# Chemistry buffs: I think France has given me B.O.
**URL:** https://boards.straightdope.com/t/chemistry-buffs-i-think-france-has-given-me-b-o/235890
**Category:** Factual Questions
**Created:** [March 23, 2004, 1:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/chemistry-buffs-i-think-france-has-given-me-b-o/235890 "2004-03-23T13:34:30Z")
**Posts on this page:** 20
**Page:** 1
### Author:  [@gitfiddle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gitfiddle)
#### Post date: [March 23, 2004, 1:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/chemistry-buffs-i-think-france-has-given-me-b-o/235890/1 "2004-03-23T13:34:30Z")
Well, perhaps I’m wrong, but I don’t think I’ve ever smelt this bad in my life. I’ve been living in France for about two months now, and I’ve since developed an chronic b.o.
I have not changed my shower habits, and I still have the same soap and shampoo that I used in the States. There doesn’t seem to be any reason that my armpits should suddenly become impossible to clean.
The only thing that I can think of right off the top of my head is that there may be a difference in the hardness/softness of the water. Perhaps, my soap doesn’t work here because of the chemical makeup of the water. Is that possible?
Should I run out and buy French soaps, shampoos, and deodorants? I figure perhaps they have the reputation they do because they’ve been using the wrong soap as well. Or perhaps, they think all Americans smell bad.
Please help me be a pleasently scented ambassador.
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### Author:  [@Mangetout](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mangetout)
#### Post date: [March 23, 2004, 1:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/chemistry-buffs-i-think-france-has-given-me-b-o/235890/2 "2004-03-23T13:42:45Z")
I think I’m right that the stink comes not from your secretions, but from the waste products of bacteria that feed on them; if this is the case, it could be that you have been colonised by a new variety of bacteria. Maybe try some antibacterial soap.
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### Author:  [@Mangetout](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mangetout)
#### Post date: [March 23, 2004, 1:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/chemistry-buffs-i-think-france-has-given-me-b-o/235890/3 "2004-03-23T13:44:21Z")
Also: has your diet changed significantly?
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### Author:  [@Ponster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ponster)
#### Post date: [March 23, 2004, 1:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/chemistry-buffs-i-think-france-has-given-me-b-o/235890/4 "2004-03-23T13:52:34Z")
I’m with the ‘diet change’ people.
Try not eating spices, meat, onions and drop the coffee to see if it makes any difference.
Do any of the people you work with seem (extra) smelly to you?
> [@](#):
>
> Should I run out and buy French soaps, shampoos, and deodorants?
Hmmm, what exactly have you been using for the last 2 months to wash yourself with if not French products? Do you mean stuff actually made in France as opposed to other European countries?
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### Author:  [@gitfiddle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gitfiddle)
#### Post date: [March 23, 2004, 4:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/chemistry-buffs-i-think-france-has-given-me-b-o/235890/5 "2004-03-23T16:09:08Z")
I don’t see my diet as being significantly different as far as the things I eat. I eat on a more regular schedule here, but I could hardly see that as having an effect. At home, I normally drank an absolute minimum of 2 pints of coffee a day. Now, I drink it, maybe, once every two weeks. I do have tea in the morning now, though.
The soap I use is the same because I brought a couple of bars over with me and they haven’t run out. Shampoo? Well, I have short hair, so it doesn’t take much.
The other things is as well, that I’ve begun sweating under my armpits as well. I used to never sweat there. I don’t know why this is, and I presume it’s the sweat that’s really the problem, but I can’t figure out why it’s so sudden.
C’est tout…
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### Author:  [@gitfiddle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gitfiddle)
#### Post date: [March 24, 2004, 9:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/chemistry-buffs-i-think-france-has-given-me-b-o/235890/6 "2004-03-24T09:00:38Z")
my soap is anti-bacterial as well…
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### Author:  [@Harmonix](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Harmonix)
#### Post date: [March 24, 2004, 11:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/chemistry-buffs-i-think-france-has-given-me-b-o/235890/7 "2004-03-24T11:10:16Z")
Where in the states are you from?
