© Getty To wrap your body up in a soft and fluffy fresh-smelling towel after a relaxing shower is one of the best feelings, wouldn't you agree? But after how many showers do you throw your towel in the washing machine, what is the official towel use to wash ratio anyway?

First of all, it isn’t environmentally friendly to wash your towels in the washing machine after every single use. But on the other hand, your wet towel is also very popular with bacteria. Apparently, it is the ideal breeding place for E.coli, yeast and mould. Delightful!

Microbiologist and pathologist Philip Tierno advises people to wash towels after using them three times. Except if you throw your towel on the floor of course. It’s also important to make sure your towel is able to dry properly. You can use a heated drying frame or hang your towel outside on a clothesline.

If you happen to live in a house where towel sharing is rampant, the microbiologist warns that flu and other illnesses can spread more quickly that way, so its best to not share.