How to know the difference between deodorant and antiperspirant:

How to know the difference between deodorant and antiperspirant: 

• Know the difference between deodorant and antiperspirant. Deodorant reduces odor by eliminating the bacteria in sweat, while antiperspirant reduce sweat by stopping up sweat glands and keeping it from reaching your skin.

• Consider if deodorant is right for you. If sweat is not really an issue for you, and you are only looking to control odor, this is probably your best bet.

• Consider if antiperspirant is right for you. Some people sweat excessively, although this is only a medical condition in about 2% of the population. Still, athletes and others who sweat profusely may feel that deodorant alone doesn’t do the job.

Antiperspirant has its drawbacks, however. While researchers are not sure exactly how this happens, the aluminum in antiperspirant can lead to yellow stains on your clothes.You can often get these stains out with bleach, but if this is a big concern to you, stick with deodorant.It’s also possible that antiperspirant actually causes your body to start producing excess sweat to circumvent the blocked glands —the opposite of what you want. For all of these reasons, unless you really need antiperspirant, you might want to keep it simple and stick to deodorant.

• Consider a combo. While the availability of combination antiperspirant/deodorant—the majority of mainstream choices falls into this category, actually—means you can get the benefits of both, you will also have to deal with the drawbacks of both.

• Understand where the research stands on health risks. Over the years, there have been many rumors about health risks associated with antiperspirant and deodorant, including that they cause breast cancer and Alzheimer’s disease. Many of these concerns have been connected to the presence of aluminum in antiperspirant. Research has not determined any clear linkage, however.Researchers at the National Cancer Institute and the Food and Drug Administration have determined that there is not evidence to conclude that these products cause breast cancer.Scientists have also not found compelling evidence to associate antiperspirant or deodorant with Alzheimer’s disease.However, research in these areas is ongoing, so some consumers may still wish to be cautious.