The truth about deodorant
We can all agree that there's nothing more troublesome than stinking body odour that hits you hard and leaves you gagging. You don't have to suffer from chronic B.O. to raise a stink. It can happen to just about anyone, if you aren't careful. Thankfully, the answer is just an aerosol away. A quick spray after a bath, before you step outdoor and after you've stepped in from sweltering heat; and you don't have to worry about distressing those around you with you peculiar smell. Since it is so easy and convenient, many women, who are particular about personal hygiene and grooming, have made it an indispensable part of their daily grooming ritual.
But are deodorants and antiperspirants busting more than just body odour? Are we exposing ourselves to a more serious health hazard every time we reach for a can?
Sweating it out
One's body odour problems usually start around adolescence. The teenage years are the turning point of your life, when you make that change from child to adult. This sudden growth spurt is also accompanied by a hormonal boost that accelerates the working of your sweat glands. Experts insist that though the sweat in itself doesn't smell, it is the bacteria on the body that reacts with the sweat causing it to release pungent chemicals known as body odour. There are two kinds of sweat glands - apocrine and eccrine. While the apocrine glands are present mostly in the underarm, groin and breast area, the eccrine glands are present all over the body. Bacteria tend to collect around the areas with apocrine glands, causing the sweat to smell. Moreover, the underarms and groin are closed areas that prevent the perspiration from evaporating.
Excessive perspiration can be traced back to several causes - heredity, unbalanced or unhealthy diets, menopause, a drop in hormonal and blood sugar levels, hyperthyroidism and sometimes as a symptom of illness. Various food containing garlic and certain medications are also secreted in the sweat, which produces odours. Malodorous sweat is also found in those suffering from diseases like diabetes and typhoid.
Body spray basics
While deodorants camouflage body odour, antiperspirants go a step further and limit how much you sweat. An antiperspirant is a substance that acts by clogging or blocking the pores of the sweat glands so as to decrease the sweat. A deodorant is a substance that neutralizes the smell of sweat by antiseptic action against bacteria. It does not block the sweat pores hence it is more acceptable to patient with bad odour. Perspiration is the nature's way of regulating the body's temperature by giving out the excess heat in the body, keeping you cool even when the weather heats up. Frequent use of antiperspirants that block your pores and prevent you from over-perspiring may simply be going against the way the body was naturally designed to function. "Sweating is a function of normal healthy skin. Drinking plenty of water and maintaining good hygiene is far more important in keeping odours at bay".
Myth or fact?
Body spray buffs were recently jolted out of their odour-free complacency, when a health alter declared that deodorants and antiperspirants were directly connected with breast cancer. Obviously, a lot of women, who depend on deosprays and antiperspirants, were extremely concerned about having unwittingly increased their chances of breast cancer. It was suspected that antiperspirants prevent the toxins from being released through perspiration. These toxins then build up in the lymph glands below the arm.
We can all agree that there's nothing more troublesome than stinking body odour that hits you hard and leaves you gagging. You don't have to suffer from chronic B.O. to raise a stink. It can happen to just about anyone, if you aren't careful. Thankfully, the answer is just an aerosol away. A quick spray after a bath, before you step outdoor and after you've stepped in from sweltering heat; and you don't have to worry about distressing those around you with you peculiar smell. Since it is so easy and convenient, many women, who are particular about personal hygiene and grooming, have made it an indispensable part of their daily grooming ritual.
But are deodorants and antiperspirants busting more than just body odour? Are we exposing ourselves to a more serious health hazard every time we reach for a can?
Sweating it out
One's body odour problems usually start around adolescence. The teenage years are the turning point of your life, when you make that change from child to adult. This sudden growth spurt is also accompanied by a hormonal boost that accelerates the working of your sweat glands. Experts insist that though the sweat in itself doesn't smell, it is the bacteria on the body that reacts with the sweat causing it to release pungent chemicals known as body odour. There are two kinds of sweat glands - apocrine and eccrine. While the apocrine glands are present mostly in the underarm, groin and breast area, the eccrine glands are present all over the body. Bacteria tend to collect around the areas with apocrine glands, causing the sweat to smell. Moreover, the underarms and groin are closed areas that prevent the perspiration from evaporating.
Excessive perspiration can be traced back to several causes - heredity, unbalanced or unhealthy diets, menopause, a drop in hormonal and blood sugar levels, hyperthyroidism and sometimes as a symptom of illness. Various food containing garlic and certain medications are also secreted in the sweat, which produces odours. Malodorous sweat is also found in those suffering from diseases like diabetes and typhoid.
Body spray basics
While deodorants camouflage body odour, antiperspirants go a step further and limit how much you sweat. An antiperspirant is a substance that acts by clogging or blocking the pores of the sweat glands so as to decrease the sweat. A deodorant is a substance that neutralizes the smell of sweat by antiseptic action against bacteria. It does not block the sweat pores hence it is more acceptable to patient with bad odour. Perspiration is the nature's way of regulating the body's temperature by giving out the excess heat in the body, keeping you cool even when the weather heats up. Frequent use of antiperspirants that block your pores and prevent you from over-perspiring may simply be going against the way the body was naturally designed to function. "Sweating is a function of normal healthy skin. Drinking plenty of water and maintaining good hygiene is far more important in keeping odours at bay".
Myth or fact?
Body spray buffs were recently jolted out of their odour-free complacency, when a health alter declared that deodorants and antiperspirants were directly connected with breast cancer. Obviously, a lot of women, who depend on deosprays and antiperspirants, were extremely concerned about having unwittingly increased their chances of breast cancer. It was suspected that antiperspirants prevent the toxins from being released through perspiration. These toxins then build up in the lymph glands below the arm.
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