If practical, enjoy a bath as well as showers
Almost-daily bathers had about 28% lower cardiovascular-event risk and 46% lower cerebral-hemorrhage risk than people bathing no more than twice weekly.
What it takes
Some extra water and energy, plus half an hour per bath.
What you may gain
A Japanese cohort followed about 30,000 people for 19 years, recording 2,097 cardiovascular events. Almost-daily bathing versus no more than twice weekly was associated with ratios of 0.72 for cardiovascular events (95% CI 0.62–0.84), 0.65 for coronary heart disease (0.45–0.94), 0.74 for stroke (0.62–0.87), and 0.54 for cerebral hemorrhage (0.40–0.73): reductions of 28%, 35%, 26% and 46%.
Context & considerations
These results come from Japan's population and bathing culture; many Chinese homes cannot accommodate daily baths. Avoid excessively hot water or long soaking. Those conditions can be dangerous for older people and people with cardiovascular or cerebrovascular disease; many older people die suddenly in Japanese bathtubs each year.
Research & references
Ukai T, Iso H, Yamagishi K, et al. (2020). Habitual tub bathing and risks of incident coronary heart disease and stroke. Heart, 106(10), 732-737. https://doi.org/10.1136/heartjnl-2019-315752