It is true Dale. Steve, myself and the boys always showered before using our pool, but also always shower before entering public pools whether naturist or not, and lots of people don't. We have known some pools in mainland Europe have attendants standing by the shower area insisting that people shower before coming into the pool area - over policing or encouraging of good hygiene?
When we were on holiday in France at a naturist campsite recently the pool area said that people must shower before entering but many didn't.
In our local dressed swimming pool they actually allow people to come in off the street and swim in clothes that they are wearing when they arrive. This can include long jeans shorts, and large black t-shirts. So we are not just taking about bodies being dirty but also the items of clothing these people are wearing. It is just plain odd!
I think you share a good point. When we sit on towels out and about we are not just ensuring we do not make seats sweaty and dirty we are also protecting our own hygiene from others people's grubbiness.
We don't have a pool but we do have a spa/jacuzzi. The rule here is no clothing of any sort is allowed and you absolutely must shower before using it. It keeps the water clean and allows it to stay balanced.
We get the water tested at a local spa and pool company. A few months back I was in getting water tested and there was a lady in front of me having hers tested. She just had to replace the water for the 3rd time in 5 weeks. She said to the lady in the store she didn't know what she was doing wrong. I piped up, if you want your water to last, go in naked and shower before you get in. The lady said i could never do that. The store assistant said he's right, it's the soap residue in clothing and the body contaminants that causes the issue.
I also concur on clothing. The amount of clothing some people wear is just stupid. Not only completely unhygienic but in some cases dangerous.
Have a great day folks
at October 21, 2024 9:43 PM BST 
Good call Grahame and absolutely right. We never used swim wear and always showered before using our pool. The soaps and fabrics in clothes are not at all good for the pool and we also used to wash any sweat or soaps that may be on us off too. We never used suntan lotion very often, but adding that and other chemicals to your pool/hot tub is also not going to help.
The lady's reply is really interesting and I wonder how much of it is a refusal to use the spa naked or how much of it is to refuse to admit it is a good idea to the sales assistant and yourself. I can understand some people being reluctant to strip off in public, say on a beach, but in the privacy of their own home in their own pool or spa, it seems totally illogical. People probably do have these concerns but they do seem to make no sense. Even if I wasn't a naturist I could not imagine not wanting to use my own private water space naked. If I was ever shipwrecked the first thing I would do is store my clothes somewhere and enjoy the naked freedom.
I've spent all my life living with non-naturists, so opportunities for lounging around naked at home are rare, but I generally sit on a towel or a piece of clothing on those rare occasions - unless I'm fresh out of the shower. Apart from the hygiene aspect, the skin naturally secretes sebum (I confess I had to look that up) and the top layer of skin is always rubbing off, so that can accumulate on fabric over time and be visible, especially if it's on light coloured material and you have a tan. As Anna says, it's much easier to throw something in the wash than to clean a piece of furniture.
I loved Steve's comment about being shipwrecked and the first thing he'd do is enjoy the naked freedom 😃 I'm sure many of us have seen the film Castaway with Amanda Donohoe and Oliver Reed, in which the first thing Amanda does when they're finally left in peace on the island is to throw off all her clothes. I loved that aspect of the film and it has always echoed my feelings exactly.
