The human body does a number of embarrassing things which we cannot avoid and often have no control over. It makes all sorts of noises, secretes fluids from every orifice and exudes smells not found anywhere else in nature. We’re going to be dealing with the last today, specifically with body odor.
Body odor is very common. Everyone from an emperor to a vagabond will suffer from body odor to some extent. Although it is such a normal phenomenon, it is a highly sensitive issue and not something that is discussed freely or openly. Thus, a lot of people who suffer from body odor are quietly ostracized by those they come in contact with while the sufferers themselves know they have a problem but are too shy to talk to someone about it. Fortunately, learning how to get rid of body odor is not rocket science. So anyone who sets their mind to it and follows some simple tips in this ‘how to get rid of body odor’ guide will easily erase this problem altogether.
But before we get into how to get rid of body odor, let’s take a look at how body odor can affect your life. We’ll also check out some causes of body odor. After all, the more you understand about a problem, the better equipped you are to deal with it.
Repercussions of Body Odor
Getting rid of body odor is a simple a courtesy to the people around you. After all, you yourself wouldn’t want to be stuck near the guy with body odor when you’re at yoga class or the gym. You wouldn’t even want to ride an elevator for a few seconds with someone who has intense body odor. But the fact that it is embarrassing and uncomfortable is just one of the repercussions of body odor. Body odor can ruin your life in a number of more serious ways.
- Studies have shown that those who suffer body odor are passed up for promotions at work. It is true that you are perceived on the basis of how you look. But the way you smell is equally important. You are unlikely to be considered for a higher position in your professional environment if your body odor is bad enough to cause comment. No company wants their product or service to be represented by someone with body odor.
- There are social repercussions to body odor too. Since body odor is a sensitive issue, the people around you are unlikely to bring it to your notice or ask you to do something about it. They will probably just avoid you so as to avoid putting themselves in an uncomfortable situation. But as you do not know this, you may perceive it as social rejection, which can cause great self-doubt, anxiety, and depression because of the overwhelming loneliness. You may also get withdrawn and have suicidal thoughts.
- Although it is rare for children to suffer from body odor since their sweat glands are still immature, some kids are unfortunate to develop body odor at a very young age. Body odor in children can play havoc with their emotional development, body image and self-confidence. Other children will tease or even bully a child with body odor. This can lead to under-achievement in school since the child is unable to focus on his or her studies. The psychological repercussions of body odor are similar to those affecting teens who suffer from severe acne.
Causes of Body Odor
If you ask most people what they think causes body odor, they’ll just say ‘oh, it’s genetic’ or ‘well, it is what it is and there’s nothing you can do about it’. Most folks simply do not know that there are indeed reasons for body odor. This is very good news. When you know what is causing something, it is in your power to change it if you wish. Fortunately, most of the reasons for body odor are under your control.
- Body odor occurs when sweating occurs. Most people will suffer from body odor due to overactive sweat glands or hyperthydrosis. When the sweat dries on the skin, bacterial activity occurs to break it down into acids. It is not the sweat but this bacteria that causes body odor.
- Bad hygiene will obviously play a huge role in your body odor. You may have seen this for yourself when you may have been too lazy on a holiday to have a bath and just stayed in your pajamas all day.
- What you eat is directly linked to the type and severity of the body you have. This is not something people know or are willing to accept. Even a doctor will not say that your food habits have anything to do with your body odor. But naturopathy and alternative fields of medicine and health care have always known this. When we look into how to get rid of body odor, we’ll take a brief look at which foods you should avoid to keep stinky armpits at bay.
- Stress can sometimes cause excessive sweating which can lead to body odor. The level of your stress can also influence the nature of your body odor. So the more stressed you are, the more foul the body odor will be.
- An overdose of painkillers can cause body odor.
- Excess alcohol intake leads to body odor.
Underlying Health Reasons for Intense Body Odor
Your body odor can be an indication of a health problem. Here are a few medical conditions that could cause heavy sweating and body odor.
- Hyperthyroidism or an overactive thyroid
- Hypoglycemia or low blood sugar (diabetes)
- Liver dysfunction
- Digestive problems
- Yeast infection
- Cancer
- Metabolic disorders
Getting Rid of Body Odor
Go without deodorant for 24 hours. If your armpits exude an odor you simply cannot stand, it means you suffer from body odor. Contrary to what you may think, not everyone has body odor. A few adults who take care of their health and live a natural, holistic lifestyle do not have body odor. If you have body odor, something is off with your body’s natural balance (you are not supposed to smell bad) and you can empower yourself by making changes to get rid of body odor.
Fortunately, there are many things you can do to reduce and even to get rid of body odor altogether. We’ll take a look at how to get rid of body odor in several ways.
How to Get Rid of Body Odor With Good Hygiene
You may be suffering from body odor because of bad or insufficient hygiene. You have to take care of your body every singe day and keep it clean to prevent body odor. Here are the general things you should be doing to begin your journey of getting rid of body odor.
