Why was bathing discouraged during the black plaque?

There is no evidence that bathing was discouraged during the Black Death pandemic in the 14th century. On the contrary, many medical texts from the time recommended regular bathing as a way to prevent the spread of disease. For example, the influential Italian physician Giovanni Boccaccio wrote in his Decameron that people should "bathe often and wash their hands frequently." However, because the cause of the plague was not known, some of the preventive measures that were promoted at the time were somewhat ineffective, such as burning strong-smelling herbs or avoiding particular astrological signs.