Al Roker Shocked to Learn How Often You Should Shower

According to a 2021 Harvard study, approximately two-thirds of Americans shower every day. But how often you should shower is a different subject altogether, and one that long-running Today host Al Roker is decidedly not on board with.

This week, Shop Today editorial director Adrianna Brach sat down with Roker, Dylan Dreyer, and Sheinelle Jones to have them guess how often dermatologists recommend that people shower per week. The panel of hosts were presented with four options—every day, two to three days, five times, or once.

“I bet they’re gonna say C, five times,” Dreyer guessed, while Jones said, “I’m gonna say every day, even though I know I know it’s gonna be [five times].” Meanwhile, Roker was not having the last three options. “I don’t care what they say, I’m going to say [every day],” he stated.

However, all three were wrong, as Brach revealed that dermatologists recommend that people shower two to three times per week. Although she did concede that number may be variable on a person’s lifestyle and skin type. She also noted that people who work dirtier or more laborious jobs, or those who work out frequently might shower more often.

Still, Roker was not having it. “I’m looking at Al’s face, like what is this?” Brach laughed, after announcing the results of the quiz, as the 68-year-old sat with his mouth agape.

“Not if you come in contact with other people!” he exclaimed. As Brach continued discussing the subject, Roker couldn’t help but shake his head and roll his eyes.

“So what they say is that you have this natural bacteria that lives all over your skin and it’s part of your microbiome, right?” Brach continued. “So you don’t want to compromise that because it does sort of help protect you. And then there’s other people who have skin issues, dry skin, eczema, rosacea. All these factors come into play, and when you’re using soap and harsh detergents—I can’t stop looking at Al—it could get a little bit dicey.”

“I shower twice a day,” Roker fired back, to which Jones quickly responded, “That’s too much.”

Suffice to say, it seems as though Roker is not going to be easily swayed here. But for everyone else who wants to potentially improve their skin while cutting back on water, showering two to three days per week is evidently just fine.