Random Internet dude goes over a year without using soap/shampoo. Surprising results

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8 weeks without shampoo and my dandruff problem is gone. Hair doesn't smell either. If others with dandruff are thinking of trying you should know that the first 4-5 weeks showed no improvement. Consider giving it at least 6 weeks.

I'm soap free at this point, taking mildly warm showers daily. Skin is softer, no dandruff, my complexion is more clear than ever, and haven't had acne is ages. Friends say I don't smell.
 
Ok, I saw this last week and mentioned it to my gf. She said to go for it and that she would "smell" me to see how bad it gets. So I'm going in balls deep. A few questions I want to know first though.

-Should I shower with cold or hot water? I can do both without a problem
-Should I use a washcloth? (One of those tiny little towels)
-Can I clean the washcloth with soap after using it?
-Can I wash my D, ass, face and pits with soap? (I would really prefer to)
-I normally shower at least twice a day. Nothing wrong with showering twice or more a day?
-I use gel everyday to style my hair, do I just wash it with water and thats it?
-I use hair conditioner to shave, will that affect the results?
 
Agkel said:
Ok, I saw this last week and mentioned it to my gf. She said to go for it and that she would "smell" me to see how bad it gets. So I'm going in balls deep. A few questions I want to know first though.

-Should I shower with cold or hot water? I can do both without a problem
Take cold showers if you can, it's healthier for you over all. I've been doing this for a year and I take hot showers, so either work but hot dries your skin more.
-Should I use a washcloth? (One of those tiny little towels)
You should be able to use a washcloth without issue.
-Can I clean the washcloth with soap after using it?
You can wash it after use, it's more about applying cleaning products directly to the skin.
-Can I wash my D, ass, face and pits with soap? (I would really prefer to)
You can do whatever you want. This isn't a contest. I don't use soap at all, including those areas and my gf, since wife, never noticed a smell or issues. Do what works for you.
-I normally shower at least twice a day. Nothing wrong with showering twice or more a day?
Nothing wrong with this, just keep them short.
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I don't use gel and I shave with an electric razor so no advice with those.
 
Agkel said:
-Should I shower with cold or hot water? I can do both without a problem
Results are significantly better if you just shower with cold water.
-Can I wash my D, ass, face and pits with soap? (I would really prefer to)
It's best to wash your face with just cold water. You might see improvement in your skin within days.
Your armpits too actually. It's best to shave them too. But either way, you have 2 armpits. You can wash one first and then you can compare how they smell. This gives you a reference to how clean they are. I find it takes 30-60 seconds each to clear any odour.
-I normally shower at least twice a day. Nothing wrong with showering twice or more a day?
That should be fine, especially with cold water.
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.
 
Just checking in.

No shampoo or soap for 6 weeks.

My hair was getting really oily for a bit but it's improved a ridiculous amount.

I decided to check how my hair does so I haven't washed it in the shower in the past 3 days and it's about as oily as you'd expect your head to be perhaps 4 to 6 hours after a shampoo shower.

There's almost no oil, no smell, nothing.

Cool stuff!

Gonna wash it next time I shower for sure though.
 
Thx for the answers!

Ok I'll do cold showers with a washcloth, and only soap on the weebly woo and the woobly wee. The reason I asked about the soap is because, although I have clear face (no pimples and very rarely black heads) It does get oily during the day, so I'm afraid that if I stop using soap itll get bad.

I used to shave my armpits, legs, chest and crotch area but I kind of let go of that a while ago. This is a good chance to pick it up again.

Curiosity got the best of me, so lets see what results I get! lol

edit: Oh wait I wanted to ask about the hair. I NEED to use gel daily bcs my hair sucks balls. So should I wash it with just water?
 
My cousin does the same thing and it works for him. I tried it but I ended up smelling bad and my hair got greasy. I now take hot showers and use some antibacterial soap that leaves me smelling really good and I feel fresh and I have good skin. As for shampoo, I use H&S Yerba Buena.
 
Agkel said:
The reason I asked about the soap is because, although I have clear face (no pimples and very rarely black heads) It does get oily during the day, so I'm afraid that if I stop using soap itll get bad.
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The oily face may be because of the effects of the soap interfering with the skins natural chemical balance. If you go water only for a month or two then you'll see for sure, but with the skin results are usually within a week or so(In my case it was two days).

Agkel said:
edit: Oh wait I wanted to ask about the hair. I NEED to use gel daily bcs my hair sucks balls. So should I wash it with just water?
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The whole point of this is that products screw with your natural chemical balance. The reason your hair sucks may well be because you're using shampoo. The gel may also help make your hair suck.

