How to Control Sweat and Body Odor During Summer

by Amrita M.

Summer is the cruellest season of all. Most of us feel uneasy after 3-4 hours of work, even if while sitting in an air conditioned room. Sweating causes this uneasiness. Keeping our body fresh and odor free all day long is really a challenging issue in a tropical country like India, as the humidity level reaches to the extreme. As a result, bad odor in our body builds up and creates embarrassing situations.

Reason for Sweating:

We have to fight everyday with humidity, which is the main culprit that causes excessive sweating. Though sweating is a natural process for the body to cool. But, it is the ideal condition for bacteria growth in the body. The bacteria grows in sweat and makes fatty acids, which cause unpleasant smell or body odor. The human body has two types (Eccrine glands and apocrine glands) of sweat glands, about 3-4 million in number. The Eccrine gland is a friend to our body as it is spreads all over the body and it regulates our body temperature by cooling with sweat when we feel hot. The Apocrine gland is found in hairy areas of our body and produces pheromones, an aromatic chemical. Thus, Apocrine glands are basically responsible for body odor.

 

Detoxify your Body:

To avoid excessive sweating, regular detoxification of the body is most important. Detoxification basically means to clean our body internally. Some basic things that help you detoxify your body are:

1. Drink 3-4 liters of water per day. Water has the power to detoxify, as it cleans all the impurities

2. Eat at least one fruit with vitamin C, every day. Vitamin C helps a lot to detox your bowels. Orange, lemon, pineapple, melon, papaya and strawberry are full of vitamin C.

3. Eat green and leafy vegetables like spinach, cabbage and capsicum; increase the intake of foods with fiber.

4. Green Tea works extremely well in detoxification.

5. A walk in fresh air is very good to detoxify your body. Oxygen kills internal bacteria. So if you manage to spend some time and take deep breaths in fresh air, it will help a lot.

6. Try to avoid all junk, spicy foods, alcohol, caffeine, saturated fats, sugar, and cigarettes.

Normally, the sweat rate for an adult is up to 2-4 liters per hour or 10-14 liters per day in summer time. But, excessive sweating triggers the bacteria to break into smelly protein, which results bad odor.

To Reduce Sweat Naturally there are some Remedies:

1. Avoid oily, spicy foods and alcohol, as it makes you feel warm internally.

2. Over exposure to the sun that makes you feel uncomfortable. Make sure that you don’t stay outside in scorching heat without umbrella and proper clothes.

3. Try to wear light color clothes during summer, as dark colors absorb much more heat than lighter colors.

4. Avoid wearing tight clothes and man made synthetic fibers like rayon, polyester, and nylon.

5. Breathable fabrics like cotton dress helps a lot for you to feel comfortable.

6. Always use dry clothes and shoes. Never ever wear footwear and clothes that are already wet because of sweating. So change these often.

7. Use cotton socks as it absorbs extra moisture, which will make you comfortable.

8. Obesity also is one of the main causes of excessive sweating. So keeping a healthy weight is a smarter option to decrease sweat rate.

9. Avoid processed food and tobacco.

10. Take shower at least twice a day if you sweat more than normal.

How to Prevent Body Odor at Home:

Though there are many branded antiperspirant deodorants available in the market to prevent unpleasant smell, many of us may be allergic to them. And over use of deodorants may cause damaged skin as well. Here are some home remedies to reduce body odor:

1. Always keep your feet, neck and underarms clean, these three areas produce most of your perspiration.

2. Remove unwanted hair from underarms regularly, since bacterial attacks are more likely in hairy and moist areas.

3. Wash and dry your clothes and footwear regularly.

4. Use baking soda/corn starch and lemon pack to sweated areas of your body.

5. Apple cider vinegar or white vinegar works wonders to reduce body odor.

6. Use sandalwood powder, fuller earth and rose water pack to your underarms. They have natural cooling agents to keep your body fresh and odor free for a long time.

7. Clean and exfoliate your body regularly with natural scrubbers by using sugar, olive oil and sea salt.

8. Take bath at least twice a day and make sure to dry yourself completely.

9. Neem and tulsi are the two magic antibacterial agents that we all Indians have regular access to. Make a paste of these two leaves and apply it to affected areas before shower. You can use this pack thrice a week. These help to curb bacterial attacks faster than anything else.

10. Magnesium, zinc and vitamin D help reduce natural odor and thus prevent bad smell. So make sure to eat foods with these nutrients.

11. Tea tree oil, peroxide, diluted rosemary, and hazel balance the PH levels of our body. You can use any of them diluted with water instead of chemical deodorants.

12. Excessive intake of non-veg food items, especially red meats worsen your body odor; as these food items have much more protein than veggies. Protein raises body temperature as well.

Try these remedies and be fresh and sweat-free this summer.

Image Sources: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8.

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