Perhaps it is hotter/more humid in france?
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### Author:  [@legion](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/legion)
#### Post date: [March 24, 2004, 11:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/chemistry-buffs-i-think-france-has-given-me-b-o/235890/8 "2004-03-24T11:28:37Z")
Could the cause be your clothes, or rather, the washing powder/softener you are using?
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### Author:  [@DanBlather](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DanBlather)
#### Post date: [March 24, 2004, 12:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/chemistry-buffs-i-think-france-has-given-me-b-o/235890/9 "2004-03-24T12:03:19Z")
I wouldn’t worry unless you start to think Jerry Lewis is funny.
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### Author:  [@Jurph](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jurph)
#### Post date: [March 24, 2004, 2:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/chemistry-buffs-i-think-france-has-given-me-b-o/235890/10 "2004-03-24T14:49:27Z")
This happened to me in high school, and again during college. The brand of deodorant / antiperspirant I was using just stopped working, and as clean as I got in the shower, I’d reek a few hours later. Each time, I moved to a new brand with slightly different ingredients (Dry Idea roll-on -\> Sure stick -\> Right Guard gel) and each time earned a reprieve from my odor. I’m not sure if it was the form or the ingredients – IIRC, ingredients are pretty standard across the product family – but it worked.
An interesting side note is that my high school was a boarding school, so the hardness of my shower water could have changed just before my deodorant failed each time.
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### Author:  [@Random](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Random)
#### Post date: [March 24, 2004, 6:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/chemistry-buffs-i-think-france-has-given-me-b-o/235890/11 "2004-03-24T18:14:53Z")
A lot of good ideas so far.
If diet is the culprit, it’s likely to be a change in the meat or dairy that you eat/drink. Any changes there? Maybe more (or different) cheeses? Are you eating more meat?
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### Author:  [@Kempis](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kempis)
#### Post date: [March 24, 2004, 6:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/chemistry-buffs-i-think-france-has-given-me-b-o/235890/12 "2004-03-24T18:23:24Z")
I would look at the laundry too.
I thought I read on this board that in Europe they use colder water and longer cycles. Perhaps it is not getting your clothes clean enough.
I’m prone to getting ripe too since I naturally sweat more than others. ☹ I’m pleasant to be around by showering everyday, using undershirts (which get used only once before washing), and using Mitchum a/d. That one seems to be the most powerful available… and though it’s expensive it is unscented and you don’t need to use much per application.
O’course, if you’re having sex with one of them, there’s nothing you can do about stinkiness. :eek:
-k
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### Author:  [@bughunter](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bughunter)
#### Post date: [March 25, 2004, 1:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/chemistry-buffs-i-think-france-has-given-me-b-o/235890/13 "2004-03-25T01:36:53Z")
> [@Kempis](#):
>
> O’course, if you’re having sex with one of them, there’s nothing you can do about stinkiness.
Well, that right there is another factor to consider.
If you’re swappin’ bodily fluids with a local madmoiselle, then you’re certainly exchanging native flora, too, which are going to smell different to you. There’s nothing you can do about it, except bathe more frequently, use more deodorants, and try a little cologne. (You’ll fit right in. “When in Rome…” is usually good advice.)
Alternately, you could have been colonized by something you’ve overlooked or forgotten about. Once, I tried on a shirt in a department store upon which I detected a strong reek … after donning it. Someone very stinky had tried on this shirt and gotten his BO all over the pits. I quickly doffed it but it was too late. For two weeks, the stink from that shirt reblossomed in my pits every day. I finally got desperate and had to go get some triple antibiotic ointment from my medicine cabinet and smear a dollop under each pit. That took care of it.
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### Author:  [@bbeaty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bbeaty)
#### Post date: [March 25, 2004, 4:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/chemistry-buffs-i-think-france-has-given-me-b-o/235890/14 "2004-03-25T04:23:25Z")
> [@gitfiddle](#):
>
> Well, perhaps I’m wrong, but I don’t think I’ve ever smelt this bad in my life. I’ve been living in France for about two months now, and I’ve since developed an chronic b.o.
