Have you ever noticed how your body smells after a long, tiring, and hot day at work or after workouts at the gym? Doesn’t smell ideal, right? When we smell less than desirable, our worries get heightened at the thought of seeming less than presentable to our peers, colleagues, and friends. But, nothing to worry about, we have some suggestions on how you can easily reduce body odor.
Body odor has numerous conditions behind it. The unpleasant smell is usually of no threat to our health; neither does it signify any underlying diseases in most cases. But it does cause anxiety and persists as a nuisance in our life. We at Beauty Tips By Nim bring out a few tips on how you can smell good and fresh throughout a hard-working day.
1. Give Yourself Regular Baths and Stay Clean:
Shower daily if required with good soap or body wash. Use a body sponge if needed. Wash away the sweat, dirt, and impurities from the skin surface. It is better to take a bath within minutes of any exercise that allows us to sweat. Since it is not possible always, wipe away your sweat using a towel or body wipe as soon as you can.
Do not apply talcum powder, as it doe not help with lessening sweat production, rather locks in your skin pores and blemishes appear as a result. It is better to consult a chemist while buying an over-the-counter body wash. Visit a doctor if your sweat problem appears to be severe. While bathing, pay extra care to those areas where you sweat a lot like armpits, neck, etc.
2. Opt For an Antibacterial Soap:
Anti-bacterial soaps are available for purchase at chemist soaps, at your local convenience store, and online. They are generally fragrance-less and mild. Anti-bacterial soap will get rid of bacteria in your body parts that smell like sweat and dirt. Use a refreshing soap to get rid of body odor.
These soaps will kill the bacteria that sometimes cause infections too. Anti-bacterial soaps are known to fight off odor, so look a one that is not irritant on your skin. You are far likely to find an anti-bacterial soap, which is technically better than an anti-bacterial body wash.
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3. Towel Dry Your Body Well:
After a shower or a bath, we often do not pay attention to a crucial part of our hygiene process. That is, toweling our body dry well enough. We either rub aggressively or let it air dry, which causes germs to persist on our skin surface.
We should clean our body well, and fight off germs and odour by patting ourselves dry completely using a soft towel. A clean body makes it harder for bacteria to breed on your skin surface thus prevents the body odor effectively.
4. Wash Your Clothes Regularly and Keep Them Smelling Good:
Clean and fresh-looking clothes not only make you look smart and presentable. They also help to fight off the odor. Do laundry regularly, do not let sweat stains persist in your blouses, shirts, and tops. Do not wear unwashed clothes that had direct contact with your skin, yesterday while you were sweating.
Always throw your clothes in the washing machine or the laundry basket after a hard day of work. These rules follow not just for your tops and bottom wear but especially for your undergarments and socks.
Socks, shoes, and undergarments give off an unpleasant smell if not washed after every wear because they are in direct contact with our skin. Take care of your shoes as well. Whenever you take them off at home or outside, you must have noticed a repulsive smell coming off them.
It is the sweat and bacteria, causing the offensive smell. Replace the insoles in your shoes frequently, and apply deodorant powder in your shoes. When inside your home, walk around barefoot if possible.
5. Have a Balanced Diet and Say No To Certain Foods:
Certain food items cause us to sweat more or makes our sweat carry off a more than usual offensive smell. Remember you are what you eat, and sooner or later it’ll show an effect on your body. If you are wondering how to reduce body odor, then make sure to follow a healthy diet schedule.
Especially as your body odor most of the time. Studies have shown spicy food makes us sweat more and may ultimately lead to body odor. Particularly smelly food items or condiments may affect your sweat odor too like garlic, hot peppers, onions, and more.
Alcoholic drinks, caffeine, and the ill-habits like smoking may cause you to sweat more often and make your sweat especially offensive to be around.
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6. Use Deodorants and Antiperspirants to Reduce Body Odor:
Finding the right deodorant or antiperspirant may help a lot, in our efforts to curb body odor. If you are in doubt and can’t find the right deodorant or antiperspirant for you, choose an over-the-counter one with consultation from the chemist.
If you are looking to buy deodorant or antiperspirant in a local convenience store, beauty shop, or online, look for fresh ingredients like lemon, mint, and tea tree oil, as they are known to last longer. Carry a deodorant with you always, if possible.
It can help avoid looks of unwanted curiosity because of your body odor problem, and it’ll go unnoticeable, leaving only a fresh refreshing smell behind.
7. Wear Light, Comfortable and Breathable Clothing:
Choosing to wear practical, breathable, and comfortable pieces of clothing will help a lot with your body odor problem, as well as your mood. Ditch the uncomfortable clothing that caused you to sweat uncontrollably when sitting in important meetings and classes, and pick up breathable fabrics instead. This is certainly one of the best tips on how to reduce body odor.
Cotton, linen, and other natural fabrics allow sweat to evaporate from the skin; and do not allow bacteria to breed on your skin surface. Avoid clothing made up of materials like nylon, polyester, and rayon, for the better as they trap sweat against the skin and cause skin odor.
8. Shave or Wax if Needed:
Studies have shown that after shaving and waxing body hair in areas where sweat persists, and body odor is more like armpits, thighs, etc., the problem of sweat odor decreases significantly. Hair actually made a great breeding place for bacteria to persist, so removing them solves a large part of the dilemma with the body and sweat odor.
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Remember that genetics, stress, and certain medical conditions can affect your body odor condition a lot. So if your body odor problem appears to persist for long, or turns severe, consult a doctor. Take your doctor’s advice before taking antibiotic medicine to curb your bacterial sweat odor problem. Remember to drink sufficient water to meet your hydration level, and ditch the soda water and soft drinks.
For your own health and body odor, it is advisable to try quitting the habits of drinking alcohol and smoking. This can also help you with decreasing your sweat problems too. Also, wash your hair daily with a natural shampoo if it lets off-odor due to chemical buildup and sweat. Use a hair spray if your hair starts to give off an unpleasant odor after a long day or workout session.
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Keep in mind that these are not permanent solutions. The tips to combat body odor only work if you follow them regularly. No need to feel too self-conscious about it as all humans and animals sweat and let off body odour.
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FAQs on How to Reduce Body Odor?
What causes body odor?
It is the sweat and bacteria, causing the offensive smell. Certain food items cause us to sweat more or makes our sweat carry off a more than usual offensive smell.
Does shaving or waxing helps reduce body odor?
Hair actually made a great breeding place for bacteria to persist. After shaving and waxing body hair in areas where sweat persists, the problem of body odor decreases to a great extent.
What are some hack to avoid body odor?
Remember to drink sufficient water to meet your hydration level, and ditch those soda water and soft drinks. Studies have shown spicy food makes us sweat more and may ultimately lead to body odor, avoid overly processed foods.
Can body odor be a sign of disease?
Remember that genetics, stress, and certain medical conditions can affect your body odor condition a lot. So if your body odor problem appears to persist for long, or turns severe, consult a doctor.
Why does my sweat smell so bad?
Certain food items cause us to sweat more or makes our sweat carry off a more than usual offensive smell. Also, body hair actually makes a great breeding place for bacteria to persist.