Why Society Is Better Off Swimming Bare Without Bathing Suits

I'm not among those nudies that feels compelled to be naked 24 / 7, and I might say that many nudists can not be and don't care to be nude everywhere, all the time.

I'm quite comfortable wearing clothing in the wintertime. I get cold very easily and am thankful for the sweaters I have to keep me warm. Though I'm not much into fashion or clothes shopping, I do like dressing up occasionally and expressing myself with specific colors, materials and fashions.

Howeverthere is one item of clothes that I prefer to keep buried and forgotten in my own dressing table: my bathing suit.

The bathing suit is among the most useless articles of clothing ever invented by humankind. It doesn't help you bathe or swim. Its only goal would be to cover up the body parts that American culture (and other cultures) has deemed obscene: bottoms, genitals and FEMALE nipples.

In the U.S., the general consensus appears to be: remove bathing suits and all hell will break loose. The playa can be overrun with public sex and perverts. This comes from our society's gymnophobia (fear of nudity) and the notion that nudity = sex.

The truth is, we may do only too as without bathing suits, if not better. Swimming naked used to function as the norm in early Greek culture. Bare spas have existed for centuries. In America, unclothed swimming was mandatory and considered the standard at YMCA's and in schools up until the 1970's. http://lsa.rivetmade.com/__media__/js/netsoltrademark.php?d=familynudism.info/videos/we-spent-a-very-good-1878.html of today's unclothed beaches have been with US for decades, demonstrating that all kinds of individuals can indeed swim and sunbathe naked collectively with politeness and respect. Actions of public sex are illegal at a nude beach just like anyplace else.

Though the bathing suit has slowly shrunk down from full length costumes to today's teeny bikini, the practices of skinny-dipping and bare sunbathing have never evaporated. The liberating feeling of swimming with no suit is a common reason people get into naturism.

Felicity Jones Unclothed Bathing and Swimming at "Enormous Deep," Woodstock, New York

Sure, people can wear swimsuits as a sort of self expression. You can find all kinds of swimsuit designs out there. But I would assert the discomfort, annoyance and cost much outweigh any enjoyment you might feel from wearing a fashionable suit that fits.

Here's why I think we'd all be better off without bathing suits:

1. They are unhygienic and unsanitary. Swimsuit materials trap detergents, perspiration, dirt, fecal matter and bacteria and then carry all that right into the public pool. This can be why it's vital that you shower before entering a pool. But how many people actually shower first at American public pools? In accordance with 2012 survey by the Water Quality and Health Council, only 32% of American adults said they consistently shower first, and many Americans - 44% -don't even believe a pre-swim shower is essential.

2. They are uncomfortable, tight and confining before you even go in the water. You then swim and get it wet now you have cold, sopping wet cloth clinging to your skin. That should be a pretty big hint that we're not designed to be wearing these things.

We probably have the dirtiest public pools of any developed nation.

That's not an index of a clean pool. In reality it is a direct result impurities from people's bodies combining with chlorine in the water. This creates chloramines, which give off that irritating smell.

Evidently, the preemptive shower is much easier and more effective when done nude. When children were required to swim naked at the Y, hygiene was the primary reason given, and it is still an excellent reason. Though we now have better chemical technology, chlorine is not some wonder pool cleaner.

Hot Tub Rules Sign at Lake Como Nudist Resort

The cleanest pools in America can probably be found at nudist resorts. No one is bringing in impurities from their clothing, and resort pools often have multiple signals instructing folks to shower before entering. And should youn't, a club member is likely to remind you because they need a clean pool.

3. As if anyone needed proof, Australian psychologist Marika Tiggemann's 2012 study on body image and swimsuits found that women get stressed and depressed just thinking about swimsuit shopping. Most people appear to approach it with just as much expectation as a trip to the dentist, and with good reason. Every spring, we are surrounded by advertisements about how to get an ideal "bikini body," eg slim, tanned and toned without any cellulite, wrinkles or imperfections. It's a message that just one kind of body fits in a bikini or any sort of revealing swimsuit. Some body-positive campaigns have now been trying to challenge this in recent years with memes saying that bikinis are for everyone. Nonetheless the bikini-body magazine narratives, workouts and products will continue to sell as long as a profit can be made of course.

The ever-dreaded bikini season

Body-positive bikini meme -

But even when you can disregard all the body-shaming media and marketing, you're still faced with the task of finding a swimsuit that fits nicely. For "plus-size" women and girls with big breasts, it's like searching for a needle in a haystack. When you do find your sacred grail of a suit, you are blessed should itn't come with a hefty price tag.

How much of a relief would it be to skip this entire process and visit a naked beach or naked pool instead?

Plus, the "unsanitary" variable applies to swimsuit shopping as well - those new swimsuits at the shop are covered in all kinds of nasty bacteria!

4. SexXy double standards. The swimsuit industry is all about sexually objectifying women. A lot of swimsuits are made to highlight a woman's cleavage and butt. The over-sexualization of breasts is part of the reason we are compelled to wear tops in any way. Victoria's Secret adds the word "sexy" into the names of each and every one of the bathing suits. Why else would we go to the strand, right? Of course people need to look and feel good in what they wear.

It seems counter-intuitive, but nude beaches and naturist resorts create a more equal and less sexual surroundings because everyone is naked.

As for men, I know some guys want that America would cover the speedo already. But be joyful you are able to legally wear one, dudes. If I showed up at the strand or pool in a speedo, I'd quite fast be detained or shown the door generally in most places. It's been 80 years since guys acquired the right to be topfree in public, and women are still waiting for exactly the same right (in most states / cities).

Tobias "Never Naked" attempting on a speedo on TV Show Arrested Development