The comments below reflect the personal experiences and opinions of readers and do not represent medical advice or the views of this website. The information shared has not been evaluated by the FDA and is not intended to diagnose, treat, or prevent any disease or health condition. Always consult a qualified healthcare professional for medical concerns.
Milk of Magnesia
Posted by Ann (Charlotte, Nc) on 12/21/2009
★★★★★
Several months ago I started using milk of magnesia for underarm odor. Just rub a little under the arms and let dry before putting on your clothes. It works great - even better than the antiperspirant I had used for years. It doesn't contain harmful aluminum and and the magnesium is good for you.
Brown Deodorant Stone
Posted by Lynn (Auckland, New Zealand) on 12/16/2009
★★★★★
This stone works great for me. It keeps me smelling fresh throughtout my workouts and not offensive to the people around me during those times.
Apple Cider Vinegar
Posted by Heather (Colorado Springs, Co) on 11/17/2009
★★★☆☆WORKED TEMPORARILY
Apple Cider Vinegar worked temporarily as a replacement for deodorant. I followed the advice here and started using ACV before I showered, rinsing it off after a few minutes, but not washing it off. The first time I used it I was thrilled. It lasted 2 1/2 days with absolutely no body odor. But the longer I used it, the less effective it was. After a month, it wasn't even lasting a whole day.
So I'm off to try the crystal deodorant in my quest for a natural deodorant that works consistantly.
Stop Using Soap
Posted by Robin (Rocky Ridge, Ohio) on 10/06/2009
Kj, sorry it took so long for me to get back to this, I've not been on the site for awhile.
To answer your question, yes it worked right away. I'm still on the no soap and ACV/Water regime. I use it everywhere and because of the alpha hydroxy acids in the ACV, it is an exfolliant, removing the dead skin from your body. I pay special attention to elbows, knees, and feet to keep them soft and at times you can see the dead skin it's removing. (just be careful to shave after using it, not before) The 50/50 water/ACV may be too strong for some. it can be diluted down to 66/33 or 75/25 water to ACV and still work as well. I've been using a deodorant crystal as deodorant but have recently been researching the use of himilayan sea salt, the kind used for salt lamps as a deodorant instead. It's used the same as the crystal deodorant, rubbed on wet and comes in a bar form like soap. It's another alternative to traditional chemical based deodorants. It works because it doesn't allow bacteria to grow...think of foods preserved with salt...same concept. Blessings and good luck!
Baking Soda
Posted by Princess Murray (Bridgetown, Barbados) on 10/05/2009
I am 33 years of age and started to have a body order problem recently about 1 year now, thanks to this site and hearing others review i now know i am not alone, and wishes to thank you all for the advice about using acv and baking soda, hope it works
Baking Soda
Posted by Phyllis (Weldon, Ca. Usa) on 09/27/2009
★★★★★
I make a baking soda deodorant that is creamy and goes on real easy and stays on in the arm pits real well. Just take any small container with a lid. Put in whatever amount of baking soda you want. Then add any lotion or hand cream you use. I also add a few drops of essential oil to make it smell pretty. Guys, I guess you coud add cologne or some other fragrence. Then I just stir it up, put on the lid and its ready to use.
Milk of Magnesia
Posted by Marixpress (Bronx, Ny) on 08/29/2009
★★★★★
Just use a hair dryer on cool setting and they'll be dry in a quarter of the time :)
p.s. I will NEVER use anything else on my armpits after MOM! It's a dream come true!
Milk of Magnesia
Posted by Marixpress (Bronx, Ny, USA) on 08/28/2009
★★★★★
I have struggled with underarm odor since puberty and all of my adult life. My problem was so bad that nothing over the counter or prescribed helped me. At the end of the day, I still smelled like an onion processing plant.
I read on a site that milk of magnesia helps so I went out and bought the generic store brand. After a shower, I applied some to a cotton ball and coated my armpit with a thin layer then held my arms over my head until it dried. It did not stop the sweating but the odor was completely gone.
