Body odor emanating from the armpits can cause a person to feel insecure. This problem is often experienced by many teenagers entering puberty, but in certain cases, it can also appear in adults, causing annoying armpit odor.

Learn about the causes of armpit odor and how to deal with it in the following article.

Reasons for the foul odor in the underarm area

The body has 2 types of sweat glands: eccrine and apocrine. Eccrine glands cover most of the body and are exposed to the skin's surface. Apocrine glands are found in areas with hair follicles such as the groin and armpits. These sweat glands produce sweat that is more concentrated and contains fat.

When the body temperature heats up from exercise or other strenuous activities, the eccrine glands secrete sweat to cool down the body. Usually, this type of sweat is usually odorless until bacteria on your skin break it down. Certain foods and drinks you consume and certain types of medications can also cause eccrine sweat to give off an odor. This is what causes sweat to smell.

Likewise, the apocrine glands secrete sweat when a person is under pressure or stress. The sweat secreted by the apocrine glands is odorless. Still, because the sweat produced in the armpits contains more fat and protein and interacts with more bacteria, the armpit area causes more body odor than other body parts.

Whenever you engage in strenuous activities, you risk experiencing sweat or unpleasant body odor. However, some risk factors cause a person to be more prone to having body odor than others, namely:

• Activities performed (sports or other physical activities)
• Stress or anxiety
• Hot climate
• Excess body weight/overweight
• Genetics
• Taking certain medications
  
  

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How to eliminate underarm odor?

Underarm odor treatment can be tailored to the cause. Armpit odor can arise due to poor hygiene, use of inappropriate products or other medical conditions that require treatment. If the armpit odor problem is caused by a less hygienic lifestyle, some ways you can do to reduce body odor include:

• Maintain hygiene by bathing at least twice a day or as needed.
  If you have heavy physical activities or the weather is hot and causes you to sweat more than usual, there is nothing wrong with increasing the frequency of bathing to 3 times a day.
• Using antiperspirant or deodorant.
  Deodorants kill bacteria and prevent them from developing, while antiperspirants block pores, helping reduce the amount of sweat produced. Both methods can help reduce underarm odor, but antiperspirants are prescribed or not recommended for long-term use.
• Avoiding foods and drinks that cause sweat odor.
  The foods, drinks, and medications you consume can also affect the smell of sweat. Some strong-smelling foods to avoid include garlic, onions, seafood, red meat, and alcoholic beverages.
  
  

Read more: Pengobatan Herbal untuk Mengatasi Bau Badan

A condition of excessive sweat production such as hyperhidrosis can also cause sweat odor. To treat hyperhidrosis, your doctor may recommend using antiperspirants and medications to control the nerves. They may also recommend Botox injections to help reduce sweating. However, this treatment is not permanent and needs to be repeated periodically.

Underarm odor because of sweat can cause a person to lose confidence. If you have a disturbing armpit odor problem, you should consult a doctor. If you need medical advice or consultation, you can either visit a doctor or make use of the consultation features that are available in the Ai Care application by downloading the Ai Care application from the App Store or Play Store.

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