How to take care of your personal hygiene

 Ten years ago when it came to men’s grooming, it would have been hard to convince the average man to use more than a single block of soap to look after himself from top to toe, let alone a root-boosting hair tonic, alpha lipoic acid night serum or white algae anti-ageing eye cream.

The first priority while grooming yourself  is personal hygiene. It is essential to follow certain healthy habits if you want to groom yourself. Thus, it is important to include a few neat and tidy practices in your daily routine. A lot of men are not aware about the importance of cleanliness, while some choose to ignore, which can lead to a unhealthy way of living. Both men and women have different approaches towards hygiene. But, it is a known fact that men are assumed to have less grooming and personal hygiene habits than women.

In a 2010 study by the American Cleaning Institute and the American Microbiology Society, it was found that most of the men do not wash their hands even after eating food, petting an animal, peeing, coughing or sneezing. There might be a chance of  ignoring certain basic hygiene rules in day to day life. During the lockdown, it is the perfect time to check on your personal  hygiene habits as not following these can lead to unimaginable infections. Read this article further to know about the hygiene habits every man should know and follow.

 

Your Bathroom reflects your Hygiene

 

 Why hygiene matters:

Skimping on hygiene might seem like NBD, and it isn’t if we’re talking about the occasional day you don’t brush your teeth until noon. But it matters when it affects your life or that of the people around you.

In the most extreme cases, when left unattended, poor hygiene can breed disease that can affect you or others.

For example, not washing your hands after you use the toilet, handle food, or touch dirty surfaces can spread bacteria, viruses, and parasites. These can lead to infections and diseases, like food poisoning, gastroenteritis, cold and flu, and hepatitis A — just to name a few.

Poor dental hygiene can lead to tooth decay and gum disease, which can also affect the heart.

Not bathing can result in a skin condition called dermatitis neglecta and secondary infections.

An obvious lack of hygiene can also affect a person’s work and social life. Some companies have a hygiene policy in place for the protection of employees and company image, especially if you have a public-facing role.

If you work in the food industry or in healthcare, proper hygiene is detrimental to the safety of everyone you’re in contact with.

 

 Ways to have good hygiene

Here are some easy ways to practice good hygiene:

• Brush your teeth twice a day. Doing it when you get up and before you go to bed makes it easier to get into a routine. Remember: You only need to brush for 2 minutes for a good clean, so you can do it even if you’re short on time.

• Wash your body daily. A quick shower or bath is all you need, as long as you cover the important parts (Think: pits and private bits). If access to water is limited, use a damp cloth or sponge to wash your genitals, around your anus, under your arms, between any skin folds, and under your breasts.

• Wash your clothes and bedding regularly. Doing laundry once per week is sufficient, whether by machine or hand. If you need to re-wear clothing, a quick wash in the sink and hanging it to dry for the next day works fine. Keeping your body clean lets you extend the time between washing clothing and sheets.

• Wash your hands often. If COVID-19 taught us anything, it’s that washing our hands goes a long way in keeping us healthy and reducing the spread of illness. Remember to wash your hands before and after contact with shared, or potentially unsanitary or contaminated surfaces to protect yourself and others.

• Wipe properly after going to the toilet. Wiping properly after going to the toilet will keep underwear clean and unpleasant odors at bay. Always wipe front to back to keep bacteria away from the urethra to avoid urinary infections. Body wipes or a bidet work, too. (Though keep in mind that wipes can make life hard for sanitation workers. So if you don’t need them, it’s best to stick with TP). If pain or a disability makes it hard to wipe, consider a toilet paper aid.

• Wash your hair at least every 3 days. Most people don’t need to shampoo their hair more than daily. How often you should wash depends on how oily or dry your hair is, how much you sweat, and how much product you use. Every 2 to 3 days is fine for most people, but feel free to experiment by extending the time between washes. Bouncy shampoo commercial hair is nice, but a healthy scalp is the priority.
  

 

• Wear Deodorant This seems like a men's hygiene no-brainer, but whether it's using deodorant or antiperspirant, many men don't follow this simple guideline as frequently as they should. Many men also might not realize the difference between the two products.

"A deodorant gets rid of odor caused by sweating, while antiperspirants actually stop and dry up perspiration," says Maurice Voce, co-founder and chief marketing officer of Skin Authority, a natural skin care brand. "Look for an antiperspirant/deodorant combination and make sure the fragrance isn't too overpowering."