How to choose the best deodorant for your skin type

When it comes to seducing you into choosing a certain product and not another, we know that advertising appeals much more to emotion than to reason. And when it comes to personal hygiene items, what they’re trying to do is wake up your vanity, while Ying Yang perfect, warning do acupuncture with your insecurities.

For example, with deodorants: advertisements make you believe that if you don’t use this particular antiperspirant, you will smell bad, your clothes will get wet or stained when it’s hot, and people will look at you dirty.

From adolescence, underarm hygiene items become essential products. At least for healthy coexistence at home, school or work. However, not all of us really care about which type of deodorant and/or antiperspirant – which are not the same thing – is most appropriate to use based on our skin type.

First of all, did you know that what causes bad odors isn’t even sweat? About this, and other questions related to how best to choose deodorant, we spoke with three specialists on the subject.

“We must start from the premise that deodorant and antiperspirant are two different things,” explains the dermatologist. Matias Gompertz . “The first is the product that camouflages or hides the bad odor that appears in the armpit. The second is a product which, with varying duration, manages to reduce perspiration from the sweat glands.

So, before choosing a stick or spray based on its colors or scents, the first thing is to check if what you are buying is an antiperspirant or a deodorant.

What’s the big difference, do you think, if I want to avoid bad odors and to achieve this I need to reduce sweating? It’s not that simple, ingenious. The human body sweats to regulate its temperature, through a process called thermoregulation. Whether it’s because it’s too hot outside, because you’re exercising or because you’re having a tantrum, when your back, your chest, your armpits or all the rest of your humanity is wet or even dripping, it’s to refresh you. down. The brain sends a signal to 3 million glands throughout the body to produce and release sweat, a fluid composed of water, salts and proteins.

When sweat dries – or evaporates, to be exact – your body temperature drops. This scientifically proves that when your mother told you to change your sweaty clothes because “you might get cold,” it was 100% true.

In addition to heat, the body tends to release sweat in response to physical activity, but also to different emotions, such as excitement or stress, very hot or spicy foods, as a side effect of certain remedies , certain illnesses and also mood changes. .of hormonal type.

“Sweat itself doesn’t have a bad smell, it doesn’t smell like anything,” says Gompertz. Where does it come from then? “This appears due to the breakdown of bacteria in these areas of the body, which mix with substances in sweat and are deposited on the skin.”

When skin becomes moist, certain bacteria that need moisture and heat to reproduce increase. A sweaty, dark, poorly ventilated armpit is the ideal place for them.

“People who sweat more have a greater tendency to develop bromhidrosis, the name given to this bad smell. In more intense cases, it is recommended to go to the dermatologist because to combat it, a prescription antibiotic is necessary,” explains Claudia Moreno, dermatologist at Clínica Indisa.

There is also a condition called hyperhidrosis, which occurs when people sweat excessively and become drenched at the slightest activity or rise in temperature. Marlene Rubio, a dermatologist at Medismart, explains that they need special products to contain their sweat, because a traditional antiperspirant is not effective.

When it comes to choosing deodorant, which for some reason almost always happens at the end of our supermarket shopping, when we are already tired and in a hurry, we need to be clear about what we need.

An intense hypermasculine aroma that reaffirms our sexual identity (even if it scares away almost half of those who approach us)? Or a bar that actually reduces underarm sweating?

This deep existential question is inevitable for Gompertz. “And then it’s important to see how sensitive our skin is,” he says. The format we choose will depend on this: yes to roll-on -with this classic wet ball-, a bar -which can be dry or gel- or a cream.

“As a cream, they are ideal,” he suggests, “but they don’t get a lot of traffic.” The second thing, if the skin in our armpits is irritable, is to check that they are not alcohol or perfume based. There, the risk of irritation is lower.

What’s new with sexy spray deodorants? The dermatologist specifies that they are strongly not recommended for people with sensitive skin, because they almost always have a very irritating alcohol base. “In this sense, it is also not recommended to use scented deodorant. In these cases, it is better to use cream, roll-on or stick deodorant, always without alcohol.

It can also affect people with atopic dermatitis, who, according to Marlene Rubio, may experience dryness, itching, or have their disease activated by alcohol-based products.

Now, if you don’t have any of these issues, there should be no problem drenching your naked body with a cloud of spray deodorant every morning. In fact, for people looking for a stronger deodorant effect, Gompertz agrees that sprays have the strongest scent.

If your doubt is whether to choose a deodorant in roll-on or stick format, Gompertz emphasizes that it is a question of taste: the only drawback is that some stain clothes, but there is no dermatological contraindication with this type of product. Some sticks manage to be invisible and deliver enough scent to eclipse that which comes from perspiration.

Moreno concludes that the format of the product does not matter. What matters, he says, is the concentration and tolerance of the emollients. “That’s what will determine the skin’s ability to deal with it.” People with sensitivities or allergies may have reactions to dyes or fragrances, but it doesn’t really depend on whether it’s a stick, roll-on or aerosol.

Either way, the journey to discovering the best deodorant for yourself is very personal and can be quite long. I hope not, for the sake of your environment.

*Product prices in this article are current as of November 12, 2023. Values ​​and availability are subject to change.