What I'd recommend is go water only for 6-8 weeks(no shampoo/conditioner/gel). Once your hair gets back to its natural state it might stop sucking and the next 50 years of your life are made simpler and better. If there is a problem then you can try adding the gel back in. Most likely your hair will be more manageable within one or two weeks but it may be oily. That most likely would take another couple of weeks to completely transition.
 
heidern said:
The whole point of this is that products screw with your natural chemical balance. The reason your hair sucks may well be because you're using shampoo. The gel may also help make your hair suck.
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Fair enough, makes sense. I'll cut it short in the meantime to help me not look like a bum while I give my hair a chance to work it's natural magic.
 
I would like to try this, and this question has probably been asked already so I apologize in advance, but do I just scrub down with a wash cloth under warm water?
 
Paco said:
8 weeks without shampoo and my dandruff problem is gone. Hair doesn't smell either. If others with dandruff are thinking of trying you should know that the first 4-5 weeks showed no improvement. Consider giving it at least 6 weeks.

I'm soap free at this point, taking mildly warm showers daily. Skin is softer, no dandruff, my complexion is more clear than ever, and haven't had acne is ages. Friends say I don't smell.
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Cutting the shampoo was catastrophic for my dandruff. After 5 days the shedding and itching got so bad it took over a week of constant clinical shampoo to get it back under control. I have chronic dandruff caused by atopic dermatitis, so I guess it was expected: the effects were similar to when I spend a month using non-medical shampoo, which I'm now certain I'm dependent on for the rest of my life, lest my scalp turns into an giant onion.

However, I got very nice results by not using soap on my face. My face no longer gets super oily at the end of the day as it used to and it feels clean. The armpits and crotch area still get a few drops of liquid soap, however. When my armpits start stinking, there's no amount of non-soapy water to make them stop and throwing deodorant on top of the mess only makes it worse.
 
I wasn't using soap for over a decade until my sister pressured me so much nearly two years ago. I have regularly used shampoo cause my dandruff issues; but there was a period I wouldn't use shampoo either.
 
For those claiming soap has no function: your wrong and probably assumed it hasn't. It has a function. Second, soap has been used by humans for a long time. A very, very long time. It is not some modern product. Before the liquid soaps, even before the green soaps humans used plants that produced a soap-like foam when rubbing the leaves together. Third, if you worry that your soap is "chemical" (everything is chemistry, so you must mean unnatural) then just by a natural soap and shampoo. They're not expensive. So there is simply no reason not to use soap, at least not to me.
 
Roland1979 said:
everything is chemistry
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image.php
 
Been without shampoo since I last posted in this thread. 2.5 weeks so far. Dandruff has gotten worse, but I'm toughing through it. I'm cutting my fro off tomorrow, so I'll get a better picture of what's going on there. I might be tempted to use shampoo if I see a big clump of dandruff, but I'm also considering wearing a cap for the next few weeks to see how it goes.

I want to try the no soap thing, but will either wait until December or next Summer, depending on when I get a significant break in my work schedule. Body odor is not something I can experiment with right now, given my line of work.

My hair got greasier for about a week, but now it's fine. Feels softer, but isn't as manageable as it was when I shampoo'd. I was pretty good with using conditioner, and used a type that made my hair really easy to pick out. I only know the dandruff has gotten worse because I can see it on my pick, whereas I never saw it before. However, my scalp isn't anymore itchy than when I would shampoo. It feels fine. Hopefully it looks good good when I get it shaved off tomorrow. PEACE.
 
M3d10n said:
Cutting the shampoo was catastrophic for my dandruff. After 5 days the shedding and itching got so bad it took over a week of constant clinical shampoo to get it back under control. I have chronic dandruff caused by atopic dermatitis, so I guess it was expected: the effects were similar to when I spend a month using non-medical shampoo, which I'm now certain I'm dependent on for the rest of my life, lest my scalp turns into an giant onion.
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I don't know about your condition but 5 days isn't long enough to test this. You'd have to go for a month or two with only water to really know the effects of it.

Roland1979 said:
For those claiming soap has no function: your wrong and probably assumed it hasn't. It has a function. Second, soap has been used by humans for a long time. A very, very long time. It is not some modern product. Before the liquid soaps, even before the green soaps humans used plants that produced a soap-like foam when rubbing the leaves together. Third, if you worry that your soap is "chemical" (everything is chemistry, so you must mean unnatural) then just by a natural soap and shampoo. They're not expensive. So there is simply no reason not to use soap, at least not to me.
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Is the fact that my skin has improved significantly since I stopped using soap not a good reason not to use soap?
 
