Mythbusters Essay
If Women Are Always in The Bathroom, Where Are The Men?
Manicures, facials, and a lot of time spent in the bathroom—these are all activities associated with the female gender-or at least they used to be. As the acceptance of metro-sexuality increases, so does the amount of time men spend in the bathroom. According to the Independent News & Media Plc, men spend an average of 3.1 hours per week in the bathroom compared to women, who average only 2.5 hours a week. That sounds like more than a shower and a shave to me. The “women spend more time in the bathroom” stereotype is disproved by many men daily, and according to a survey done among 500 adults by the male grooming brand Bulldog, the time men spend in the bathroom has increased by 30% in the last 5 years. Apparently the “manly men” look is not what these guys are going for anymore. From excessive bathroom visits to beauty treatments, the male race is spending more time in the bathroom they would ever admit to.
As men mature, they not only enjoy spending more time with women, but apparently with themselves. Between showering and whatever else men do “in there,” ultimately they end up spending 30% more time in the bathroom than women according to recent research. Who would have thought? While it takes me ten minutes to shower (where I shampoo and condition my hair in addition to washing my body AND shaving) and twenty minutes to do everything else in the morning, a male companion of mine spends 30 minutes alone showering. He says that by not “enjoying the experience” we are “wasting our time even getting in the shower.” Apparently, I’m missing something.
The denial by men that their time spent in the bathroom exceeds that of women is ridiculously frustrating. They’re constantly complaining about women “hogging” the bathroom when really, they are spending more time fogging up the mirrors. I decided to prove these males wrong and test this theory myself. I used a brother and sister combination to prove that men spend more time in the bathroom. The two recorded the amount of time each sibling spent in the bathroom in a 24-hour period. From showering to teeth brushing and other grooming, at the end of the day, the brother wracked up the minutes in the bathroom. In one day he spent an hour, total, showering and thirty minutes in the bathroom for “other duties.” This is not shocking when compared to his sister who spent 24 minutes showering total and only 15 additional minutes in the bathroom. This is only one instance in which men spend more time “primping.” According to two other males I interviewed, the bathroom is where they get most of their thinking done, which explains the excessive visits.
Many men may be fooled by the lines of women we often see waiting for the restroom at restaurants, concerts, and other public places. I can understand the misunderstanding. If there are no lines for the men’s bathroom, how do they spend more time in there? Well here’s your problem–they’ve got you fooled. A poll taken by lastminutes.com concluded that men spend an amazing three years of their entire lives sitting on the throne, while women only sit for six months. Obviously, the lines aren’t an indication of how much time the toilet is used by each gender. The confusion is not totally unprovoked, but it is completely unsupported.
Women may be more concerned with their appearance, but apparently men spend more time tampering with theirs. There seems to be no explanation for why males are becoming more prone to spending an immense amount of time in the bathroom, but it is undeniable. Men spend more time in the bathroom than women do- just look at the facts. Sorry guys, you’ve been Mythbusted.
