Eww! This Is How Often You Should Really Be Washing Your Gym Clothes

Not so long ago we learnt something pretty nasty about our gym habits, namely that sitting around in our active gear for too long after a workout could be wreaking havoc on our vaginas, thanks to all the extra sweat that’s produced when we exercise – it creates a breeding ground for bacteria, FYI.

Now we’re finding out that really we should be tossing our workout threads into the laundry a whole lot more often than we are. Why? Not surprisingly, it’s all down to our old friend bacteria.

Josh Zeichner, M.D director of cosmetic and clinical research in dermatology at Mt. Sinai Hospital in New York explains to Cosmopolitan that you shouldn’t be wearing your gym gear more than twice, before you chuck ’em into the washer.

Apparently, because the material of your leggings sits so close to your skin, bacteria is allowed to flourish, and in turn this can lead to “scaly skin patches that peel or flake, as well as uncomfortable rashes.” Yeast infections are also a risk.

But it’s not all bad news. Given that our gym clothes will be spending more time in the washer, we’ll need to have plenty of extra workout threads stashed in our wardrobes, which sounds to us like a pretty solid excuse to go shopping.

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