Effective Remedies Against Body Odor and Foot Odor

Yes! You look gorgeous in your attire and so excited for your first job interview. Yet, as you reach to shake hands the Human Resource Department (HRD) staff, you feel terribly uncomfortable because your palm is already wet and your underarms perspire. “Oh no!”, You said at the back of your mind. “Such a great embarrassment!”. “What’s going on here?”, you whispered.

The culprit is sweat. Sweat is the byproduct of the body’s diligent internal thermostat and air-conditioning system, which sometimes responds to spicy foods, worry, during danger and in excessive heat.

Do you know that study shows the Americans have strong cultural distaste against body odor that everyday, about 95 percent of them over the age of 12 reach for one product or another which will enable them to feel safe and secure while they mingle with other people?

How does body odor occur? Body Odor starts with sweat. The human body contains over 2 million sweat glands and women may have more of these, according to some studies. Our body has two kinds of sweat glands in which both of them produce sweat that is made up largely of water. Thus, the two types of sweat glands are eccrine and apocrine. The eccrines can be found almost everywhere on the body’s surface-which produce the sweat that cools the body. The eccrine glands are located almost every part of the body’s surface-about 400 to the square inch of the skin, where as much as 3,000 may be concentrated, except in areas like the palms of the hands. The eccrines are the smaller of the two types and originate deep within the skin, with narrow ducts threading to the skin’s surface. The job of the eccrine glands is mainly temperature control: When things get too hot, the sweat glands go into high gear, drawing fluid from the blood to produce sweat and transporting it through the pores to the skin surface. Once on the surface, sweat evaporates, cooling the skin. In return, it cools the blood which has also been rushed to the surface by temperature-control cells in the brain. The cooled blood then returns or goes back to the internal organs and muscles, cooling them.

On the other hand, apocrine glands are larger, fewer in number, and are located to hair follicles in the genital area, armpits, nipples and in the groin area. Apocrine glands produce sweat. These glands become active after puberty and are precisely sensitive to emotional stress and sexual stimulation. However, the sweat from the apocrine glands can make you stink, because it has a plentiful amount of oil, which provides food for bacteria. Through this bacterial feeding frenzy the offensive odor is produced.

Among of the body odors are underarm body odor and foot odor. Underarm body odor is the bad or unpleasant smells which comes out of the armpits, especially, when an individual perspires. Meanwhile, foot odor appears upon removing your footwear. Foot odor, although, is not painful nor infectious or transmittable, causes unmitigated social suffering for people who are burdened with it. It means, foot odor causes embarrassment for individuals who have this unpleasant odor.

According to several private podiatrists, under normal conditions, each of your feet produces half a pint of sweat by means of some 20,000 sweat glands. In most people, this perspiration evaporates. However, more sweat produced and doesn’t evaporate as easily in people with bromhidrosis which is a sweaty and smelly feet. This process results to odoriferous feet. Meanwhile, you might get hyperhidrosis, if you have a body that beads up like a cold seltzer can on a hot day-even when you are sitting perfectly still in the shade. If you are one of those innumerable victims of any of the unpleasant odors, which terribly get you down, folks! No need to be anxious, because you don’t have to bear it anymore! Just, simply, do these tips which health experts recommend for you to experience a body with pleasant smell and keep your feet drier and sweet smelling:

