Armpit odor causes embarrassment and may make you feel reluctant to participate in sports or social activities. While deodorant and antiperspirants can help reduce odor, in some cases, these products alone aren't sufficient to treat armpit odor. Modifying your personal hygiene habits and visiting your doctor if your efforts to reduce underarm odor are unsuccessful can help you overcome your problem.
Identification
Keeping your body cool is the function of perspiration, or sweat. Two to 4 million sweat glands produce sweat on the body, according to the International Hyperhidrosis Society. Eccrine glands, located in the hands, forehead, feet, armpits, cheeks produce odorless perspiration. Apocrine glands, found in the armpits and genital area, are the glands responsible for the type of sweat that produces underarm odor. When bacteria on the skin mixes with sweat produced by the apocrine glands, an unpleasant odor occurs.
Causes
Hot weather, exercise, medication side effects, medical conditions, hormone levels, stress, anxiety or nervousness can trigger perspiration, according to MayoClinic.com. Heavy sweating, called hyperhidrosis, can run in families. If someone in your family has a problem with excessive perspiration and odor, you may be more likely to suffer from the problem and may need to take additional steps to prevent underarm odor.
Using Antiperspirants
Applying an antiperspirant to your underarms helps plug sweat glands, preventing them from releasing sweat that can lead to odor. Deodorants do not stop perspiration; they mask the odor of sweat. Antiperspirants may also contain a deodorant. If over-the-counter antiperspirants don't reduce sweating and odor, your doctor may prescribe a stronger prescription antiperspirant. Applying antiperspirants at bedtime when sweating is minimal is recommended for both prescription and over-the-counter products, according to the International Hyperhidrosis Society. Antiperspirants should also be applied in the morning.
Blocking Sweat Glands
Blocking sweat glands with the botulinum toxin, or Botox, can help alleviate underarm sweating for months. The toxin blocks the nervous system chemical that causes sweat glands to produce sweat. Your doctor injects the botulinum toxin in multiple places in your armpits during an office visit. After you receive the injections, you may not sweat under your arms for 4 to 8 months, according to the American Academy of Dermatology. Follow-up injections are necessary when the toxin stops working.
Considerations
Your doctor may recommend other treatments if prescription antiperspirants or Botox treatments are not helpful in stopping underarm odor. Oral medication can be used to treat sweating caused by stress or to prevent sweat gland stimulation. Surgery to remove sweat glands or block nervous system signals to the glands may be an option in particularly severe cases. The AAD cautions that compensatory sweating can be a problem after both types of surgeries. If compensatory sweating occurs, you may experience excessive sweating in other parts of your body.
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