Unfortunately, the shower pouf isn’t the only shower tool that harnesses bacteria. The loofah and washcloth can also cause similar problems. Except out of the three, the washcloth is probably the best because it’s machine washable.
If you can’t let go off your shower pouf, get a new one every couple of months. Take a peak inside it once in a while, reach inside your pouf and open the layers and see what you find. More than likely you’ll see that we’re not lying and you’ll find some dirt and bacteria if you’ve had the pouf for a while. So make sure you check often and buy a new one every couple of months, the good thing is that that they’re pretty inexpensive.