It is a question that has left the internet bitterly divided: is bar soap or body wash more hygienic?
While some people swear a bar of soap is the only way to feel clean, others argue that this is ‘disgusting’.
Now, a microbiologist has finally settled the debate over which is the cleanest option for your shower.
Unfortunately, it’s bad news if you’re used to an old–fashioned bar of soap – and even worse if you’re still using a loofah.
A YouGov poll conducted in 2018 found that 36 per cent of US adults still prefer bar soap in the shower.
But experts say their seemingly clean bar of suds could act as a ‘reservoir of infection’ for bacteria and fungi.
Dr Primrose Freestone, a clinical microbiologist from the University of Leicester, told the Daily Mail: ‘Because bars of soap come into contact with a microbially rich environment such as the skin, it will pick up skin germs.
‘Liquid soap is usually in a container and so does not have direct contact with the skin and is therefore more hygienic as it is less likely to become contaminated with skin bacteria.’
Scientists have finally settled the question of whether bar soap or shower gel is more hygienic, and it’s bad news for fans of a traditional bar of suds
Despite experts warning that bar soap can pass on germs, 36 per cent of US adults still say they prefer it to body wash or liquid soap, according to YouGov poll
The debate of bar soap versus shower gel has spread through social media like wildfire, with commenters from either side shocked by the other’s ‘dirty’ habits.
In one discussion on Reddit, one user complained that ‘liquid soap is worse than bar soap in every way.’
The enraged commenter added that fears over sharing soap were a ‘baseless neuroticism foisted upon us by greedy cosmetic companies.’
Meanwhile, other social media users have extolled the superior cleaning a traditional bar of soap supposedly offers.
One user wrote: ‘I’m a bar soap man. I don’t feel really, really clean whenever I use body wash.’
Another chimed in: ‘I had Eczma that I simply could not get rid of until my doctor suggested switching from liquid to bar soap.
‘Cleared it up almost instantly so while liquid soaps may have advantages I am firmly in the bar soap corner.’
However, a rival camp of shower gel advocates was equally as emphatic that bar soap was unhygienic and offered an inferior cleaning experience.
Advocates of bar soap say that this simple staple offers a better clean and is easier to use, but experts disagree
‘If you’re just rubbing the bar soap directly on the skin that that’s weird,’ one commenter wrote.
Another added: ‘I haaaate using bar soap. I hate using it and I absolutely hate how my skin feels afterwards.’
While one furious commenter simply wrote: ‘Bar soap dries out my skin. F*** bar soap.’
According to Dr Freestone, fans of shower gel are absolutely right to complain about bar soap being dirty.
Both liquid soap and bar soap are about as effective at removing germs, but bar soaps can actually harbour bacteria of their own.
Dr Freestone says: ‘Heavily used soap was found in a scientific study to have more microorganisms compared to less used soap.
‘It was concluded that a bar of soap used frequently could potentially act as a reservoir of infection.’
According to the University Hospitals Birmingham NHS Trust, liquid soap is preferred to bar soap because it is ‘less likely to become contaminated’.
Experts say that bar soap can actually harbour germs and potentially act as a ‘reservoir of infection’
Likewise, Queen Victoria Hospital NHS Trust notes that ‘bar soap may pass on germs’.
Liquid soaps like shower gels, meanwhile, are cleaner simply because their containers keep them away from outside contaminants.
However, even if you do use a bar soap, the risks of passing on diseases via the bar itself are relatively low.
Soap is produced by treating oils or fats with strong alkaline chemicals, creating pin–shaped molecules with a water–attracting head and a water–repelling tail.
When you wash your hands, these molecules clump together into balls, known as micelles, that trap dirt and grease but repel water.
‘Soaps clean by complexing and loosening surface dirt and bacteria, fungi and viruses on the skin, which is then rinsed off with clean running water,’ Dr Freestone explains.
‘The rinsing step of hand washing would tend to remove any additional germs picked up from the soap, as would hand drying.’
Similarly, studies have shown that transfer of infectious bacteria via bar soap is unlikely when people are washing themselves properly.
While bar soap can harbour germs on the surface, these bacteria are swept away during the washing process. That means the risk of passing on diseases or infections is still very low
The much bigger source of infection risk is any kind of washing aid, such as a washcloth, soap bag, or loofah.
‘Bath sponges and loofahs trap skin cells as they move over the skin, as well as the bacteria and fungi that live on the skin,’ says Dr Freestone.
‘This means the bacteria can eat the trapped skin cells within the sponge or loofah and so could increase in numbers.’
Studies have shown that loofahs can actually make the risk of infection worse due to their abrasive action.
Scrubbing with a loofah damages the skin surface, which gives the bacteria hiding within a perfect access foothold to cause skin infections.
If you do use some kind of sponge in the shower, Dr Freestone recommends washing it at least once a week by soaking it in a 10 per cent bleach solution, rinsing, and drying.
This should kill most of the bacteria and fungi present and ensure you don’t accidentally make yourself dirtier while trying to get clean.
