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Taking a long, steamy bath or hopping into a shower rinses off all the day’s dirt and grime, leaving you feeling refreshed and cleansed. Their functions are, in many ways, identical. But which one is better? 

Should you ditch bathtime and become a shower-only person? Or should you say goodbye to showering and become a devout bath-taker? 

Source: Go Green Post/Youtube

Water Consumption 

At first glance, you might think that baths consume less water. After all, you’re using the same water for the entire bath instead of having a steady stream of fresh water trickle pour onto you. But baths take a long time to fill up, even if you don’t fill them to the top. That time (and water) could’ve been used to take at least one shower. 

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According to the EPA, it takes 70 gallons to fill up a bathtub, whereas a five-minute shower requires only 25 gallons of water. Of course, some showers last longer than five minutes, and some people only fill their baths two-thirds or halfway, but generally, baths consume significantly more water. 

What’s Your Favorite Bubble Bath Doing to the Earth and Your Body?

The cosmetic industry does not have a good reputation when it comes to using eco-friendly ingredients. Bubble bath liquid must be ‘clean’ and environmentally friendly because, unlike body wash or shampoo, you do not rinse it off 30 seconds after rubbing it into your skin. Instead, bubble baths are made to soak in, which means your skin absorbs significantly more product.

The FDA strongly encourages individuals to not sit in a bubble bath for extended periods and to follow the directions on the package closely. Spending too long in a tub saturated with an artificial bubble bath can irritate your skin and urinary tract. This would be especially distressing for a young child. 

Bubble baths are foamy and fluffy, which is their appeal, but the surfactants used to create those bubbles can be harmful. Several surfactants have detrimental environmental impacts. They affect aquatic life the most and end up in water systems. If surfactants are not processed twice in water processing plants, they become a pollutant and re-enter our water system. 

Mental Health Benefits

Bathing, in general, has positive mental health effects. Immersing yourself in warm water can reduce symptoms of depression and anxiety. The act of wrapping yourself in a warm blanket of water helps to strengthen circadian rhythms and encourage good organ health. 

When most experts talk about bathing for your mental health, they usually mean taking a bath. Soaking in hot water is inherently relaxing, so it wouldn’t be fair to dismiss the multiple studies that conclude bathing is beneficial. 

If you do take baths for your mental health, try to limit them to once or twice a week and be wary not to overfill the tub. 

The Best Way to Save Water 

Source: Grist/Youtube

If you want to save water, you should stop eating meat. A kilogram of cow meat consumes 15,415 liters of water, whereas a kilogram of vegetables only needs 322 liters of water to be produced. 

Some might even argue that you could enjoy an extra bath or two if you cut out all animal products from your diet. We know we’d choose a bath over a steak any day of the week!

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Learn How to Cook Plant-Based Meals at Home

Reducing your meat intake and eating more plant-based foods is known to help with chronic inflammation, heart health, mental wellbeing, fitness goals, nutritional needs, allergies, gut health, and more! Unfortunately, dairy consumption also has been linked to many health problems, including acne, hormonal imbalance, cancer, prostate cancer, and has many side effects.

For those interested in eating more plant-based, we highly recommend purchasing one of our many plant-based cookbooks or downloading the Food Monster App which has thousands of delicious recipes making it the largest vegan recipe resource to help reduce your environmental footprint, save animals and get healthy! And, while you are at it, we encourage you to also learn about the environmental and health benefits of a plant-based diet.

Here are some resources to get you started:

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