To Fight Body Odor

• Take a bath everyday and regularly change your clothes whenever they get wet with perspiration. Dermatologists say, the best measure to prevent body odor is to wash away the sweat which forms on the skin in the area of the apocrine glands and reduce the number of bacteria waiting there to feed upon it. Therefore, clean the underarm and groin area with antibacterial soap, preferably a deodorant soap, and water at least once a day.
• Bathe your britches. Wash your washable clothing each time you wear it. Sweat that seeps into your clothing may remind you of the presence of bacteria, once it dried, can damage the fibers of your clothing.
• Use antiperspirant. One of the best ways to control is to reduce the amount of sweat, since body odor starts with sweat. Dermatologists believe that using antiperspirant can probably reduce perspiration. Antiperspirants are categorized as over-the-counter drugs because they are intended to change a natural body function-they decrease production of eccrine sweat. By minimizing production of eccrine sweat, antiperspirants help keep you drier, thus, diminishing the moisture which creates a breeding ground for bacteria. Antiperspirants usually also hold an antibacterial agent that fights odor. However, apocrine sweat contains the oil upon which bacteria feeds, neither an antiperspirant nor a deodorant can decrease apocrine sweat. Most of the antiperspirant products contain an aluminum salt which is believed to be an agent that causes a slight swelling around the sweat-gland ducts that reduces the outflow of perspiration.
• Try to use a deodorant if you have a minor case of body odor. Deodorants are considered cosmetics in which most contain a substance that helps kill the bacteria that are waiting to feed on your sweat. They may also help mask body odor by substituting a more acceptable scent.
• Try an antibacterial soap such as chlorhexidine or an over-the-counter antibiotic ointment, if you have tested antiperspirants and deodorants but discovered that they irritate your skin
• Avoid eating hot or spicy foods such as hot peppers because these can affect the amount of sweat an individual produces. Lessen pungent foods like onions, garlic, hot spices and beer. The aroma of these foods and beverage can be carried in your sweat. Eating hot or spicy foods can trigger perspiration, thus, it is may be wise to avoid them if your aim is to keep your body dry.
• Drink plenty of water and eat plenty of fruits and vegetables
• Reduce your intake of caffeine such as caffeine, tea, and cola drinks. Caffeine is a stimulant which hastens the heart, making in behave as it would in response to overheating. So, to lessen your intake of caffeine will benefit your heart and enjoy your peace of mind.
• Avoid alcoholic drinks, but, rather, stick to nonalcoholic beverages on hot and humid days. It is because an alcoholic stimulates blood flow to the skin so alcoholic beverages can cause increased sweating. It is best to drink cold water, but not ice-cold, if you want to quench your thirst and replace fluids that was lost during excessive sweating.
• Make it your goal to achieve a slim body weight and maintain it. Be conscious of your body weight by means of having a proper diet and regular physical exercises like jogging, walking, swimming or relaxation exercises such as deep breathing. Health experts say, if an individual has an overweight body, even, the very gentle activities can severely stress his heart to pump blood around his body.
• Use any of the herbal plants such as Tawas and Kalamansi (Chinese Orange) or Buyo (Betel Leaf Pepper) and Chinese Orange. To use the Tawas and Chinese Orange as a treatment, just, pound or pulverize a piece of solid tawas “alum”. After that, mix 1 tbsp. of the pulverized tawas with the juice of 1 Chinese Orange. Apply directly the mixture on the armpit after every bath or whenever needed. On the other hand, Buyo and Chinese Orange also can be used as a deodorant. Extract the juice. Apply the mixture on the armpit after every bath.

To Avoid Foot Odor

• Regularly and thoroughly wash your feet with a deodorant soap and dry it very carefully to achieve a sweeter-smelling feet. The eccrine glands on the soles of your feet produce perspiration composed of water, sodium chloride, fat, minerals and various acids which are byproducts of your body’s metabolism. In the presence of certain bacteria, these sweating secretions break down, generating a foul smell.
• Make it sure that when you wash your feet, it is just enough to take away the offending bacteria but not so often to avoid removing all the protective oils from your skin. If you have a strong foot odor, bathing your feet several times a day is needed. But, reduce the number of washings, if you observe that your feet are turning scaly and cracked.
• Soak your sweaty feet. First, alternate footbaths of hot and cold water to help lessen blood flow to your feet and diminish perspiration. Then, dip your feet another footbath with ice cubes and lemon juice. Finally, rub your feet with alcohol. Repeat this kind of treatment daily during hot weather, when your feet tend to perspire more. However, never attempt to apply this approach, if you are suffering from diabetes or any other condition which causes decreased circulation.
• Use antiperspirant or deodorant on your feet to control foul smell. Foot deodorants also contain antibacterial agents which can kill bacteria. They will eradicate the foul odor caused by bacteria, but they won’t stop the sweat on your feet. Meanwhile, antiperspirants stop the sweat and the odor as well.
• Add half cup of kosher salt (it contains larger crystals than ordinary table salt) to a quart of water and soak your feet in this solution, if you have extra-sweaty feet.But, after soaking, never rinse your feet, and just dry them thoroughly, instead.
• Spray or use foot-deodorant powder. But, make sure it has aluminum chloride hexahydrate.
• Avoid wearing solid-rubber or synthetically-lined shoes because these cause your feet not to breath smoothly, letting odor-producing bacteria to increase
• Thoroughly wash your sneakers and other canvas footwear
• Alternate your shoes on a daily basis to avoid wearing the same pair two days in a row. Loosen the laces and pull up the tongue on the pair you are not wearing, and let them dry out in the sunshine.
• Sprinkle cornstarch inside your shoes to help absorb moisture and keep your feet drier
• Wear socks that let your feet breath. Some health experts recommend wearing cotton or wool socks, while others advise acrylic. Try various fabrics until you find the one that seems to keep your feet driest. Change your socks at least once during the day, as much as possible, and never wear the same pair two days in a row.
• Stay calm. Deal right away a high level of stress that it produces foot odor. Stress and anxiety increase production of sweat.