Body odor tells a story about where a person has been, their hygiene habits, what toxins they carry, medications they may be on, and even what underlying health conditions could be occurring. By paying attention to body odor you can learn a lot about yourself and others.
Have you ever smelled a metallic fragrance from your own or someone else’s sweaty body? Or perhaps what you have smelled was a more pungent odor emanating from your own or someone else’s body that was significantly more offensive to the olfactory senses. If so, then you are familiar with what is commonly known as ‘body odor’. The severity of body odor ranges from person to person, and situation to situation.
The effects of body odor can range from a mere annoyance to quite humiliating depending on the severity and the circumstances under which it occurs. The causes of body odor are numerous, and unfortunately using deodorant or perfumes may help somewhat, but will not vanquish body odor entirely.
A healthy and detoxified body will rarely emit foul odors except for under circumstances when stress hormones are running high, such as cortisol, or perhaps after a particularly garlic and onion rich meal. So, yes you can use saunas as a way to get rid of body odor!
There are different causes for body odor, but sweat itself is not stinky. Sauna use activates the body’s natural cooling mechanism which initiates perspiration, and if done consistently over time most individuals will report happily to have rid themselves of body odor almost entirely.
Find out what causes body odor, and how saunas may be your best option to rid yourself of your body.
What Causes Body Odor?
- Changes in Hormones
- Bacteria Lingering On the Skin’s Surface
- Underlying Health Conditions: Diabetes, Liver Disease
- Prescription Medicine
- Personal Hygiene
- Some Foods & Beverages (1)
Body odor should not be ignored as it tells a story about where someone has been, what they have been eating, what type of toxins they carry, potential infections, and sometimes serious underlying conditions. So, be mindful to pay attention to how you and your family are smelling as it may be a key to uncovering a serious condition. Identifying an odor on a person’s body may help them to understand more about what type of toxins are lingering in their system. Body odor can be a narrative of your overall health and hygiene, and is not something to be ignored.
Body odor in its essence is a negatively perceived smell that emanates from a person’s body, usually when some sweating occurs. Most individuals will notice that body odor will become more of a ‘problem’ as hormones begin to shift during adolescence. This is due to a number of causes ranging from poor hygiene, a new influx of hormones, and important to note a changing thermoregulatory system. (2)
Children sweat significantly less than adults, which is one reason why all children must use saunas with great caution, if used at all. Children need to rely on measures other than perspiration to cool themselves off, and exposure to high heat must be closely monitored to ensure the child’s safety. (2) This is one reason why it is rare to notice body odor from children, unless it is just a lack of personal hygiene.
Changes in hormones affect body odor, and there is little that can be done about this. Even after years of sauna use if one is confronted with a stressful situation may result in raised cortisol levels and therefore the emission of a less than savory odor may emit from the body.
Changes that occur in a man’s 64 day spermicidal cycle may affect his body odor. Menopause or changes in a menstrual cycle may also impact body odor as well. Some medications may affect body odor, and this is often the body’s natural mechanism of detoxifying certain substances from the medication via the sweat glands.
Sometimes body odor is indicative of an illness or a deeper underlying condition that requires immediate medical attention. Someone may be living with a deteriorating liver disease which can be detected by smelling a body that almost emanates a ‘bleach’ like odor. Some undiagnosed diabetics may release an identifiable smell that will help them seek the medical care they need. (1)
True body odor is the result of sweat mixing with bacteria on the skin, therefore improving personal hygiene by showering more frequently with antibacterial soap will help tremendously.
Sweat is naturally odorless. It is only from the presence of bacteria on the skin’s surface or the expulsion of substances through the sweat that causes it appear to have a smell. (1)
Some foods, such as garlic, will leave its consumer a little smelling the day after its consumption. As well, many individuals will emit the smell of alcohol from their sweat the day after drinking heavily. If you have ever taken a hot yoga class you will likely know a lot about what your classmates have been eating and drinking in the days and weeks before the class.
Finally, most humans carry within their system many different types of toxins that may range from nanoplastics, heavy metals, airborne pollutants, substances found in overly processed foods, and even deodorant, or antiperspirant. Here is where saunas can come in and be a pivotal aid in the elimination of body odor in a long lasting way.
The excretion of heavy metal toxins in the body, as well as a slew of other substances being released via the sweat from the body may cause body odor. This can be helped with any kind of heat therapy that helps to detoxify the body via perspiration. (1) In short, if an individual is using a sauna 4-7 times a week and regularly sweating, they are likely to eventually have an odorless to pleasant smell.
