In a startling act of relentless honesty, Jonathan Ross revealed on the Rob Beckett and Josh Widdicombe’s Parenting Hell podcast that he sometimes goes up to a week without showering, saying: “Do you think I give enough of a shit about anything to bother spending any extra time on grooming whatsoever? I resent the fact that I have to shower.”
He went on to say that his longest stint of not showering was two weeks and revealed that even a swimming pool didn’t get rid of his stench: “So I had a shower, it didn’t go. Had another one, it didn’t go. I’m not making this up. I had to shave the hair off my armpit to get rid of it.
“It was so ingrained. I just did the one. Why would you do two? The other one was still fresh. I favour one, so the right arm was doing all the work.”
If you’re now wondering how his wife puts up with it, according to the comedian, she’s exactly the same. He described the two of them as “a couple of hamsters in their own straw in that bed.”
Lovely.
How often should we be showering?
As much as Jonathan’s comments may make you squirm, is showering infrequently really a problem? And, how often should we be showering?
According to Metrolina Dermotology: “Dermatologist almost universally agree that showering or bathing every day is neither necessary or ideal for most people.
“The idea of needing to shower every 24 hours is great for soap manufacturers, but most people only need to take a few showers a week, depending upon their activities and environment.”
So, if you have a labour-intensive job or you live in a particularly warm area, you may need to shower daily but for the rest of us, showering just a few times a week should be enough for you and your skin.
So, as much as Jonathan Ross may want to invest in stronger deodorant, his shower schedule isn’t that far off from what dermatologists recommend!