Showering is a fairly intuitive experience. You get in and follow your routine, washing your hair (if it’s a wash day), enjoying the hot water, and, of course, lathering up with soap. But while you maythink you’re doing a top-notch job when you use your loofah or washcloth, you might actually be skipping a few crucial areas. Read on to find out which five body parts Jen Caudle, DO, board-certified family medicine physician, says you aren’t washing enough.
RELATED: Doctor Reveals the 5 Body Parts You’re Not Washing Enough: “Dirt and Grossness Gets Trapped.”
1. The sides of your nose
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In an Aug. 1 TikTok video, Caudle, who is also an associate professor in the department of family medicine at Rowan University-School of Osteopathic Medicine, says that an area of your face isn’t getting enough attention in the bath and shower.
“The first [body part you’re not washing enough] is on the sides—like those creases right around the nose area,” Caudle says. “You can get kind of oily and get kind of greasy, kind of gunky—uh huh.”
She recommends “really specifically getting that area” with your face wash.
3. Your feet
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Because feet can get smelly after a long day or a workout, you probably take the time to wash them with soap. However, Caudle says you might not be getting the entirety of your feet.
“I’m talking about the bottoms of your feet, y’all,” she tells followers. “Gotta get that washcloth [and] in addition to going between your toes, make sure you get the bottoms of your feet to help reduce the chance of infection.”
As an added bonus, washing the bottom of your feet can also help exfoliate them, Caudle adds.
4. Under your folds
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Having some folds on your body is natural, and if you do have them, you want to make sure you’re cleaning the area underneath.
“Lift up your stuff, lift up your boobs, lift up your folds—it’s okay if you have them—just lift them up [and] make sure you’re washing underneath them,” Caudle says.
5. Inside your ears
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Proceed with caution here, as Caudle says that you need to be washing the inside of your ears, but not with cotton swabs.
“No, you cannot use Q-tips or should not use Q-tips,” she says. “You wanna just get a wash towel, put your finger in it, get it wet, and kind of go in there and make sure you get the wax out that’s sort of coming out of the canal—that is safe to do.”