Saunas May Help To Mitigate Body Odor Through Detoxification and Improved Overall Health
Saunas or other forms of heat therapy have been used for centuries by nearly every living culture. The regular use of thermal therapy helps to release destructive substances in the body, create an artificial fever to aid in the elimination of infection, and purify the skin (provided an adequate wash occurs afterwards).
Saunas enlist the body’s natural mechanism of thermoregulation for a specific amount of time and intensity to improve overall health. The activation of heat stress is a hormetic occurrence which is used in many different facets of medicine and wellness. Hormesis simply means to apply a challenge to the body for a prescribed amount of time, intensity, or dosage in order to strengthen the body in the long run. For example, lifting weights breaks down muscle fibers by creating little tears in the muscle group that was used. During rest these tears are repaired and the individual becomes stronger in that area of the body.
Adults rely on the sweating mechanism to cool the body off and saunas simply are a tool to create a hot space where you can elicit intensive sweating for a specific amount of time. The beauty of this process is that in doing so many unwanted toxins in the body are eliminated in the sweat. These include carcinogens, nanoplastics, heavy metals, and much more. (3)
A study performed on firefighters found that if a far infrared sauna was used directly after a post fire call wash down that the levels of PAH-OHs were significantly lower in the measured urine than if the sauna had not been taken. (4)
*What are PAH-OHs?: PAH-OHs are hydroxylated metabolites of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs). PAHs are a group of chemicals that are produced when organic materials like coal, oil, wood, and garbage are burned. They can also occur naturally in crude oil, coal, and gasoline. (3)
* What are PAHs?: PAHs can be found in the air, water, soil, and food. They can be created by human activities, such as automobile exhaust or industrial facilities, or by natural events, like wildfires. PAHs can also be formed in meat and other foods during high-temperature cooking. (5)
Why is this relevant to body odor and saunas? It is relevant because even if you are not a firefighter who is exposed to extremely high levels of toxins in your place of work, you are still alive in the industrial era of human history and will need to find a way to detoxify the body from harmful substances. Moreover, substances are one of several reasons why an individual will have chronic body odor.
Infrared saunas have been found to be more effective in eliminating heavy metal toxins when the sweat of the study’s participants were compared to those using traditional saunas and exercising. (6) This tells us that not all forms of sweating create the same detoxifying results.
Furthermore, saunas help to reduce overall toxic stress for individuals by working with the autonomic nervous system. While initially placing a stress on the body with heat, saunas will ultimately coax the nervous system out of states of stress where cortisol is being released and back into states of relaxation and rest. This is relevant for those trying to eliminate body odor because saunas will help to mitigate the unique body odor produced by stressful situations.
If you have been indulging in high intake of alcohol, garlic, or other foods and beverages that tend to make you smell less than peachy, you can choose to actively ‘sweat it out’ in the sauna so you are not sharing your last meal and weekend activities with co-workers.
Saunas cannot eliminate all body odor, but they can go a long way to lower the incidence of body odor. Many long term sauna users will stop using deodorant and may even be surprised at the occasional intervals when they do detect body odor.
Saunas Use is a Powerful Means to Eliminate Body Odor in Most Circumstances
If we pay attention to how we and our loved ones smell we can begin to understand what might be going on in our lives, and health. Regular sauna use cannot eliminate all body odor, however if enlisted regularly, saunas will likely reduce instances of body odor most of the time.
If you have an underlying condition that is causing body odor it is important to seek medical attention immediately. It is also important to clean your body thoroughly every time you sweat. Establish a post sauna shower protocol that will keep your skin bacteria free each and every time you sauna.
Body odor can be embarrassing and ultimately it may be a cry for help, so listen to your olfactory capacities to find out if sauna use may be your way out of body odor.
If you use a sauna to eliminate or reduce body order, please maintain excellent hydration levels. Your fluid intake should include clean water, as well as electrolytes, and minerals. Dehydration is deeply unhealthy for the body and brain, so drink plenty of healthy fluid to stay well hydrated at all times.
If you are an adolescent dealing with body odor be mindful of sauna use as your sweating capacity is still in flux. You can use a sauna more safely than children, but you are not a fully grown adult yet either. So, use a sauna at a lower temperature and for shorter periods of time, and make sure you stick with a cleansing protocol that includes antibacterial soap.
Sauna use, if done regularly at least 4-7 times a week may drastically reduce body odor in most people. If you have health concerns please always consult a medical practitioner before beginning a sauna protocol.
Sources Cited:
- https://my.clevelandclinic.org/health/symptoms/17865-body-odor
- https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/18347699/
- https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC8647371/
- https://www.atsdr.cdc.gov/csem/polycyclic-aromatic-hydrocarbons/standards_and_regulations_for_exposure.html
- https://superfund.oregonstate.edu/resources/all-about-pahs
- https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC9546416/