Healthy people sweat and so others who you have a medical condition. Well, most of us go through this – sweat and perspiration problems associated with stinky body odor. It can happen to anybody and people who go through this may face problems in public places. People may move away from the person or they may make faces. It feels like an embarrassment and nuisance. You know.. You can fix this problem. However, what do you do if the odor persists – or it is coming from a more private place? Let us see here…,

Body odor, apocrine and bacteria:

Body odor (or B.O., bromhidrosis, osmidrosis or ozochrotia) is a perceived unpleasant smell our bodies can give off when bacteria that live on the skin break down sweat into acids – some say it is the smell of bacteria growing on the body, but it really is the result of bacteria breaking down protein into certain acids. Apocrine is a special type of chemical exudation that is produced in places like the armpits, groin, hands, and feet. Some bacteria on our body feed off apocrine sweat. Once bacteria consume the sweat, they break down the chemical bonds resulting in the stinky odor. An overactive bacterial fauna on the skin becomes responsible for the bad odor of body. Propionic acid and Isovaleric acid are two acids that are present in body odor.

Some of the reasons that are responsible for the sweating followed by stinky odor are :

Less hygiene:

• Not bathing enough & not using proper body wash
• Wearing clothes that do not absorb the odor
• Not cleaning the areas properly
• Not maintaining hygiene of private parts
• Using tissue papers to clean and not washing with water

Activities:

• Hyperhidrosis is a condition where a person perspire more because of stress, physical activity. You will be surprised – the most stinky sweat of all is stress sweat.
• People sweat a lot because too much physical activity.
• People sweat and produce apocrine mostly with increase in testosterone during puberty.

Foods:

• Foods that contain root vegetables like garlic, onion can cause the odor in the sweat. Crucifer family vegetables like broccoli, Brussels sprouts and other veggies have typical sulfur odor and can responsible for the stinky odor.
• Foods that also contain too much spice with asafetida can cause the odor.
• Too much meat and non-vegetarian foods also can the problem too.
• Zinc is important for the body and it controls how the body need to handle the waste. If there is a deficiency in zinc then, it can cause problem.

Health problems:

• People who has health problems and are on medications  also can have bad body odor.
• Sometimes the type of body odor can tell us what might be the condition a person might be going through. Ammonia odor may be due to liver problem and nail polish odor can be due to sugar complaints.
• Inherited metabolic disorder like trimethylaminuria is also a reason for the body odor.

Combating the body odor problem

Clothes:

• Soak your clothes. If you sweat a lot understand how to wash your clothes.
• Soak your dress shirt in extremely cold water.
• Apply a stain remover to the armpits. Reverse the shirt and apply stain remover.
• Understand what clothes you need to wear during different seasons. Wear cotton clothes as much as possible so that body breathes properly.
• Use fabric refresher to keep the fresh odor.
• Wear multi layer clothes to prevent spreading of the odor.

Apply deodorants:

• Apply aluminum free deodorants:
• Use crystal deodorants formulated from ammonium alum
• If you are afraid of developing rashes, contact your family physician to understand which brand deodorant is the best to use or test it on a small are of your skin.
• Organic products are usually the best choice.
• It is important to keep the armpit unclogged. Do not use the deodorants that contain aluminum because it is suspected of accumulating in the nervous system and can cause nervous system disorders.
• Use anti-perspirant after your bath.

Body washing:

• Bathing everyday is important to remove odor causing bacteria from the skin.
• Wash your armpits, feet and areas where you perspire and sweat more.
• Since the bacteria can grow well in damp skin it is important to dry the body well after washing.

Use Vinegar and other natural sterilizers:

• Vinegar is a natural antiseptic solution and keeps away the bacteria and other microbes from skin surface.
• One can use spritz bottle to apply vinegar on odor causing areas, then wipe the area using a cotton soft cloth.
• One can use tea tree oil or witch hazel to wipe the areas especially arm pit area to maintain the pH of the skin and to control the growth of bacteria.

Change you food habit:

• Use less caffeinated drinks and sodas.
• Avoid too much of crucifer members and root vegetables.
• Take green supplements along with your daily vitamins to keep body odor away.
• Drink good amount of water.
• Do not smoke or chew tobacco.

Shave Underarms:

• Bacteria should not get trapped in the unwanted hair. Shave or apply hair removal under armpit to get rid of those hair. Hair traps odorants especially in the armpit which is the main culprit that makes you to get embarrassed in public.

Change your shoes and socks:

• It is very important to keep your feet healthy. One of the worst stinky odor also comes from your feet .
• It is important to change the socks almost every day. After washing socks dry them under full sun or make sure to wear totally dried socks. If not, you will have problems with bad odor at your office, work place, meetings and in gym.

References:

• www.webmd.com
• www.huffingtonpost.com
• http://www.todayifoundout.com/
• https://www.pinterest.com
• Image credit: Image by skeeze from Pixabay  (Free for commercial use)