How to Get Rid of Body Odor

We asked a few people how to how to reduce body odor and this is their answer.

1. Karen Randall, Former Waitress

Obviously, bathe with soap and warm water. Also, brush your teeth and get cavities taken care of. Cavities can give anyone terrible bad breath no matter how much brushing you do. Next, cleanse your system. Cranberry juice and parsley are both supposed to be beneficial for the kidneys. If you have very smelly feet, it would be wise to get your kidneys checked by a doctor. I knew someone who was on the verge of kidney failure, thankfully, he recovered. But while sick, his feet literally smelled like a dead animal! His running shoes ran all of us out of the office until he took them outside.

Also, drinking lots of lemon juice and eating oatmeal can help clean out one's digestive tract. These are occasional helps, not something to do every day of one's life. Beyond that, check the quality of your water. Some water supplies contain such things as sulphur, iron, and even bacteria! These can all get you sick and also smell terrible. Beyond that, do a thorough cleaning of your washing machine. It might just be your clothes that stink. Yes, a washing machine can get really dirty in all sorts of inside crevices and smell bad. After a medical exam, and testing the water and washing machine, all that's left is bathing more often and using deodorant. Hope this helps and good luck.

2. Linda Ro, Freelancer

I went vegetarian for a while, mostly consuming raw foods, In addition to noticing that my sweat didn't smell the same anymore, I suddenly couldn't stand the smell of carnivores ESPECIALLY RED MEAT AND PORK EATERS. UGH!!!! R e v o l t i n g ! ! !

When you stink, I guess, you don't notice other people's stink.

I also eliminated dishes that are spicy and flavorful. For instance I won't eat curry, but I do have turmeric once in a while. I am okay with a bland diet. It might be a real sacrifice to you or someone else. I rather not smell, and not because of offending anyone, but because I've gotten used to not wearing deodorant and not needing it. I prefer it that way.

Drink a lot of water (not flavoured energy drinks, pure water) and pee a lot. No other way to say it. The more diluted your urine is, there is less of an odour coming from it, and where it comes out of.

Foods like broccoli, onions, GARLIC, eggs, brussel sprouts and asparagus are rich in sulfur. They make you smelly. Or, at least they make me smelly.

I would try at LEAST for one month, to see if there were any notable changes in your body chemistry.

And why would you want to diminish your scent anyways, it is part of who you are, it can help you find the right(er) mate. You diminish your scent, you diminish your hotness.

3. Richard H. Schwartz, Independent Consultant

When do you apply your deodorant? Apparently, they're actually more effective if applied the night before, rather than in the morning. See here.

If it's an ammonia smell, it's likely a byproduct of a high protein/low carb diet. See here, and you can consider upping your carbs, if you want to.

As for me, I have developed a highly advanced sense of "I don't care". I perspire very heavily. It's not to the point where I would be clinically diagnosed with hyperhydrosis, and it's much reduced now that I've lost a lot of weight, but I still sweat way more than average. And I'm not interested in increasing my carbs. I'm not going back on the path that got me fat! Still, I am going to work out hard,  I'm going to saturate a headband and wristbands after about 45 minutes, and my tee-shirt after about an hour.

There's going to be a strong odor if you get too close to me before I shower, but it's a gym, not a cocktail party. The sweat-soaked tee shirt is a sign for everyone to see of how dedicated I am to maintaining a healthy lifestyle. Many people notice it, and I enjoy the approving looks and compliments that I've gotten from people. If anyone is offended by the odor, well... that's their problem, not mine.

4. Dave Chu, Personal Trainer

There’s the obvious approach of bathing often enough.

But there’s another thing that can cancel out the benefits regular bathing - not washing your clothes often enough, or not using the right amount of detergent when you do. A lot of people make this mistake. And sometimes they don’t realize it, because it’s possible to grow accustomed to your own smell, even if it’s not good, so you don’t notice that you’re, well, carrying a cloud with you. :)

If you’re doing both of those things effectively, and still not getting results, it may have something to do with your diet, such as if you use a whole of lot spices and garlic.

If you’ve tried all the above, sometimes it’s an actual health problem, and seeing a doctor about it might be worthwhile.

5. Joey Song from Brand Manager

First and foremost, eliminate all usage of processed/store bought deodorants and antiperspirants. These are chock full of chemicals, such as aluminum, that can severely damage our bodies. For skin is known to be semi-permeable which means chemicals can in fact be absorb via the skin into our blood or absorb by the lymphatic system. This can lead to various health related issues and can potentially lead to cancers.

Additionally, sweating is our body's primary way of flushing out toxins within our body and to block this from happening can lead to health implications. Our bodies need to sweat, let it happen. If you MUST use deodorants, I would recommend looking into more organic and natural products that can help relieve the amount you sweat. Keep in mind, I haven't gotten to the smell aspect of this yet.

Next, eat a more balanced diet! You shouldn't feel embarrassed because your body emits a foul odor, rather you should take it as a sign to begin changing your dietary habits. Our bodies are not designed to just smell bad. Body odor is the direct result of the fermentation and release of toxic gas due to the chemical processes that are occurring within our bodies. In other words, what you eat will have a direct result on the amount of toxic gas that is emitted from your body. It is imperative to begin cutting down on processed foods, animal products, sugars, refined foods, etc. These foods will seriously damage your system and could be a potential source of body odor. Please refer to this article for more information:

Lastly, if you have committed to working out then just stay focused solely on that. I wouldn't concern myself with how much I smell at the gym, but rather I would focus on the task at hand which is to flush as much of these toxins out of my body via exercise and nutrition. Just keep in mind that your body is trying to give you these warning signals but you need to begin making changes to your daily habits. Don't worry too much about the smell and trying to mask it with processed deodorants, that could ultimately be contributing to your problem!!!