A poll by one online bathroom retailer has confirmed that Brits find having a bath more relaxing than taking a shower.
Big Bathroom Shop carried out a poll on the bathing habits of more than 2,000 Brits and tested 50 of them on their heart rate when in and out of the shower or bath.
Respondents were asked to pick a side – #teamshower or #teambath.
The survey found that although more than half of the nation by and large prefers showers (56%), more than two-thirds (69%) said the number one reason for taking a bath was relaxation.
The surveyed also showed that bathing helps to reduce stress levels. Its heart monitor test showed that the average resting heart rate of those tested was 88bpm, which was reduced by 15% when they were soaking in a bath or by 7% when taking a shower.
The other top reasons among those polled for preferring a bath over a shower were for ‘alone time’ (31%) and to relieve stress (29%). It also showed that one in 10 Brits are now bathing during the day while working from home.
Just under a third (30%) of those surveyed said their average soaking time in the bath is between 26 and 36 minutes and more than one in 10 (12%) said they spend more than 50 minutes in the bath – that’s more than 304 hours a year.
John Lawless, content marketing manager for Big Bathroom Shop, said: “Our research shows that despite the majority being #teamshower, baths prove to be a lot more relaxing than showers, so the next time you’re feeling stressed put some soothing music on, take some time to yourself and it will help lower your heart rate.
“Despite it being tempting to stay in our own company and soak for a long time, experts have shown that you don’t want to spend too much time doing this, so we can look after our skin. It still needs to be long enough to get rid of any germs though, so don’t go bathing or showering for too little time.”
The company pointed to advice from Dr Sasha Dhoat, consultant dermatologist at Stratum Clinics: “You should generally avoid excessive wet time and if your feet look ‘pruney’, it’s been too long, and your skin barrier has been compromised. Over-aggressive skin cleansing, or overzealous exfoliation in a bid for glowing, clean skin is, in fact, an act of self-sabotage, damaging the epidermis which could cause moisture loss and allow chemical irritants and infections into the skin.”
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