My daily routine now is: shower, douse armpit in alcohol to kill bacteria, after alcohol has dried, shake bottle of liquid milk of magnesia and apply thin coating to armpit simply with my fingers. Instead of blowing on them to dry or waiting around, I use the cool temperature setting on my hair dryer. The whole process takes a couple of minutes. It lasts all day and sometimes even into the next day. Apply daily.
One thing I notice from time to time is the occasional swollen gland under the skin surface. When that happens, I just skip the next day and it goes away on its own. MOM is a miracle.
Apple Cider Vinegar
Posted by Barbara (Morton, IL) on 08/19/2009
Hello-I also use ACV as deordorant except on the days I shave underarms. I do not add anything to my underarms after applying the ACV. After air drying, I get dressed for the day. Your perspiration odor may be due to toxins in your body. You may want to take ACV, baking soda & water as posted by Ted. I have noticed a big change in my body odor since taking it consistently for several months. I usually have to launder my blouses after 1 wearing due to underarm stink. Not so anymore. Now I can wear a blouse 2 or 3 times before laundering. ACV is a great de-toxifier. I also use it as a mouthwash,astrigent on my face, itchy skin, and apply it to remove a mole. Good luck. I hope this helps.
Apple Cider Vinegar
Posted by Glo1965 (Woodbridge, Virginia) on 08/18/2009
★★★★★
Hello. First, this is an awesome website, I've gotten great advice! I have dealt with horrible, sweatty underarm odor for 13 yrs. I visited this site a few weeks ago and read a little about ACV. When you're in my shoes you'll try anything. I'm pleased to say that this has worked better for me than anything else I've tried. The doctor's have prescribed meds that burn, itch and sting; horrible side effects and more importantly they DON'T WORK!!! I've had a couple of days in this 3 weeks where I think it may have failed me. I apply with a dry cloth in the morning and when it dries I put on deod. Usually as long as I don't sweat I won't stink, so I know throughout the day when it's beginning to happen and there's nothing you can do! Does anyone have suggestions of a more effective way that I should use ACV? I read about applying a few minutes before showering and use plain water under my arms, I will try that today. In the meantime if there is any further advice I'd appreciate that!?..
Apple Cider Vinegar
Posted by Angela (Charlotte, Nc) on 08/10/2009
★★★★★
I am so very thankful for the remedies found on this site. I have had underarm issues for the last 30 years. I've tried everything from bathing in baking soda to using a men's deordorant---nothing worked!! Not until ACV. I am tickled at how well my self-confidence has hit the ROOF! I take a bath twice a week with 1cup ACV 1cup Baking Soda. Daily I use a cotton swab to wipe under my arms. I still use deordorant. However, I'm glad to say it's a woman's deordorant. Also, my next had an odor when I sweat. Therefore, I swab my neck everyday. In fact, my neck discoloration has gone away. I am African-American and figured my neck was naturally dark. Not anymore. Thanks Earthclinic for saving my LIFE!
Apple Cider Vinegar and Baking Soda
Posted by Bce (Bce, Jamwest) on 08/07/2009
★★★☆☆BETTER BUT WITH SIDE EFFECTS
TED; I HAVE BEEN TAKING BAKING SODA AND ACV FOR BODY ODOR AND IT WORKS BUT WHEN I WALK IN THE SUN AND START TO SWEAT, MY SWEAT SMELLS LIKE THE VINEGAR OR THE BAKING SODA AND THAT SMELL IS ALSO VERY OFFENSIVE. AS YOU KNOW HOW AWFUL ACV SMELLS AND THE BS SMELLS LIKE ASH. PLEASE HELP ME. IS THERE SOMETHING WRONG WITH MY ORGANS?
Apple Cider Vinegar
Posted by Bce (Sav, Jamaica) on 08/07/2009
Try 1/4 tablespoon of baking soda and 2 tablespoon of acv in 8 oz of juice or water and drink on empty stomach daily. when you are going to bathe, wet up you whole body, then put some baking soda in you hand. wipe under one arm then the other then to all the places that you have odor or to your whole body. use you soap on your rag and soap your whole body and then wash off. you will feel very fresh when you are finished. trust me!
