If your child’s bath time turns into a nightly battle, you may want to take a page out of Mila Kunis and Ashton Kutcher’s book — and just skip it.
During a recent appearance on Dax Shepard’s Armchair Expert podcast, the celebrity couple shared that they don’t believe in bathing daughter Wyatt, 6, and son Dimitri, 4, with soap and water every day.
“Now, here’s the thing: If you can see the dirt on them, clean them,” Kutcher said. “Otherwise, there’s no point.”
The no-daily-baths philosophy isn’t new for the family. Kunis said she didn’t grow up with hot water as a child and therefore didn’t shower much herself. “But when I had children, I also didn’t wash them every day,” she said. “I wasn’t that parent that bathed my newborns — ever.”
Think this sounds like something Kunis’ Bad Moms character would do? Think again. Experts say bathing too much (or too little) can actually wreak havoc on the skin.
So what’s the right frequency? That all depends on your child’s age and how dirty they got that day. But in general:
- If you have a baby, aim for a bath three days a week during the first year, according to the American Academy of Pediatrics.
- Toddlers and little kids should take a dip two to three times per week, suggests the Cleveland Clinic.
- Older kids ages 6-11 should bathe at least once a week, according to the American Academy of Dermatology Association, and daily showers should start when puberty does.
Oh, and in case you’re wondering, Kunis and Kutcher follow their own bathing philosophy, too — it’s not just for their kids. By and large, they refrain from using soap on their bodies every day, save for their armpits and groin area. Not surprisingly, those are the two spots doctors say you should clean several times a week.
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