What Is the Importance of Good Personal Hygiene?

Good personal hygiene can be highly beneficial to a person's health, social life, and professional interactions. Maintaining a reasonable level of hygiene through regular bathing and grooming can prevent the development of unpleasant and harmful health problems, particularly relating to the skin and teeth. An individual with good hygiene is also unlikely to look or smell in a way that may make others, such as friends and coworkers, uncomfortable. In some professions, particularly healthcare and those that require close contact with other people, it is essential for preventing the spread of infections. A simple but consistent daily regimen is all that is needed to maintain good personal hygiene and to reap the personal, social, and health benefits that doing so confers.

A person can gain many potential health benefits by keeping up a minimum level of personal hygiene through regular bathing, grooming, and the practice of various household and professional sanitary habits. Brushing and flossing the teeth regularly, for instance, significantly decreases the risk of problems such as cavities, gum disease, and gingivitis, all of which can be costly and unpleasant issues to correct. Likewise, trimming the fingernails and toenails can help prevent painful hangnails and infections in the nail beds. Other practices, such as regular bathing and hand washing, can also help prevent the development and spread of illnesses and promote overall good health.

The benefits of good personal hygiene can be as important to a person's social and professional life as they can be to his personal health. People tend to prefer to spend time with others who appear clean and who are not regularly surrounded by unpleasant body odors. Poor hygiene may give employers and coworkers the impression that the person is disorganized and messy. People tend to be more comfortable around others who have good hygiene as well, and employers may find that an individual who is clean and well-groomed appears organized and well put together.

It is important to follow a regimen of hygienic practices, usually in the form of a daily cleaning ritual. Dirt accumulates over time, hair and fingernails grow, and bacteria and food particles collect in the mouth and around the teeth if individuals do not regularly engage in proper bathing and grooming. Though it may be difficult to start a new hygiene regimen, over time, it will likely become easy to maintain because the regular, repeated nature of most practices tend to encourage good personal hygiene.