Is sharing caring when it comes to personal care items and hygiene products like toothbrushes, deodorant, and chapstick?
According to experts, these personal hygiene items should not be shared - but in most instances, it's inevitable.
Our market research company, Drive Research surveyed 1,813 Americans on what they considered the most critical hygiene habits.
From sharing a toothbrush every day to never letting anyone else use their chapstick, our respondents had some very different opinions about their personal hygiene.
Key findings from the national hygiene survey included:
- 73% of Americans consider personal hygiene very important
- 50% of people won’t share their hairbrush with anyone
- 1 in 10 people share a toothbrush with their significant other, family member, or friend
- Of those who share a toothbrush, 57% do so every day
- 35% of people share deodorant with their significant other, family member, or friend
- 1 in 2 people share their bars of soap with a S/O, family member, or friend
- Nearly 1 in 3 Americans share lip calm or chapstick
Below, you’ll find subsections based on each hygiene practice along with related stats. Keep reading for a full overview of our findings!
73% of Americans consider personal hygiene very important
We all know that proper hygiene is key for staying healthy, preventing illness, and just feeling good.
The survey found that nearly 3 in 4 people consider personal hygiene to be very important.
Of all generations surveyed, Gen X prioritized good hygiene the most, with 80% saying it was very important. Whereas, only 53% of Gen Z reported that their personal hygiene was very important.
Females (76%) were more likely to say their personal hygiene was very important compared to males (67%).
50% of Americans never share their hairbrush
According to Dr. Purvisha Patel hairbrushes can be the vehicle for contaminants, bacteria, and fungus transferring from one scalp to another.
Luckily for half (50%) of Americans, they are not in danger because they reported not sharing a hairbrush with anyone.
Although, 21% of people share hairbrushes with their spouse or significant other. And another 21% share a hairbrush with their family members.
Of those who do share their hairbrush, 41% of people do so every day.
Women (50%) were slightly more likely to share a comb or hair brush than men (48%).
10% of people share a toothbrush
Our national hygiene survey found that 1 in 10 people share a toothbrush with their significant other, family member, or friend. And for those that do share, 57% of them do so on a daily basis.
Males were more likely to be comfortable sharing a toothbrush (17%) than women (8%).
The resounding 90% of respondents refused to ever do this, as they should! Sharing a toothbrush with even the closest of family members can lead to all sorts of infections and diseases, so it’s never a good idea.
Additionally, we also asked respondents, "Would you rather buy all used underwear or buy all used toothbrushes?"
It was pretty neck and neck. 51% of people would rather buy all used underwear than all used toothbrushes.
35% of people share deodorant
While over half (66%) of the respondents would never share their deodorant with anyone, there are some people who do either a significant other, family member, or friend.
- 14% of people share deodorant with a spouse or significant other
- 13% of people share deodorant with a family member
- 8 % of people share deodorant with a friend
Of those who do share deodorant, a majority (71%) do so at least once a week.
Males were more comfortable sharing deodorant (43%) with someone, than females (31%).
1 in 2 people share a bar of soap
Even though sharing soap isn’t nearly as unhygienic (or common) as sharing a toothbrush, it’s still not without risks. However, this was the hygiene product that people were most likely to share.
50% of people reported never sharing a bar of soap, while the other half of respondents share one with a significant other (27%), family member (18%), or friend (5%).
Of those who do share a bar of soap do so every day (43%). Males were more comfortable with sharing a bar of soap (57%) than females (48%).
Nearly 1 in 3 Americans share lip calm or chapstick
It’s getting colder, and you know what that means–chapped lip season. But don’t count on borrowing someone else’s.
66% of people are against sharing their chapstick or lip balm with anyone.
17% of respondents will share with their partner, 12% will with a family member, and 5% will share with a friend.
Only 18% of our female respondents will share their chapstick daily, in contrast to the 29% of men that will share it daily.
About the Survey
Survey Methodology
- Our survey received 1,813 responses
- National fieldwork consisted of 18+ adults
- Fieldwork lasted from September 2 to September 19th
Respondent Profile (By Age)
- Silent Generation: 4%
- Boomers: 29%
- Gen X: 26%
- Millennials: 32%
- Gen Z: 9%
Respondent Profile (By Gender)
- Male: 29%
- Female: 70%
- Non-binary: 1%
Scrub-a-dub-dub. What’s your take on these hygiene habits? Do they match up to yours? If you get one thing out of this post–don’t share your toothbrush, please!
Based in New York, Drive Research is a market research company. Our team has extensive knowledge of surveying different demographics for internal and external PR efforts.
Curious about the rest of our market research services? Get in touch with us today!
- Message us on our website
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Lark Allen
As a Content Marketing Specialist, Lark has a strong background and passion for creative, professional, and journalistic writing. She is also a self-proclaimed music freak and 90s enthusiast.
Learn more about Lark, here.
