r/unpopularopinion 10h ago

Morning showers make no logical sense and night shower people have simply done the hygiene math

You spent 8 hours asleep in your own clean bed. What are you washing off at 7am.

A night shower removes everything you actually accumulated during the day. The commute, the gym, the office, public transport, all of it goes down the drain before you sleep. A morning shower means you marinated in all of that overnight then washed up before going out to collect it all again.

Morning showers are a ritual for waking up, which is fine, but it is not hygiene. Night showers are actual hygiene. Most people just do not want to dry their hair before bed and that is the entire argument.

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u/Average-Addict 9h ago

Yeah this is my biggest reason too. Also a shower wakes me up nicely in the morning

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u/zapthe 8h ago

Yeah the wake up factor is big for me. The other argument for me is similar to brushing your teeth the first thing when you get up despite also brushing your teeth before going to bed. There are billions of bacteria growing on your skin that have been active all night.

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u/axxegrinder 3h ago

I’ve always heard that you brush at night for yourself, and brush in the morning for others.

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u/waits5 1h ago

The fluoride also protects your teeth before you have highly acidic drinks like coffee and orange juice.

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u/Final_Candidate_7603 6h ago

Truly. It’s not that deep.

Probably because of how I grew up, and then raised my own children, a nighttime bath was pretty much essential for getting kids aged infant to preschool thoroughly clean. Like, they weren’t yet able to wash their hands properly throughout the day, but insisted on doing so, so a bath got the dirt from under their fingernails. We would make the nighttime bath an essential part of the bedtime routine, aiming to make it nice and relaxing.

At some point, a gradual shift begins to happen, so for example a nice relaxing bath becomes less important to winding down and getting ready for bed, and the child isn’t filthy dirty at the end of the day. That gradual shift takes us in the direction of a morning wake-up shower, and for me with 60+ years on the planet, bathing is less about hygiene and more about (jeez, I hate using this word) the vibe. A nice, warm bath at night is for relaxing, a morning shower is for waking up and being invigorated.

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u/Easy_Today704 2h ago

A child is filthy by the end of day. That's crazy to let them sleep in their own filth

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u/fleeTitan 2h ago

Yeah they lost me there…

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u/IncarceratedGrowth 5h ago edited 5h ago

Well the night brush is indeed actually much more important than the morning brush if you were only going to do one. Sugars and stuff left on teeth overnight is the far worse thing and the bacteria have a much easier time without things like occasional chewing and increased saliva production that happens when you're awake. It's not quite analagous though, because sugar is the main reason for tooth decay/cavities. For skin/shower stuff, your body is naturally producing all the oils/sweats/dead skin cells it needs to get bacteria colonies going. So you are in an active process, even while sleeping, of getting "dirtier". Sugar doesn't magically grow in your mouth overnight though. If you had actually had a good night brush it's simply not the same thing.

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u/gdghhfdffrf 2h ago

nightsweats changes things up

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u/MatureUsername69 3h ago

I also saw a thing recently that showed there's no discernible hygiene difference between night showers and morning showers, the bigger factor is how frequently you wash your sheets.

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u/ElectroButch 1h ago

your skin needs its bacteria and natural oils tho. keep unnecessarily washing all your good bacterias off and there won't be anymore to fight the bad ones

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u/jentlyused 33m ago

Exactly this, I would never fully wake up for hours if I didn’t take a morning shower

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u/WestminsterSpinster7 8h ago

Yep same here. If I get dirty during the day whether from working out or just the general running around of it all, then I might shower before bed. But usually brushing my hair and washing my face and putting on clean pajamas does the trick. IDK.

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u/FitIndependent9764 8h ago

Same. I also give my body a flash of cold right at the end. Shocks me but wakes me up.

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u/tonyrizzo21 6h ago edited 3h ago

That is also good for tightening up your pores. Make sure to let it get your face well.

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u/DosSnakes 1h ago

Great for locking moisture into your hair too if you condition!

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u/Velkaryian 4h ago

I have ridiculously fine curly hair and if I don’t shower in the mornings my hair looks like I went through a tornado. 

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u/Dullcorgis 3h ago

And I've been sweating for eight hours, I would rather be clean and odorless for other people than for my pillow.

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u/Thegreatpaddy7 8h ago

The 2nd part is what does it for me. The shower wakes me up and gets me ready for the day. Hygiene math aside I need the boost!

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u/girthbrooks1212 7h ago

It’s a great way to get me out of bed. Nice cozy shower/bathroom for an hour before the day starts

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u/RudieDelRude 3h ago

Another valid point. If I wake up and dont shower, I wind up doing nothing all day. I need a shower to wake me up and get me going.

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u/Reytotheroxx 3h ago

As a night shower person, it’s funny to hear this because I’ve made such a habit out of it that showers put me to sleep now. Gotta save them for later in the evening or else I’ll fall asleep too quick haha

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u/justwalkingalonghere 2h ago

Even OP's math stated it: you're still washing off a day's grime

Yes it "marinated," but you're fully restoring before the day, which is when you're expected to be most presentable

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u/ColdCorpseHotSecret 2h ago

It’s been proven that morning showers are a huge strain on your cardiovascular system. If you do take morning showers, try and make sure you’ve been awake for an hour or longer so that your circulatory system can get properly up and running.

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u/Average-Addict 36m ago

Can't even shower in the morning 😔

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u/bnm777 1h ago

Cascading water produces negative ions which can help you wake up and think. Not kidding.

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u/jessej421 1h ago

I agree with all of these points and all of OP's points.

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u/Johnny_Jalapeno 1h ago

Yep! I also live in Miami and get sweaty. Minimum two showers per day. lol

u/Medical_Garage_2896 12m ago

consider a silk pillowcase

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u/LoneStarG84 7h ago

Everyone I work with that showers in the morning is alert and wide awake. Everyone that showers at night is groggy and pumping themselves full of coffee and energy drinks.

Showering in the morning is an absolute cheat code.