WEBVTT - How Do Antiperspirants Work?

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<v Speaker 1>Welcome to brain stuff from how stuff works. Everyone, I'm Christian,

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<v Speaker 1>and you you stink? I mean, don't take it personally.

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<v Speaker 1>Pretty much everyone stinks, and pretty much everybody sweats too.

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<v Speaker 1>There's nothing inherently wrong with these natural body processes. But

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<v Speaker 1>in modern society we don't want to be at the

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<v Speaker 1>whim of evolution. Who wants to spend all summer covered

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<v Speaker 1>in sweat stains or show up at a job interview

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<v Speaker 1>looking like you ran two miles to get there. Sweat

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<v Speaker 1>can affect the way other people view you. A study

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<v Speaker 1>conducted by the International hyper Hydrosis Society explored the social

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<v Speaker 1>stigma of sweat, with sixty six percent of respondents claiming

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<v Speaker 1>that visible sweat made them think a person was nervous,

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<v Speaker 1>while believed those showing excessive sweat to be overweight. If

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<v Speaker 1>you want to avoid excessive sweating, or if you're a

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<v Speaker 1>naturally heavy sweater, then you probably need an antiperspirant. Pretty

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<v Speaker 1>amazing stuff. You just take a quick roll and boom,

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<v Speaker 1>your sweat problem is salved. But what is this stuff

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<v Speaker 1>and how does it actually work? Well? First, we have

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<v Speaker 1>to make a distinction between deodorant and antiperspirant. Deodorant targets

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<v Speaker 1>bacteria under your armpits, making the skin they're too salty

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<v Speaker 1>or acidic to support bacteria responsible for your body odor.

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<v Speaker 1>Antiperspirants can cut down on body odor two, but they're

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<v Speaker 1>primarily made to keep you from sweating. You have two

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<v Speaker 1>types of sweat glands all over your skin, and they're

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<v Speaker 1>most concentrated in your under arms. The ecrine glands are

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<v Speaker 1>the most numerous. They kick in to cool you off

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<v Speaker 1>when you're hot. So when you're exposed to heat, physical exertion, stress,

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<v Speaker 1>or nervousness, these sweat glands are stimulated. The cells secrete

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<v Speaker 1>a fluid that travels from the coiled portion of the

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<v Speaker 1>gland up through the straight duct and out onto the

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<v Speaker 1>surface of our skin. These ecrine glands excrete, water, and salt,

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<v Speaker 1>and for the record, have nothing to do with your

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<v Speaker 1>body odor. The ap acrine glands, on the other hand,

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<v Speaker 1>those carry secretions of fats and proteins along with your sweat.

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<v Speaker 1>Once this hits the exterior surface of your skin, those

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<v Speaker 1>fats and proteins react with bacteria to create odors. Antiperspirants

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<v Speaker 1>have an active ingredient that gives them sweat blocking power.

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<v Speaker 1>Typically it's an aluminium based compound like aluminium chloride or

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<v Speaker 1>aluminium chlorohydrate. When this ingredient gets into the duct leading

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<v Speaker 1>to each sweat gland, the aluminium ions enter the cells

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<v Speaker 1>lining the ecrene gland ducts. As the ions enter, water

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<v Speaker 1>passes into the cells with them. As more water enters,

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<v Speaker 1>the cells around the duct begin to swell. These cells

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<v Speaker 1>can swell enough to squeeze the ducts closed. At that point,

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<v Speaker 1>sweat can't get out, and you're staying free for a while.

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<v Speaker 1>Each cell can only draw in a certain amount of water,

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<v Speaker 1>so eventually the concentrations of water outside and inside the

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<v Speaker 1>cells reach equilibrium. When this happens, the water inside the

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<v Speaker 1>cell begins to pass back out of the cell through osmosis,

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<v Speaker 1>and the cells swelling goes down. This is why people

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<v Speaker 1>have to reapply antiperspirant. An average over the counter antiperspirant

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<v Speaker 1>might have an active ingredient concentration of fifteen. If you've

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<v Speaker 1>got a real sweating problem, doctors can prescribe much stronger

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<v Speaker 1>products for you, but will you want to take them?

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<v Speaker 1>You see, antiperspirance aren't perfect. Some studies have claimed a

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<v Speaker 1>link between breast cancer and antiperspirance, although for now that

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<v Speaker 1>link remains inconclusive. There's another concern to people without fully

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<v Speaker 1>functioning kidneys should be wary of using antiperspirant. In the US,

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<v Speaker 1>the Food and Drug Administration requires a warning label on

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<v Speaker 1>all antiperspirants, stating that people with kidney disease should consult

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<v Speaker 1>a doctor before using them. If you're not comfortable using antiperspirant,

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<v Speaker 1>then hey, no worries, Just go for an aluminum free deodorant.

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<v Speaker 1>It won't stop the sweat, but it will knock out

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<v Speaker 1>that odor. Check out the brainstuff channel on YouTube, and

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<v Speaker 1>for more on this and thousands of other topics, visit

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<v Speaker 1>how stuff works dot com.