Early Retirement Extreme Forums

macg wrote: ↑

Mon May 17, 2021 3:12 pm

Isn't it true that for the most part, until the last couple of hundred years, the life expectancy was somewhere around 30?

Adult life expectancy was much higher, the mean average is dragged down by a high infant mortality rate.

chenda wrote: ↑

Mon May 17, 2021 4:08 pm

Adult life expectancy was much higher, the mean average is dragged down by a high infant mortality rate.

Deaths in childbirth (mother) as well as from diseases and injuries also affected the mortality rate. Shoot, the importance of hand washing has only been known for the past 100 years or so. I suspect my ancestors had many larger concerns than the dangers of forgoing sunblock.

Even taking out infant mortality rate - so, tracking the life expectancy of a 5-year old - the life expectancy has improved by something like 30 years since 200 years ago alone. And that's just from data we can more easily find, as opposed to data from 1,000 years or more ago.

I am just saying, in my opinion, using "we survived and thrived thousands of years without it" as a reason for anything doesn't jibe with me, because the length and quality of life sucked compared to nowadays lol.

All that being said, my regime is to shower when needed - could be daily, could be every couple of days for me (I live in hot climate). It depends on how much exercise I get, plus the laziness factor. It has certainly become more haphazard for me since the isolation of the pandemic. I cut (clipper) my hair down to almost bald, so I rarely use shampoo, I do sometimes use conditioner when my scalp is dry. For the past several years I have been using a body wash, but lately I have been thinking about changing to something more eco-friendly once my pandemic stash runs out. I have to do some digging to figure out what that eco-friendly alternative would be - any suggestions are welcome. It should be noted that I take quick showers, at least compared to people I know. The absolute longest would be 15 minutes, and that's only if I am using the shower to loosen up sore muscles or something. Standard is less than 10 minutes, I follow the "navy shower" theory of get wet, shut off water, lather all up, turn on water to rinse. I got into that habit during the years I wandered in an RV and therefore was conserving water.

For brushing my teeth, I do use toothpaste (again, small amounts compared to "normal"). I can't seem to stay in the habit of flossing, although I do want to...I just can't seem to keep the habit going.

I am not disputing that adult life expectancy has increased, just that the mean average can be misleading when it is used to imply that 'no one lived beyond 30' which is a common error I regularly see.

macg wrote: ↑

Tue May 18, 2021 8:59 am

I am just saying, in my opinion, using "we survived and thrived thousands of years without it" as a reason for anything doesn't jibe with me, because the length and quality of life sucked compared to nowadays lol.

Agreed - which is why suncream is important.

macg wrote: ↑

Tue May 18, 2021 8:59 am

.

...I am just saying, in my opinion, using "we survived and thrived thousands of years without it" as a reason for anything doesn't jibe with me, because the length and quality of life sucked compared to nowadays lol.

All that being said, my regime is to shower when needed - could be daily, could be every couple of days for me...It should be noted that I take quick showers, at least compared to people I know. The absolute longest would be 15 minutes, and that's only if I am using the shower to loosen up sore muscles or something. Standard is less than 10 minutes, I follow the "navy shower" theory of get wet, shut off water, lather all up, turn on water to rinse...

For brushing my teeth, I do use toothpaste (again, small amounts compared to "normal"). I can't seem to stay in the habit of flossing, although I do want to...I just can't seem to keep the habit going.

Yeah, modern life is better in many ways. I remember reading somewhere that a cheap pair of shoes from Payless is of higher quality than the best pair owned by royalty in the 1500s. Our medical care is certainly better too. I suppose the balance would be in recognizing that some things were better then (e.g., organic food, more exercise, some herbal medicines, etc) and not just discarding.

Bathing as needed makes perfect sense. My hair is long and worn pulled back so it requires even less washing. I can do bucket showers or a wash cloth wash up but only choose one of those options as required. After our daughter died, my self-care gift was to take long, hot showers (around 10 minutes) as desired for life.

I use a pea-sized bit of toothpaste to brush twice a day. It actually works better than a huge, figure-eight blob and a tube lasts quite awhile. Consistent flossing is so hard. I finally got it down in my 40s. I had a dentist who had been a dentist in Croatia then came to the US and repeated dental school to practice here. She was focused on education and prevention. She said that if one could only brush or floss, one should floss. It is that important. Twice a day is fine too. So I make sure to floss in the morning, mandatory. If I floss before bed, fine. More often than not, I skip it. My teen tried this strategy this year and now flosses consistently at night. My spouse has tried it numerous times and still flosses very rarely, a few times before and after his dental appointments.

My grandma used to floss with sewing thread I wonder if this is a legit frugal hack of whether flossing is an area where one should stick to commercial floss

Hair care y'all, focus!

Haha, seriously though, I'm still interested in everyone's hair care process. No one uses conditioner, everyone is just using a bucket and a mop?

Not a single person dyes their hair?

I'm still very interested in how people are dealing with dandruff (thanks for the responses on this) and if anyone has something to enhance curls/ reintroduce the "volume" dirt adds to hair while still being able to clean the scalp (or maybe you think all haircare is bullshit).

Why is it necessary for shampoo to be different than soap? What does conditioner do really?



