Bariatric Hygiene Hints & Tips

Obesity makes it hard for people to get around and feel comfortable in public places, but the disease presents many hidden challenges as well. One of them is good hygiene; extremely large people cannot reach certain parts of their body and therefore have trouble keeping themselves clean. Specialty products such as sponges, hand-held shower heads and bathtub benches can help.

Sitting In The Shower

• Use a bath bench. Extremely large people have trouble standing for long periods of time and have reduced mobility. This, coupled with the possibility of slips and falls, makes showering difficult and potentially dangerous. Durable plastic benches---the same as those used for people with other disabilities---offer comfort and stability.

Using The Shower

• Use a shower head and a rod with a sponge. Hand-held shower heads allow precise control of where the water is flowing and therefore are ideal for people who have places on their body that are hard to reach. Lathering and scrubbing can also be a problem; for this reason, specialty companies make rods with sponges attached at the end.

Using The Toilet

• Use a bidet or a rod with a sponge. Bidets are special toilet fixtures that use a stream of water in place of toilet paper. They have been common in non-American cultures for decades, and are becoming increasingly popular in the United States. Portable bidets, which use a bottle and pump, help with toilet use outside the home or in public places.

  Also, some obese people use sponges on rods to clean themselves after bathroom use. A popular method is to wrap the sponge in a baby wipe and discard the wipe afterward.