How do you guys keep your hair from getting smelly? Seems like throwing conditioner on there will just make it feel weird. what about super diluted Dr. Bronners? like a few drops of peppermint in a ton of water.


I still use a little body wash, but it's diluted bronners baby soap with a few squirts of cologne...it probably barely cleans but gives me a subtle smell that I can't get with straight cologne application. the crotch area and crack get washed with a dove bar b/c women apparently don't like the taste of cologne.
 
I tried no shampoo a while back and made it only maybe 5 days before I gave up. I don't think I can do this unless I have a good three weeks where I don't have to see many people, my hair was so nasty by the 4th day. My hair is pretty long so maybe that only made it harder. And I know it smelled bad because I could smell it in my pillow. I think it made me break out too, since my skin is usually pretty clear.
 
heidern said:
I don't know about your condition but 5 days isn't long enough to test this. You'd have to go for a month or two with only water to really know the effects of it.
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I'm not willing to risk it. The crisis from that 5 day experiment was the worst I've had in over 10 years. Living in the tropics and using a biker's helmet every day probably makes things even worse.
 
Roland1979 said:
For those claiming soap has no function: your wrong and probably assumed it hasn't. It has a function. Second, soap has been used by humans for a long time. A very, very long time. It is not some modern product. Before the liquid soaps, even before the green soaps humans used plants that produced a soap-like foam when rubbing the leaves together. Third, if you worry that your soap is "chemical" (everything is chemistry, so you must mean unnatural) then just by a natural soap and shampoo. They're not expensive. So there is simply no reason not to use soap, at least not to me.
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Judging from my fantastic results over the past year and a half, I have no reason TO use soap. My skin and hair are the healthiest they have ever been, my dandruff is gone. I have absolutely zero reason to ever go back to "conventional" practices regarding shampoo and soap (other than for my hands).


I'm not saying soap doesn't have a function, I'm just saying that we don't need it.
 
heidern said:
Is the fact that my skin has improved significantly since I stopped using soap not a good reason not to use soap?
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Not before you tried mild natural soaps. In my opinion. If you have tried those (example baby shampoo and soap) and still have troubles then it does more harm then good, and i understand and agree that you should use no soap and shampoo and maybe even zero skin products in general. If it does give you problems i can also understand why you would not see soap as something beneficial. It's not very rare, but you are the exception to the rule. For some as simple as switching brands sometimes works and it turned out to be a allergy. Don't forget to change you laundry detergent as well (as mild as possible). I use natural alum deo sticks like some others mentioned here, might be something worth trying. Last a long time and is fairly cheap. Good luck.
 
If you have long hair and find that even after several weeks of not using shampoo your hair still feels greasy consider getting a good hair brush. Brushing your hair will help distribute the natural oils from the roots to the ends of the hair and will greatly reduce grease buildup.
 
Roland1979 said:
Not before you tried mild natural soaps. In my opinion. If you have tried those (example baby shampoo and soap) and still have troubles then it does more harm then good, and i understand and agree that you should use no soap and shampoo and maybe even zero skin products in general. If it does give you problems i can also understand why you would not see soap as something beneficial. It's not very rare, but you are the exception to the rule. For some as simple as switching brands sometimes works and it turned out to be a allergy. Don't forget to change you laundry detergent as well (as mild as possible). I use natural alum deo sticks like some others mentioned here, might be something worth trying. Last a long time and is fairly cheap. Good luck.
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Why should switch to a natural soap if using 0 soap has been working so well for him?

What's the point of paying any money to try out all these other soaps if he has absolutely 0 issues using no soap?

It's weird to me how you're making out "soap" to be the standard default that everyone should work from and only not use soap if every alternative method involving soap doesn't work.

He's not using soap. Things are going great for him. Why change?
 
I've not had the balls to abandon shower gel but I haven't used shampoo in eighteen months or so. No more dandruff and I save money, that's fine by me. There was a bedding in period of about 8 weeks or so but since then it's been fine.
 
Alo81 said:
He's not using soap. Things are going great for him. Why change?
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Because soap will keep you cleaner. Part of our success as a modern society is hygiene. Soap will keep you cleaner and reduces the chance of illness and help preventing the spreading of diseases. Another reason is after a while you don't smell yourself, might be that you don't have zero odor. Some might have a mild odor, maybe only smelled by others from up close, but repulsing to others. Another reason might be simply why not try a different soap IF he hasn't tried it in the past? Why give up right away?
 
