“Caveman Skincare” Isn’t Ancient—It’s Bad Advice

Let’s Talk “Caveman Skincare” And Why Not Bathing Is A More Modern Invention

The newest contrarian view against the industry has emerged, maybe you’ve heard of it: caveman skincare. It villainizes everything you’ve heard about treating the skin. Remove the rituals, the actives, the products, and even the sink…entirely. What are you left with? Doing nothing at all for your skin, not even rinsing it with water.

We get what people might be trying to do – zero skincare is as anti-consumerist as it gets, and it’s shocking for the algorithm (visually and conceptually). But more importantly, the idea that neglecting your skin is as ancient and natural as prehistoric living is false, putting this “trend” not as caveman wisdom, but bad advice for the modern age. Estheticians and dermatologists alike are warning you not to be influenced by caveman skincare. Here’s why:

A Brief Overview Of Bathing

In summary: we’ve been doing it for millennia. The Egyptians and Romans famously bathed, and the history goes back even further. It’s believed humans have been washing since the Stone Age, in part because most European cave art was found short distances from natural springs. There’s also that entire city in England called Bath because of the Roman baths that were discovered there.

And it makes sense; bathing is natural – even animals have hygiene. From elephants to insects, most species have cleansing rituals. Beavers groom their coats every time they come out of the water. Pigs lather up in mud to protect against the sun. Fish don’t need baths, but they do fling themselves against rocks and plants to remove parasites on their scales.

Yes, there were those who didn’t regularly bathe in history, like Puritanical Europeans. But they did so because they didn’t like that bath houses promoted sexual freedom. They also thought that changing their undergarments meant that they were clean. All of this not only caused disease but killed many people (think: European diseases wiped out more than 90% of the Native population in coastal New England before 1620).

And what about the soap of it all? The first cold cream was actually invented almost 2,000 years ago by a Roman-Greek physician named Galen of Pergamum. Regarded as the ultimate authority in medicine during the Middle Ages, his cleansing/moisturizing formula was referenced as early as 320-403 CE (aka the 4th century).

Why Cleanliness Isn’t Overrated

All of this is to say – we’ve been clean. And for good reason. In looking at caveman skincare content, you can find dozens of dermatologists responding and saying that what you’re seeing isn’t skin regenerating itself – it’s something called dermatosis neglecta, which is what it sounds like. Neglecting your skin entirely is considered inadequate hygiene, and it causes an accumulation of dead skin cells, oils, sweat, and dirt, resulting in dark patches and verrucous plaque – aka skin lesions that appear warty or rough.

Obviously cleansing is a must. And the other basics of skincare (treating and moisturizing) are just as important. The clean base you create after cleansing still needs nutrients to at least hydrate, nourish and protect the skin, and at most help to work toward your skin goals, like firming, evening tone, or soothing irritation.

Not bathing or caring for your skin, when you have access to water and product, is a modern lifestyle choice – not an ancient one. Please wash your face <3

Our Sources:

• https://www.historyextra.com/period/prehistoric/when-did-humans-starting-bathing-having-baths-washing-personal-hygiene/
• https://allnurses.com/frequent-bathing-harmful-health-th-t745905/#:~:text=People of all social and economic classes,for a couple of times a year.&text=According to the article by Kelly White%2C,oils that protected them from disease (2020).
• https://tpwd.texas.gov/publications/nonpwdpubs/young_naturalist/animals/natures_bath_time/
• https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC4372914/#:~:text=Dermatitis neglecta is a condition,aggressive diagnostic and therapeutic procedures.
• https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC3839826/#:~:text=The causative agents for this infection include,compacta%2C Rhinocladiella aquaspersa%2C Cladophialophora%2C and Phialophora verrucosa.&text=Clinically the diagnosis is not specific and,cell carcinoma%2C basal cell carcinoma and keratoacanthoma).