The great body odor conspiracy
 

I'm sure we're all aware body odor isn't caused by the smell of sweat, but rather bacteria that grow in areas that are common to sweat. Generally, people learn to live with body odor, simply using deodorant and antiperspirants, these are intended to treat the symptoms instead of the cause. While some deodorants and antiperspirants include antibacterial agents, these never actually kill off all the bacteria.

What if there's a cure for BO, something that can last for months, years, or even a lifetime, but it's being held back by the deodorant companies so they can continue to sell us their products for the rest of their lives?

There is... you can laser treat the sweat glands so that they never sweat again. I saw one of those "Mystery Diagnosis" shows about this lady who smelled like rotting meat and they couldn't figure out why. She got the laser thing on her arm pits, other areas that sweat, and she physically couldn't sweat there anymore. It turned out she had some bizarre disease that made her skin itself put out an odor. But I learned that you can actually stop sweating altogether, and the smelly bacteria too.

EDIT: News article on same: http://www.telegraph.co.uk/health/he...-sweating.html

I saw that, but it seems like using nuclear weapons to deal with an ant problem.

There's also Botox. I was reading a piece about uncontrollable/excessive sweating (hyperhidrosis) in Women's Health yesterday, and apparently Botox disables the sweat glands for 4-9 months. It's $800/pop, but it's FDA approved and less drastic than lasers.

Jesus, laser surgery and botox? I think I'd just rather stink...

...I guess you could always just caulk your armpits closed, its cheaper.

Maybe so, but it's more than just the deodorant companies that are enforcing the illusion. Some basic changes in diet and hygeine habits can go a long way to improving unpleasant odors.

I don't use deodorant. I don't have body odor. Or at least, I have to remain unbathed for over a week and eat nothing but processed foods and dairy for it to build up. With my regular diet and lifestyle I'm not smelly. Even after I return from a brutal hike or an intense run, covered in sweat - there's no odor.

Here's what I attribute it to:
- shaved armpits
- use of mild astringent when I don't have time to shower
- vegetarian diet
- primarily eating from-scratch, fresh foods with ample fibre and vegetables

Here's what I attribute it to: female, genetics make odor non-offensive.

Women in general sweat much less, and the odor is generally less offensive. Diet can certainly lower it even more.

No matter what I eat, I will smell like a terrible terrible tragedy after even a minor workout.

Diet has everything to do with it, as well as genetics.

How much does temperature play in this? How about humidity? Does low heat and low humidity stop the bacteria or stop them from smelling?

And does washing with anti-bacterial soap kill off most of the bacteria, but only allows the strongest ones to survive and reproduce?

Although I usually do use a deodorant, all it takes for me to keep body odor under control is a little attention to personal hygiene. If I shower every day and pay attention to the usual sweat areas (armpits, under and between breasts, crotch, head/hair and feet) I don't even need to use a deodorant. Normal body smell (the term body odor has bad connotations) is not offensive. I wouldn't want to go more than a day without showering, though. Like the OP says, it's not the sweat, it's the bacteria. Don't let it get a good start.
Low humidity also seems to help by depriving the bacteria of the moisture the need to live. I notice less odor out West than here in Boston, where it is nearly always quite humid, even if not very hot.

BO is useful, though, in calling our attention to the fact that some effort at personal hygiene might be in order. Eliminating BO might be like eliminating the pain of an abscessing tooth but leaving the abscess itself unattended to.:paranoid:

Lindy

Yeah, it's been my experience that women don't smell nearly as bad as men even after the same level of activity and lack of a shower. I've been with some hippie chicks in my day and they never smelled nearly as bad as the guys I bunked with in the military. It isn't just the diet.

From the respected scientific journal, AskMen.com:
Prevent body odor - AskMen.com Canada

I'm not a slob. Pfft, I live by the Bill Murray guide to clean clothing as seen in Ghostbusters:

"That's not dirty. Just set it by an open window for an hour and it'll be good."

That is not a solution. You need to sweat to stay cool

I thought men naturally had stronger odors about them in any situation to attract the female... One of those residual evolutionary things. I could be wrong. I naturally don't smell so great when I sweat. Even when I was on a vegetarian, low-processed food, etc diet. I drink nearly a gallon of water a day and still eat fairly healthy.

I also live in Florida. Over the weekend, 15 second after walking outside (literally, I timed it) I was covered in a sheen of moisture from my own skin and the air. By the fourth time out of the car and into that, I could start to feel ick. There just isn't a great way down here to ward off the stinkage without clinical strength deodorant. When it's 102 outside and 115 inside my car, I no smell good after a bit. But, most of us will do an emergency PTA if needed during the day. I'm very conscious if odors. My SO didn't shower for a week after surgery and he didn't smell offensive... 30 minutes outside this weekend and it was time for a shower, lol.

manwithaplan is right, you need sweat glands to stay cool and you get rid of 'toxins' via sweating...I think anyway, I heard people with heavy tattooing kill sweat glands and sometimes need a liver transplant cause they can't sweat out the toxins. it was a show about Japanese Yakuza gangsters coming to the US for liver transplants, paying bribe money to get 1st in line.


as to conspiracy, I did also hear a show which said soap companies are trying to market 'body shampoos' over bar soap cause they make so much more money off the liquid soap. I'll stick with my Ivory bar soap thanks. I can't really tell much difference if I use bar soap on my hair if I was out of normal shampoo.