CraftySkills said:
Makes sense, I doubt these people were using cleansers, moisturizers, shampoos, conditioners, etc
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Or not. You compare basic hygiene products with all kinds of modern products that are not directly related to hygiene but more to beauty. You make a false comparison and hang your logic on that. We're clearly not talking about face masks, lotions and cleansers. We where discussing soap and shampoo. And in a time where they did not use shampoo they probably used soap to wash their face and hair. Doesn't mean they did not came by. And the men in the pictures clearly use hair products. If your point was you don't need all modern products and did not compare modern beauty products with basic hygiene products you would have a very valid point.
 
Skinpop said:
If you have long hair and find that even after several weeks of not using shampoo your hair still feels greasy consider getting a good hair brush. Brushing your hair will help distribute the natural oils from the roots to the ends of the hair and will greatly reduce grease buildup.
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Do you have a brush to recommend? I got a bristle one of some sort but I stopped using it because it felt like it was only brushing the top layer of my hair. I don't have the time/patience to always separate my hair into layers just for brushing.
 
I've been doing this for about 2 weeks with pretty good results. My hair is pretty oily but not to the point that it is gross. I always had issues with dry skin but now my skin feels much healthier. No changes with acne or anything yet, though.
 
Roland1979 said:
Or not. You compare basic hygiene products with all kinds of modern products that are not directly related to hygiene but more to beauty. You make a false comparison and hang your logic on that. We're clearly not talking about face masks, lotions and cleansers. We where discussing soap and shampoo. And in a time where they did not use shampoo they probably used soap to wash their face and hair. Doesn't mean they did not came by. And the men in the pictures clearly use hair products. If your point was you don't need all modern products and did not compare modern beauty products with basic hygiene products you would have a very valid point.
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I thought soap extended into face washes? I thought people were giving up on that as well?
 
Roland1979 said:
Because soap will keep you cleaner. Part of our success as a modern society is hygiene. Soap will keep you cleaner and reduces the chance of illness and help preventing the spreading of diseases. Another reason is after a while you don't smell yourself, might be that you don't have zero odor. Some might have a mild odor, maybe only smelled by others from up close, but repulsing to others. Another reason might be simply why not try a different soap IF he hasn't tried it in the past? Why give up right away?
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This kind of works on the assumption that having 0 germs on your body is better, which I don't think necessarily needs to be the case.

Using soap will technically lead you to be closer to "clean" but that doesn't mean not using soap would make you dirty - and if there are genuine benefits to be had with not using soap, why should they be dismissed simply for the fruitless ambition of being "cleaner"?

You mention the smell thing, can I ask, have you tried this yourself? Because I'm thinking you might not have and all of your assumptions are kind of baseless. You're using a lot of theoretical examples rather than real examples.

I've tried it. I go to school with my girlfriend of over 4 years so we spend a lot of time very near each other. I haven't used soap during my showers for over 5 weeks, I believe nearly 6 now and she hasn't had a single complaint. I didn't even tell her about it for the first 4 weeks because I wanted to see genuine reactions and she didn't notice a single difference in scent anywhere.

I also spend a lot of time in packed class rooms and have never gotten an odd glance or anything of the like. There are a lot of people in this thread saying the same.

So you say he should try new soaps because "soap will keep you cleaner" but you don't really give a legitimate reason for "to what end". You mention that it'll reduce your chances of illness and spreading disease but - c'mon, really? I'm not going to pretend not using soap is as effective as using it but I really, really doubt it's to the level where everyone bathing only with water is just some walking disease monger.

And in response to

Another reason might be simply why not try a different soap IF he hasn't tried it in the past? Why give up right away?
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Because it's free to not. He found a method that costs him absolutely nothing, saves him time, and has stellar results. Why would he look for an alternative that's more time consuming, costs more money, and has unknown results?
 
Roland1979 said:
Because soap will keep you cleaner. Part of our success as a modern society is hygiene. Soap will keep you cleaner and reduces the chance of illness and help preventing the spreading of diseases. Another reason is after a while you don't smell yourself, might be that you don't have zero odor. Some might have a mild odor, maybe only smelled by others from up close, but repulsing to others. Another reason might be simply why not try a different soap IF he hasn't tried it in the past? Why give up right away?
Click to expand...


I use a handwash for my hands, I don't see hygiene as an issue in that sense.