Apple Cider Vinegar
Posted by Kje10959 (Bedford, Nh) on 08/07/2009
I too had bad underarm odor. I tried the ACV and it sort of worked but I kept at it. I realized that the odor was coming from the residue of the deoderants (all natural ones) that had remained in my clothes. After several washes of all my shirts the residue is finally gone and so it the odor. You can try spraying your underarm area on your shirts with white vinegar or a stain remover before laundering to help remove the residue. After it's gone, I KNOW you will have results with the ACV. It took about 2 months for me to finally say ACV works!!! I used to spray the vinegar on before showering and then again when I was out of the shower. Now I only wash with a clean washcloth (I do that area first, NO soap), and when I get out and dry off, I spray the armpit area and rub it all around the whole area. If it's going to be hot and I know I'll be sweaty, I'll repeat the spray once the first one has dried. This has been successful for me. Don't give up, it does work!!!
Apple Cider Vinegar
Posted by Maury (Nr. Baltimore, Md.) on 08/06/2009
For body odor try zinc ointment, and you can sprinkle on some talc free powder if you want to smell nice.
Apple Cider Vinegar
Posted by Kelly (Chicago, Il) on 08/06/2009
★☆☆☆☆
I too have an issue and the ACV is not working. I even went out and bought the organic with "Mother". Applied it, waited 3 minutes, took a shower (no soap), also did not use any deo or antipersperants, but as soon as I start to get a little hot, I might as well jump back in the shower. I have been doing this for over a month, and it still hasn't worked. I even tried to do another application at night before I went to bed, but the morning had the same results.
Has drinking acv worked any better for you?
I've read that if your body was low on B vitamins, zinc and magnesium that you might have body odor. So I am trying to eat more foods with those in them. If that fails, I might just take those kinds of vitamins. If that fails as well, I'm not sure what else to do. I've even went to the dermatologist who prescriped something that smelled like rotten eggs that burned my pitts, but still did not work. I think that might have been for someone that has excessive sweating, but I don't have that, just the smell. And of course my left side is worse than my right.
I was curious if anyone read anything about hormones being out of whack might have anything to do with this. I'm only 30, but I guess that might be a possibility. I'm willing to try almost anything to not have the odor anymore.
Milk of Magnesia
Posted by Raquel (West Palm Beach, FL) on 07/23/2009
★★★★★
I also use MOM as a deodorant, can't be without it! I had the idea of adding a few drops of essential oils (lavender and tea tree) for added protection plus I like the "clean" scent.
Zinc
Posted by Dee (Saint Clair Shores, MI) on 07/20/2009
★★★★★
The cure for body odor is zinc. I heard from someone that if you take zinc you won't stink. Sure enough it works. I take 50 - 100 mg/daily.
Apple Cider Vinegar
Posted by Jenn (Duluth, Minnesota) on 07/15/2009
★★★★★
I am a twenty-five year old female that has horrible strong under arm odor. I cannot even handle how bad I smell sometimes! I have tried everything to a different deoderant every day, using men's deoderant, shaving twice a day to once a week, scrubbing my arm pits until they were raw, to the crystal deoderant,... needless to say nothing has worked. I either stunk really bad or sweated profuersuly, or both. All of my t-shirts have stains on them or they stink baad! I was reading through the body odor part on earthclicic.com and it said to use AVC. And I am willing to try anything, so I went out and bought ___ ACV. I figure that I will try anything for my body odor. I Dapped some on a cotton round and then dapped it onto my under arms and you would not believe it,.. I am still smelling fresh at the end of the day!! I DEFINATLY advise everyone to use ACV for under arm "deoderant"!!!
Baking Soda
Posted by Sasha (Savanna-la-mar, jamaica) on 07/13/2009
since baking soda has such a wonderful effect in dealing with body odors, can it be taken orally? The bacteria tha causes body odor, i know the baking soda can quench it for a while but for a longer lasting freshness, will drinking baking soda do the body any harm?
