of Clinical Microbiology found that loofahs can transmit potentially pathogenic species of bacterial flora to the skin that under the right circumstances may even cause an infection. Business Insider continues by saying:

When you lather up to exfoliate by scrubbing away dead skin cells, they get caught in the nooks and folds of the sponge. The humid, damp, and relatively undisturbed environment of the shower allows the bacteria to multiply before your next rinse. The bacteria feeds on the organic matter trapped in the loofah, and every time it does not dry properly the bacterial colony continues to bloom.

So basically, applying body wash to your loofah and scrubbing your body doesn't do much to actually clean off your body. You're actually spreading around the bacteria that you "washed off" the last time you used that loofah back onto your body. Oh, and Business Insider also reported that your loofah can also grow mold and yeast. Plus if you wash too hard or quickly, or you nick yourself shaving,  you could be setting yourself up for an infection.

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What Should You Do To Keep Your Loofah Clean?

If by now, you still want to keep using a loofah, dermatologists say that you should replace it about every three weeks. You should also dry the loofah outside of your washroom, where humidity is lower and air circulation is higher. You'll be going through a lot of loofahs and a lot of money over time by doing that, so you might be better off using a washcloth that you can toss in the washer after each use. It's less expensive that route...and way more sanitary.

(H/T- Business Insider)

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