The next topic I'm interested in is the face. Does the face require any special care? Do you use special cleanser for the face? Special sunscreen? Special moisturizer? Retinol (which is supposed to reduce wrinkles, but does it work?!?) Makeup is big enough that it should probably have its own thread.


I recently started using facial cleanser and moisturizer and I was surprised at the results. I have pretty clear skin already but the few slight splotches I have did clear up and my skin does look better and my face appears younger. I did not use sunscreen for years and I have a pretty wrinkly face for someone my age as a result so considering retinol, but have not started using it yet.

Jin+Guice wrote: ↑

Sat May 22, 2021 9:44 am

• my new shampoo bar makes conditioner moot
• there is shampoo for curly hair (i linked?)
• dyed hair in men looks like shit unless it's a punk hairdo
• shampoo and soap are chemically different: viewtopic.php?f=6&t=11849
• i use the same sci-based bar from face to toes
• a scrubber helps before wet-shaving (razor)
• i apply witch hazel then proraso after shaving either wet (razor) or dry (electric) to reduce inflammation/risk of infection
• tio sunscreen (no nano) also when seriously outdoors, but generally i prefer a good hat
• no treatments or makeup here

What is necessary and what is desired are two wholly different animals - as usual.

Items necessary enough to keep in my emergency bag are soap, multipurpose balm, and a toothbrush.

What I use on the daily is more nuanced.

1. Hair - a detergent-based shampoo bar. A really good haircut negates the need for other products.

2. Yes on the hair dye - I use a toothbrush to dab on roots lightly. It's not an all-over job. A drugstore box lasts me 6 months.

3. Teeth - toothbrush and baking soda.

4. Moisturizer - Usually not necessary but anything from olive oil to CeraVe.

5. Face - no soap if I can help it due to pH. Olive oil to take off makeup or plain water and a facecloth.

6. SPF - mostly wide-brimmed hat but I do have a tinted SPF in place of foundation.

Thoughts on retinol - I've done it and yes it technically worked but not as much as promised by the 'professionals'. Nothing really does in my opinion. Lesson learned.

The best thing I ever did for facial skin ( and my wallet) was to quit stripping it with hot water, soap, harsh cleansers, and expensive peels and rebuild the skin barrier with a properly formulated (drugstore) moisturizer. Simple.

For face I use MCT oil to cleanse. I also use moisturiser and SPF.

For hair I use baking soda to clean and apple cider vinegar to 'condition'/ rebalance ph. Reasoning is that baking soda cleans/ dislodges dirt without stripping away the oil, so the hair can condition itself, and the vinegar corrects the ph after using the baking soda. I've only been doing this instead of shampoo/ conditioner for the last ~month but can't see myself going back. I also use a bit of MCT or coconut oil to condition as well.

re dandruff there might be some useful info on nopoomethod.com - I found that site useful when switching to baking soda & apple cider vinegar, and I noticed they have a section on dandruff (nopoo for no(sham)poo).

I use cold water for the face. I Never expose it much to the sun and i wear a hat (since a few years a vietnamese one) instead of sunscreen (exception being on a glacier in summer). It looks ten years younger than my gut fat.

For the past 2 or 3 years, DW has been making natural deodorant that works great, is healthier and saves $$. There are many recipes online, but I think she just uses coconut oil, baking soda and cornstarch. Just don’t leave it in a hot car, because it will liquify!

Shaving:

Got fed up with overpriced Gillette cartridges over two years ago and bought a German-made Merkur safety razor and huge assortment of blades from around the world. Got the brush, cup and some Italian Proraso shaving cream.
1. Much better shave
2. Blades cost between 10 cents - 1 dollar each
3. I get about 5 or more good shaves per blade
4. Better for environment than throwing away more plastic
5. Takes a little longer - couple of minutes more - to shave
6. Reminds me of my grandpas!

I think I did pay over $70 for everything to start (including a small stand for razor and brush), but it’s paid for itself by now for sure.

I've been shaving with a safety razor (an Edwin Jagger) for about three years now. I like it! But I'm cursed (blessed, if you don't like facial hair) with a thin beard and only have to shave ~1 time per week. It definitely takes longer, but way less waste and a lot cheaper. Plus I'm not supporting Gillette.

My wife has dabbled w/homemade deodorant too, but over the last year or so we've just been trending toward no-deo living. I still put on deodorant when I bicycle to work (never antiperspirant anymore, although I used to wear it every day). Honestly it's been a huge revelation. Sometimes we get a little stinky, but it's never too bad, and it's what humans smelled like for the last 200,000 years, so it probably won't hurt anybody!

I do still use head and shoulders (target store brand) to wash my hair, but one bottle lasts a couple of years because I only wash once every week or two.

Jin+Guice wrote: ↑

Sat May 15, 2021 12:09 pm

Does anyone have a good way to add the effect of dirt back into hair to get the cool/ sloppy curly hair effect? I already know I'm not going to bother going to the store and buying expensive haircair products, but is there something I have on hand or something I could easily make a large quantity of that would work?

Why yes! Salt and aloe in a little water, spritz it on and there you have it! Lovely beach waves. https://www.mindbodygreen.com/articles/ ... salt-spray I've tried w/ good results. Cannot speak in favor of apple cider vinegar shampoo however. Tried to go no-wash, then gave in and tried a vinegar wash, and that's when my husband threatened sleeping on the couch if I kept the routine...