Vitamin C
Posted by Nancy (New Hope, PA) on 07/09/2009
★★★★★
I USED ONE YOUR CONTRIBUTOR'S ADVICE TO TAKE 1 TABLET(250MG)VITAMIN C, CRUSH IT AND TAKE SOME OF THE POWDER AND TOUCH IT WITH A BIT OF WATER TO MAKE A PASTE AND APPLY IT TO UNDER ARMS. THE ODOR WAS GONE FOR DAYS. THANK YOU. ALSO IT MAY BE A WAY OF GETTING MORE C INTO YOUR SYSTEM
Baking Soda
Posted by Jeremiah (San Diego, California) on 07/07/2009
★★★★★
I have found that in regards to body odor, patting on about 1/4 to 1/2 of a handful of baking soda onto each armpit AFTER drying off after my morning shower, then rubbing it around really helps with my armpit odor (which can be quite odorous). It also helps absorb some of the negative chemicals I use from my ___ body spray/deodorant, and the best part is that the baking soda keeps the smell of the ___ spray there for a few days in case I forget to apply either the baking soda or the ___ spray for a day or two, a habit which I will never endorse, since personal hygiene is a must, but I'm pretty sure you knew that already ;-)
Apple Cider Vinegar
Posted by Jeremiah (San Diego, California) on 07/07/2009
Lynda, I would highly recommend buying an Organic, Unfiltered Apple Cider Vinegar, since filtered processes out a lot of the beneficial enzymes, as well as "the Mother", and unless you like an EXTREMELY tart, acidic taste in your mouth, I would highly suggest diluting it. Earth Clinic has an ACV Recipe page for dilution instructions.
I myself like to buy ___ Organic Apple Cider Vinegar, although I have tried ____ when my store was out of stock as far _____'s. Those two are the one's I would personally recommend, as both are Organic, both are Unfiltered, and both definitely get the job done :-)
Apple Cider Vinegar
Posted by Atlanta55 (Athens, GA) on 07/06/2009
★☆☆☆☆
Hi Everyone, I've been trying the ACV method (putting a general amount on before I shower, then rinsing - no soap!), and it's not working...how long did it take those of you who were successful to see results? I also tried baking soda under my arms for a couple of days, with no success....I'm also drinking ACV, so hopefully that will work...
No antipersperant or deos work for me - I've even tried perscription strength with no success, so I'm getting frustrated!
Did anyone find that they had to do this for a while to see results?
Thanks!!!
Avoid Black Tea
Posted by Smithie (London, UK) on 06/25/2009
Comment about body odor. I have no body odor from my pits until I start drinking black tea, any flavor. I'd say within 10 minutes of drinking tea my perspiration starts smelling badly. Green tea does not have this effect, which I find odd. So for those who find the remedies aren't working, try eliminating tea if that's what you're drinking. I hardly drink coffee, but the smell is even worse when I do. Cheers.
Apple Cider Vinegar
Posted by Jackie (Lawrenceville, GA) on 06/24/2009
★★★★★
Well, because of so many medications I have to take, I have developed embarrassing body orders. I tried the ACV and I couldn't believe it, this really works!!! I put it on 3 minutes before I take a shower. No more deodorants, no more harsh perfumes or other types of chemical. This is my fourth day of using this remedy and I am really happy with the results. I recommend this to everybody:) Thanks earthclinic!
Zinc Oxide Ointment
Posted by Sara (The Beach, Canada) on 06/21/2009
not all zinc creams have talc and parabens, i dont know if they will show this but a baby zinc ointment called butt paste, if they block the name look in the baby isle you will find one without that stuff, has no fillers or anything that may harm you. sara
EC: Butt Paste Ingredients:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Boudreaux's_Butt_Paste
"Boudreaux's Butt Paste is a skin cream used to treat skin ailments such as diaper rash, minor burns, and insect bites. The product has gained notoriety mainly due to its unusual and humorous name.
Ingredients
The combination of ingredients is:
* 16 percent zinc oxide
* a proprietary blend of Peruvian balsam
* citric acid
* castor oil
* mineral oil
Zinc Oxide Ointment
Posted by Kelly (Nashville, TN) on 06/20/2009
Thanks for this info. I too have tried the zinc oxide ointment and it works great, much better than anything I have ever used. However, the ointment has talc and parabens in it which I am not so crazy about. I had been thinking of asking my compounding pharmacist if they could compound into a natural cream or lotion base for me. Now, I will try the powder with water.
