A Doctor Stopped Using Soap for Five Years. Here's What Happened

Have you heard of the skin microbiome? 

A doctor named Dr. James Hamblin decided to stop showering with soap for five years and served as a subject in his book CLEAN, where he explains what soap does to his microbiome. 

The microbiome is essentially the sum of all the bacteria living on our body, and in one way or another, contribute to its health. 

“I have conducted many experiments in my life to understand the skin microbiome. I started studying the subject comprehensively and realized not all bacteria in our body are bad. In fact, some bacteria are really good for us and improve our health, but since we don't understand this, we destroy them using soap showers.”

Dr. Hamblin examined what happens to a body that isn't soaped every day and reached a radical conclusion: “I don't recommend this method universally to everyone. In many ways, it was very difficult for me not to shower with soap for years. Breaking such a habit is not easy.”

Nevertheless, he says he felt much more energetic and not particularly tired during the entire period he did this. “It changed my life completely,” he says. 

Another similar experiment was conducted by a chemical engineer named David Whitlock from the United States, who, instead of showering, used a spray that dispersed good living bacteria on his body. “Believe it or not, I didn't have a smell for ten years during which I tried the spray, and it also helped heal severe eczema from which I suffered for a decade.”