Peeing in the shower – don’t ignore ecology!

Wet taboo

You can fight with your bladder, quickly finish flushing and, sprinting towards the toilet, dry your body with a towel. Or: combine business with pleasure, urinate into the shower while taking a shower and calmly sing that second refrain. In the distance I hear an echo: "yuck!"

Every time peeing in the shower appears in social discourse, it causes quite a controversy. However, in anonymous studies, between 60% and 80% of people admit to it! Peeing in the shower - there is no shame in it, in fact, it turns out that it can be beneficial both for the environment and the contents of your wallet!

Should we be disgusted by peeing in the shower?

Our ancestors used urine to disinfect wounds thousands of years ago. Nowadays, when studying the secrets of unconventional medicine, we can come across urine therapy – a method of treatment that involves drinking or rubbing urine into diseased areas ( we mention this only as a curiosity, as there is no scientific evidence of the effectiveness of this method ).

For some it is an elixir of health, for others – a repulsive liquid. We can check whether there is really something to be afraid of in only one way – based on medical and substantive data.

Mechanism of formation and urination

In a nutshell!

Urine is produced in the kidneys – paired organs made up of nephrons , which are the basic building blocks of the kidneys, consisting of the renal corpuscle (i.e. the glomerulus and its capsule) and the renal tubule. Blood flows into the organ through the renal artery, the component of which is plasma . It contains, among other things, water, proteins and other metabolic products (both valuable and unnecessary components). The supplied material is then filtered in the glomeruli, valuable substances are reabsorbed by the tubule, and unnecessary elements are excreted.

Urine - division

• Primary urine – is formed after blood has been filtered in the glomeruli of the kidneys. It contains not only unnecessary metabolic products, but also valuable substances that are reabsorbed into the body (this process is called resorption ).
• Final urine – the final product formed during the flow through the nephron, then flowing through the ureters to the bladder and excreted through the urethra. It has a higher concentration of the substance and a smaller volume than primary urine, which, flowing through the tubules in the nephron, loses about 98% of it!

Urine excretion

Micturition is the process of removing urine from the body. The micturition reflex center is located in the sacral part of the spinal cord, while the frontal lobe of the cerebral cortex is where the center for conscious control of urination is located. Urine, accumulating in the bladder, causes tension in its wall. Impulses from the receptors in the bladder wall and urethra are transmitted via the pelvic nerve (belonging to the parasympathetic nervous system) and the hypogastric nerve (sympathetic system) to the brain.

What do we excrete when we pee?

The composition of urine may vary from person to person depending on diet, lifestyle and general health. Its volume is influenced by factors such as the amount of fluids consumed and the air temperature.

Final (final) urine contains:

• water (about 94%),
• metabolic products (urea, uric acid, ammonia),
• mineral salts (chlorides, carbonates, phosphates).

There's no reason to be afraid of germs that might be left in the shower after peeing. This practice certainly won't hurt anyone - and since we're talking about it, there must be some benefits to it (watch out - there will be a lot more jokes about "flowing"). ;)

Water consumption and peeing in the shower

Students Debs Torr and Chris Dobson from the University of East Anglia calculated that if 15,000 students from their alma mater started peeing in the shower, they could save enough water in a year to fill 26 Olympic swimming pools!

The shower is eco!

On average, we use 40 to 50 liters of water per shower (assuming rational use and the use of available mechanisms to limit the flow of water while maintaining its pressure). When bathing in a bathtub (even when not fully filled), water consumption is usually twice as high! A shower is certainly a more ecological and economical option.

How much water does a toilet absorb?

One flush of the toilet requires 3 to 6 liters of water. With older generation flushers, the consumption is much higher, up to 15 liters at a time! The numbers don't lie - combining the conclusions into one, we can see how much we can save by urinating in the shower - and with little effort ;) Note: these are not all the advantages that come with it!

Why is it good to pee in the shower?

You will lower your bills

Sometimes, horrendous amounts of money flow from your account when you flush the toilet.

Peeing in the shower can actually help you reduce your water bill. Based on the previously mentioned data, if you skip flushing at least once a day and just pee while showering, you'll save at least a dozen liters of water a week!

Besides, by peeing in the shower, you save not only water, but also toilet paper. Leaf by leaf, and over the course of a month, you can accumulate quite a nice bonus sum ;)

You will take care of your urinary tract

Toilet paper can spread bacteria in intimate areas. Bad habits (for example, the wrong direction of wiping) can result in transferring bacteria from the anus to the urethra. Not to mention perfumed paper, which can cause unpleasant irritations when used frequently. Peeing in the shower minimizes the risk of infection , and you - instead of reaching for the paper - reach directly for your favorite intimate hygiene fluid.

Can peeing in the shower be unhealthy?

Dr. Alicia Jeffrey-Thomas (urogynecological physiotherapist) shared her observations on Tik Tok some time ago – in a short video she informed her audience about the negative effects of peeing in the shower .

Remember Pavlov's experiment? Of course, it was about conditioned and unconditioned reflexes. And just as the sound of a prepared snack caused a dog to produce more saliva, a human, hearing only the sound of water, after having practiced peeing in the shower for a long time, may feel an uncontrollable, spontaneous need to urinate.

This can be particularly troublesome for people who struggle with various pelvic floor muscle dysfunctions and do not have 100% control over urination.

The second argument Jeffrey-Thomas put forward against this was the fact that the physiognomy of people with vaginas does not allow for the full relaxation of the uterine fundus muscles when urinating standing up. Do you sometimes pee “just in case”? For example, before a long journey – you press on your bladder, trying to empty it completely. In reality, however, this is harmful and may, in the long run, cause you to urinate more often, in smaller quantities. A similar mechanism applies to urinating in the shower.

Fungus, get out? We ignore the myths!

Urea contained in urine has a beneficial effect on the condition of the skin – it is not without reason that it is one of the most popular ingredients of cosmetics intended for foot care!

You can catch a fungus anywhere (for example, in a swimming pool, gym or sauna) – and this is true even if you follow hygiene by the book. Many sources claim that peeing in the shower tray can have a beneficial effect on your feet and help to overcome athlete's foot. Urea actually strongly moisturizes the skin, has an anti-itch effect and indirectly prevents the development of fungal superinfections. When we pee in the bath, we automatically rinse everything off ourselves. Despite this, the amount of valuable skin substances excreted in urine is insufficient to have any effect on its condition. This is a myth!

Also read our articles on hygiene: hygiene after intercourse and hygiene during your period .

Psst! Some people also believe that peeing in the shower strengthens the pelvic floor muscles, further encouraging intermittent urination. However, this can have the opposite effect to the intended one – including urine retention in the bladder or pain during urination. We write about the proper Kegel exercises here – remember, it is worth filtering the sources of information!

Do you ever pee in the shower?

For many, this issue is something completely inappropriate and repulsive, while others are happy to implement peeing while washing in the shower into their daily toilet. It doesn't matter which side of the shower you stand on - act in accordance with yourself! However, we encourage you to look for more "green" solutions - although their impact sometimes seems marginal, in the end they can have a huge impact on both the environment and the household budget.