As for smell, I've actually improved since I've switched. I play sports and go for runs and the post-exercise odour is reduced compared to before. I've also received compliments on how I smell. Do you have anything substantive to show that odour is an issue? You also mention me being an exception, but the majority of people in this thread that have tried this have shown improvements. And most of the ones that haven't were people that only tried it for a shorter time period than recommended.
 
As a hairstylist, I'll tell you straight up that any problems with your hair are caused by the shampoo/conditioner you're using, but to not use any at all isn't great either. I don't prescribe to washing your hair daily or anything, in fact I only wash my own wih shampoo/conditioner about twice or three times a week, but whilst cutting out a problem shampoo will fix the obvious problem, it won't make your hair healthier. It's more about finding what works for you. You can do it naturally too, dandruff? Massage your scalp whilst you wash your hair etc.

Honestly though I'd be more willing to never wash my hair than to do it 7 days a week.
 
ive been doing no soap lately and my bacne has been clearing up

when ive grown beards in the past i got beard dandruff and i never use any soap on my face

so i dont know if thats connected
 
I would just like to highly recommend that people DO NOT use anti-bacterial soap. Even if you don't follow this, use regular detergent soap not anti-bacterial. It kills the healthy bacteria on your body, which is very important.
 
One thing that may be causing a some false positivies here...

The guide recommends showering with cold water. If you simply wash your hair with shampoo and use cold water to do the washing, your hair will look much much better, I promise you. It may not even be the lack of soap that is fixing a lot of peoples hair looks and issues...its simply using cool to luke warm water to wash it. Oils are stripped away with hot water, thats the main issue...

If the no shampooing works, remember to treat your hair like a living thing. Don't scrub the piss out of it, wet your hair, shampoo gently and rinse with cool water. Don't leave shampoo in your hair for any long period of time, get it in and out quickly. Also, if your hair is dry, ensure you are pat drying your hair, do not rub your hair with a towel, that causes it to dry out a ton. These are all lessons I've learned over the years, they have made a big difference in how my hair feels/looks.
 
huxley00 said:
One thing that may be causing a some false positivies here...

The guide recommends showering with cold water. If you simply wash your hair with shampoo and use cold water to do the washing, your hair will look much much better, I promise you. It may not even be the lack of soap that is fixing a lot of peoples hair looks and issues...its simply using cool to luke warm water to wash it. Oils are stripped away with hot water, thats the main issue...

If the no shampooing works, remember to treat your hair like a living thing. Don't scrub the piss out of it, wet your hair, shampoo gently and rinse with cool water. Don't leave shampoo in your hair for any long period of time, get it in and out quickly. Also, if your hair is dry, ensure you are pat drying your hair, do not rub your hair with a towel, that causes it to dry out a ton. These are all lessons I've learned over the years, they have made a big difference in how my hair feels/looks.
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For what it's worth, I've been using hot water and no soap and have had great results.
 
I've been doing this for a while now, maybe over 3 weeks, and everything smells good. I'm not using shampoo everyday either.

Just my dick, balls and ass get a little soap. Armpits too, when I can't get the deodorant out.

My hair actually feels awesome, it has more body than ever and I can easily mold it.
 
Alo81 said:
This kind of works on the assumption that having 0 germs on your body is better, which I don't think necessarily needs to be the case. ...Why would he look for an alternative that's more time consuming, costs more money, and has unknown results?
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False. Even more so since you don't use a disinfecting or sterilizing soap. It removes most germs a single time, allowing the troops of your body to quickly multiply and outnumber harmful bacteria. And once when i had no bath soap in house i did go without for three days, i noticed a vague unpleasant odor from my armpits. No one commented on it but unless i personally know them i would not count on others notifying me. If it works for you then good for you. I'm not going into a endless discussing about skipping health and hygiene products.
 
Roland1979 said:
False. Even more so since you don't use a disinfecting or sterilizing soap. It removes most germs a single time, allowing the troops of your body to quickly multiply and outnumber harmful bacteria. And once when i had no bath soap in house i did go without for three days, i noticed a vague unpleasant odor from my armpits. No one commented on it but unless i personally know them i would not count on others notifying me. If it works for you then good for you. I'm not going into a endless discussing about skipping health and hygiene products.
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Did you try using deodorant..?
 
heidern said:
You also mention me being an exception, but the majority of people in this thread that have tried this have shown improvements.
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You misinterpreted my post. What i meant with the exception is that most people don't have problems with soap and shampoo. And for most changing to a milder product works.
 
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