My No-Soap, No-Shampoo, Bacteria-Rich Hygiene Experiment

[MachineGhost]

For most of my life, if I’ve thought at all about the bacteria living on my skin, it has been while trying to scrub them away. But recently I spent four weeks rubbing them in. I was Subject 26 in testing a living bacterial skin tonic, developed by AOBiome, a biotech start-up in Cambridge, Mass. The tonic looks, feels and tastes like water, but each spray bottle of AO+ Refreshing Cosmetic Mist contains billions of cultivated Nitrosomonas eutropha, an ammonia-oxidizing bacteria (AOB) that is most commonly found in dirt and untreated water. AOBiome scientists hypothesize that it once lived happily on us too — before we started washing it away with soap and shampoo — acting as a built-in cleanser, deodorant, anti-inflammatory and immune booster by feeding on the ammonia in our sweat and converting it into nitrite and nitric oxide.

http://www.nytimes.com/2014/05/25/magaz ... iment.html

[Pointedstick]

Fascinating! I will admit that I haven't shampooed my hair in months and there has been a noticeable reduction in dandruff and scalp itchiness.

[MachineGhost]

Fascinating! I will admit that I haven't shampooed my hair in months and have noticed a noticeable reduction in dandruff and scalp itchiness.

I think a lot of people are allergic to the harsh ingredients in commercial shampoos.  I'm still using up my anti-dandruff shampoo, but after that's gone I will switch to an all natural body wash (that I use for the body) mixed in with GSE.  I don't shower twice a week to take a break from the monotomy and let the microbiome grow.  Since Western vegetarians and vegans don't really smell, I suspect it is the ammonia from breaking down and digesting meat that produces BO.

[Kshartle]

I find a direct correlation between the amount of soap and shampoo I use and the loving I get from my GF.

Might it be a coincidence?

[MachineGhost]

Q: When can I get AOB compatible shampoos and soaps?
A: We are working on that now and hope to be testing prototypes this year.

Geek Answer: AOBiome is working on developing a certification for soaps and shampoos as well our own compatible hygiene products based on our rigorous ingredient testing program. We will also be reporting the results of these studies so that you can read the labels of your hygiene products and make informed decisions. In the future we also hope to work on deodorants based on our human skin biome studies.

[MachineGhost]

I find a direct correlation between the amount of soap and shampoo I use and the loving I get from my GF.

I'll take a shot at it: 1) Your GF is a dental hygienist; there's not much else that is nasty in terms of seeing and cleaning off the worst filth of humanity short of being a nurse.  2) She's materialistic; cultural brainwashing and marketing fiction trains those types to favor uber-cleanliness and uber-pleasant olfactory smells; result: sublime uber-goodness catnip.

[Kshartle]

I find a direct correlation between the amount of soap and shampoo I use and the loving I get from my GF.

I'll take a shot at it: 1) Your GF is a dental hygienist; there's not much else that is nasty in terms of seeing and cleaning off the worst filth of humanity short of being a nurse.  2) She's materialistic; cultural brainwashing and marketing fiction trains those types to favor uber-cleanliness and uber-pleasant olfactory smells; result: sublime uber-goodness catnip.

You need to apply this level of correct analysis to other disciplines MG. I'll point them out as they come up.

Not materialistic though, likes knick knacks and fancy meals/drinks but not fancy things or lots of them.

[Mountaineer]

I find a direct correlation between the amount of soap and shampoo I use and the loving I get from my GF.

I'll take a shot at it: 1) Your GF is a dental hygienist; there's not much else that is nasty in terms of seeing and cleaning off the worst filth of humanity short of being a nurse.  2) She's materialistic; cultural brainwashing and marketing fiction trains those types to favor uber-cleanliness and uber-pleasant olfactory smells; result: sublime uber-goodness catnip.

Geeze, are you guys on an anti-toilet paper regime too? 

... Mountaineer

[Pointedstick]

Fascinating! I will admit that I haven't shampooed my hair in months and there has been a noticeable reduction in dandruff and scalp itchiness.

Your wife must be very patient, really love you, or have zero olfactory sense. 

All three, as a matter of fact!

But in all seriousness, I haven't noticed any bad (worse) smells. My hair is pretty short anyway.

[Pointedstick]

Fascinating! I will admit that I haven't shampooed my hair in months

What does this mean exactly?  No soap-like thing?  No water even?

I just don't use shampoo on my hair--nothing more, nothing less. I still wash it with water, and I still use soap elsewhere.

I started doing it because previously I'd always had a dandruff problem, and even anti-dandruff shampoos didn't seem to help. So I decided to experiment with not using anything, and that solved the problem! I find it terribly ironic that the anti-dandruff shampoo was causing dandruff!

[MachineGhost]

I started doing it because previously I'd always had a dandruff problem, and even anti-dandruff shampoos didn't seem to help. So I decided to experiment with not using anything, and that solved the problem! I find it terribly ironic that the anti-dandruff shampoo was causing dandruff!

None of the dandruff shampoos work for me as a control since they all contain just one or two anti-dandruff ingredients which is why I was glad to find Fructis Anti-Dandruff which contains a boatload of anti-dandruff ingredients.  Worse, some anti-dandruff ingredients are cancerific and/or promote resistance.  The only ingredient that doesn't promote resistance long-term is zinc.  Nevertheless, I don't like putting all the estrogen disruptors and worse in commercial shampoos on my scalp so I'm going to switch to GSE which is a synthetic antibacterial chemical made from grapefruit seed extract that is similarly potent in the way CloSys is.  Ironically, the reason I got such a bad dandruff problem in the first place is from not washing my hair frequently enough.

But, I think its very, very hard to tell genuine dandruff from an allergic reaction or atopic dermatitis.  True dandruff is caused by a yeast along with immune system compromise or autoimmunity.  You could probably ferret the answer out with Nizoral.

One thing the story didn't really talk about is whether or not there was any scrubbing/rubbing under the water on the body and hair.  I would think that would still be necessary?  How else is the biofilm going to come off?