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submitted 11 months ago by Zahille7@lemmy.world to c/asklemmy@lemmy.ml

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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[-] Lauchs@lemmy.world 206 points 11 months ago

I look forward to reading what an online community that specializes in Linux and Star Trek memes has to say about personal hygiene...

[-] all-knight-party@kbin.run 84 points 11 months ago

I'm sorry, personal what? Is there a GitHub link where I can compile that?

[-] Jtee@lemmy.world 16 points 11 months ago

Is this a joke I'm too C# to understand?

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[-] Evkob@lemmy.ca 59 points 11 months ago

When you're so busy remembering to FOSS that you forget to floss 😢

[-] squiblet@kbin.social 102 points 11 months ago* (last edited 11 months ago)

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.

[-] impudentmortal@lemmy.world 29 points 11 months ago

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.

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[-] claycle@lemm.ee 20 points 11 months ago

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?

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[-] loganberryq@lemmy.world 83 points 11 months ago
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[-] kakes@sh.itjust.works 66 points 11 months ago

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.

[-] UNWILLING_PARTICIPANT@sh.itjust.works 20 points 11 months ago

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.

[-] Cralder@feddit.nu 41 points 11 months ago

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.

[-] De_Narm@lemmy.world 14 points 11 months ago

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.

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[-] cod@lemmy.world 33 points 11 months ago

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

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[-] fiat_lux@kbin.social 27 points 11 months ago

Copying and pasting my answer from the same question just 2 weeks ago:

How do you know they all weren't wearing it?

There are a lot of people who do wear it but continue to smell because of underlying medical conditions. For example, fruity smelling body odor can indicate diabetes. People with a rare genetic condition called Trimethylaminuria can smell strongly of fish. It all depends on what bacteria (which outnumber your own body cells by 10 to 1 even though they are only 2% of your body mass) and what balance of enzymes you may or may not have.

Reducing perspiration can and often does help, concealing the odor with different ones can help, but sometimes people's bodies just aren't right for whatever mass produced product they have bought. Sometimes that can be fixed with medication. Sometimes it can't.

https://kbin.social/m/asklemmy@lemmy.ml/t/638513/-/comment/3647566

[-] Gabu@lemmy.ml 10 points 11 months ago* (last edited 11 months ago)

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.

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[-] 13esq@lemmy.world 25 points 11 months ago* (last edited 11 months ago)

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.

[-] haui_lemmy@lemmy.giftedmc.com 37 points 11 months ago

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 can, shower at least every two days
  • if you sweat a lot or work manually, shower daily
  • no need to scrub your whole body, just clean your arm pits, genitalia and butthole, more if a spot is dirty
  • wash your hair according to your skin. Hair should not be greasy but if that can be achieved by washing 2 times a week thats fine

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.

[-] charlytune@mander.xyz 13 points 11 months ago

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.

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[-] flying_sheep@lemmy.ml 16 points 11 months ago* (last edited 11 months ago)

Lather some soap in to a flannel and scrub every part of your body

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.

[-] TimeSquirrel@kbin.social 10 points 11 months ago* (last edited 11 months ago)

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.

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[-] focusforte@lemmy.world 24 points 11 months ago* (last edited 11 months ago)

The few people I know with this issue fall into one of two categories.

  1. 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.

  2. 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.

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[-] amenotef@lemmy.world 21 points 11 months ago* (last edited 11 months ago)

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.

[-] MrFunnyMoustache@lemmy.one 20 points 11 months ago

First off, not everyone who doesn't wear deodorant smells, and secondly, some people shower regularly and use deodorant and still smell.

The diet, genetics, and what kind of bacteria live on your skin will affect the body's odor. I struggled with body odor for years before I discovered that I was showering incorrectly. I learned that after lathering the soap and getting covered by it, you're supposed to let it sit on the skin for a while before scrubbing and rinsing; this discovery which many consider obvious was new to me, and it stopped my body odour completely to the point I don't need deodorant at all by simply showering with a correct technique.

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[-] Rolder@reddthat.com 20 points 11 months ago

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.

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[-] Art3sian@lemmy.world 19 points 11 months ago* (last edited 11 months ago)

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.

[-] Fades@lemmy.world 19 points 11 months ago

You missed one: depression

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[-] Buchling@feddit.de 19 points 11 months ago

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.

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[-] Poggervania@kbin.social 19 points 11 months ago* (last edited 11 months ago)

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 :)

[-] Devi@kbin.social 12 points 11 months ago

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.

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[-] altima_neo@lemmy.zip 17 points 11 months ago

The older I get, the more I sympathize with Agent Smith from the Matrix. What is it with people and their stink?

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[-] Pratai@lemmy.ca 15 points 11 months ago

Didn’t someone just ask this like, a week ago?

[-] FarraigePlaisteach@kbin.social 21 points 11 months ago

We’re obviously not getting the hint!

[-] diffcalculus@lemmy.world 10 points 11 months ago

Next week's post:

Why do guys named Steve not shower regularly or wear deodorant?

[-] Daxtron2@startrek.website 13 points 11 months ago

Depressed autistic

[-] dylanTheDeveloper@lemmy.world 12 points 11 months ago* (last edited 11 months ago)

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

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[-] DaPorkchop_@lemmy.ml 11 points 11 months ago

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 :(

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[-] peter@feddit.uk 10 points 11 months ago

What's your job that you're running into so many people with poor hygiene?

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[-] PhineaZ@feddit.de 10 points 11 months ago

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.

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this post was submitted on 08 Dec 2023
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