- Have a bath every day to get rid of body odor. Use a soap with anti-bacterial properties which will reduce the growth of bacteria on your skin. But avoid chemical soaps as these leave a residue on your skin which can contribute to body odor and skin problems. Choose soaps with natural ingredients to prevent body odor from occurring in the future.
- Drying your body is just as important as washing when it comes to getting rid of body odor. Bacteria like damp places. If you do not dry your body properly – especially where there are folds of skin like the armpit, groin, and toes – microorganisms will have a ball in the humid environment that is created and cause even more body odor.
- Don’t wear the same shoes or clothes two days in a row. The perspiration from your feet and body settle into them and cause body odor. If you must wear the same shoes two days in a row, wear good quality cotton and wool socks that will absorb the sweat. If you have sweaty feet, change your socks when you can sense the beginning of body odor. When you’re at home, go barefoot as much as possible. Or wear slippers and sandals instead of closed shoes.
- Many deodorants today have very toxic chemicals that first damage your skin and then go on to have a negative impact on the environment too. But more importantly, the very chemicals in these deodorants leave a residue on your skin, which causes bacteria to attack them by breaking them down, which in turn leads to body odor. So while it is OK to use deodorant, try using a roll-on one instead of the aerosol variety. Look out for natural deodorants which are free of perfume and with ingredient names that you can pronounce.
- Synthetic fabrics do not allow your skin to breathe. Sweat gets trapped underneath them and causes body odor. So make sure that the clothes you are going to be wearing for the majority of the day are made of natural materials like cotton, silk, or wool.
- Women should change their tampons or pads often when menstruating.
- Hair in the armpits and groin can lead to body odor since it traps sweat and does not allow it to evaporate. This gives the bacteria a longer time to work on the sweat which means more acids and more body odor. So either keep the hair in these areas trimmed short or remove it altogether to get rid of body odor.
Get Rid of Body Odor With Home Remedies
Usually, you can get rid of body odor by changing you diet (which we’ll look at shortly) and by making a few changes to your daily cleaning routine. We’ll show you how to get rid of body odor with some stuff that you probably already have on hand in your kitchen.
Get Rid of Body Odor with Baking Soda
Baking soda – the one item that no home should be without. Well, there are plenty of others. But baking soda is one of the most versatile, equipped to aid you in everything from cooking to baking to cleaning a thousand things in your home. It’s cheap, safe, and effective. Here it is once again making itself even more useful by helping you with body odor.
Baking soda neutralizes bad smells. After a shower, apply either dry baking soda or a paste of baking soda all over your wet body. Leave on for a few seconds and wash off.
Get Rid of Body Odor With Essential Oils
Add 4 to 5 drops of the essential oil of your choice to your bath water. You can even apply it directly on your armpits after a bath.
Get Rid of Body Odor With Ginger
Add grated ginger or fresh ginger juice to your bath water. Ginger is a warming root. This means that you will sweat after your bath with ginger. But this sweating will draw out the toxins from your body and get rid of body odor in the long run.
Get Rid of Body Odor With Vinegar
Add two tablespoons of white vinegar to a mug of warm water and use to rinse your armpits after a bath.
Get Rid of Body Odor By Changing Your Food Habits
Any odors emitted by your body are an indication of the condition on the inside of your body. We have already seen that there are certain health conditions which trigger body odor. But body odor can also be caused by the foods you eat. This means that changing your diet can help you change the way that you smell. In fact, doctors many years ago could smell the urine of a patient and tell you what was wrong with them.
- People who eat too much red meat will have more intense body odor than people who eat white meat or those who are vegetarians. You can thus get rid of body odor or at least reduce it by cutting down on the amount of red meat that you eat.
- Onions and garlic have very strong flavors. Avoid eating too much of them if you want to get rid of body odor. In general, steer clear of spicy foods.
- Avoid foods high in sugar. This includes most processed foods, sweets, breakfast cereals and packaged juices.
- Even a diet very high in fat can cause body odor. Limit your intake of fried foods and desserts.
- A diet high in fiber is a excellent to get rid of body odor because the roughage helps to prevent toxin buildup by efficiently eliminating waste. So eat more fruits and vegetables, whole grains, nuts and seeds.
- Consider reducing or eliminating caffeinated beverages and alcohol from your diet.
- You can also try detoxing a couple of times a month by going on a one-day fruit-only or juice-only fast. But this is not recommended if you are on prescription medication, you suffer from a medical condition, or you have an eating disorder.
Get Rid of Body Odor by Reducing Stress
If body odor is caused by stress, then steps must be taken to reduce stress. If you cannot avoid stressful situations, then you have no choice but to learn how to better manage your stress. You can learn yoga or mediation techniques to calm the nervous system when you are experiencing tension.
Unless you want to be stuck using a deodorant your whole life, you should seriously consider taking some tips from this ‘how to get rid of body odor’ guide. If your body odor is too intense and your deodorant is powerless to keep you smelling fresh, then maybe there is an underlying health reason for your bod odor. See a doctor to rule out anything sinister.
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