Sweat doesn’t stink. The smell is from bacteria.
While (ahem!) experimenting with my armpits, I’ve managed to kill my bacteria population, and then to go without washing or using any deodorant for about ten days with barely any smell. Then my normal strong armpit smell will return full-force over about a day as I get re-colonized by bacteria. I tried this over and over to make sure the effect was real. Works every time.
The key to keeping away the stench-bacteria for days is… sterilize your clothes. Normal laundry doesn’t do it. The little buggers even survive very high temperatures in the dryer. But a 1/4 cup of bleach in the wash works well.
Get a freshly laundered shirt and take a whiff of the underarm. Is there any smell? If so, then your laundry isn’t sterile at all. If your shirts are full of bacteria, no amount of armpit- scrubbing or antibacterial soap will stop you from getting stinky by the end of the day. But wear some non-bacteria shirts, and you can stay smell-free for ten days easily after just one thorough washing. Very weird, eh?
See [http://www.killbo.com](http://www.killbo.com) for info.
(Oh, and _thoroughly_ mix that bleach into laundry water before adding colored or dark clothes.)
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### Author:  [@Zoe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zoe)
#### Post date: [March 25, 2004, 5:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/chemistry-buffs-i-think-france-has-given-me-b-o/235890/15 "2004-03-25T05:32:04Z")
There is an “industrial strength” anti-bacterial soap that is usually available from a pharmacist in the US without a prescription. It is called Hebclens, I think. (If it is not available in France, you should be able to find it on the internet.) It is in liquid form and doesn’t foam. If your underarms are reddish and itchy, you might want to ask a physician if you could try nystatin topical powder on top of the infected area after you have cleansed it with the soap.
But please don’t take my word for any of this. Check with a pharmacist and a physician. I am neither.
The strongest over-the-counter deoderant that I am aware of is Mitchum. But my source of information is rather dated.
Check all parts of your skin to be certain that the problem is limited to your underarms. Check especially those areas which do no get exposed to fresh air as much as others.
Another possibility – Have you tried rubbing alcohol?
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### Author:  [@Popup](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Popup)
#### Post date: [March 26, 2004, 9:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/chemistry-buffs-i-think-france-has-given-me-b-o/235890/16 "2004-03-26T09:02:11Z")
> [@Kempis](#):
>
> I would look at the laundry too.
> I thought I read on this board that in Europe they use colder water and longer cycles. Perhaps it is not getting your clothes clean enough.
That’s not my experience. In Europe we use ‘horizontal drum machines’ (not necessarilly front-loaded!) and fairly high temperatures. I frequently wash under-wear etc at around 90[sup]o[/sup]C. The difference is that in Europe we don’t use bleach to the same extent that it seems to be used in the states. As **bbeaty** points out, this might make a difference.
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### Author:  [@Carnac\_the\_Magnificent](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Carnac_the_Magnificent)
#### Post date: [March 26, 2004, 2:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/chemistry-buffs-i-think-france-has-given-me-b-o/235890/17 "2004-03-26T14:32:37Z")
> [@bbeaty](#):
>
> Sweat doesn’t stink. The smell is from bacteria.
>
> While (ahem!) experimenting with my armpits, I’ve managed to kill my bacteria population, and then to go without washing or using any deodorant for about ten days with barely any smell. Then my normal strong armpit smell will return full-force over about a day as I get re-colonized by bacteria. I tried this over and over to make sure the effect was real. Works every time.
>
> The key to keeping away the stench-bacteria for days is… sterilize your clothes. Normal laundry doesn’t do it. The little buggers even survive very high temperatures in the dryer. But a 1/4 cup of bleach in the wash works well.
>
> Get a freshly laundered shirt and take a whiff of the underarm. Is there any smell? If so, then your laundry isn’t sterile at all. If your shirts are full of bacteria, no amount of armpit- scrubbing or antibacterial soap will stop you from getting stinky by the end of the day. But wear some non-bacteria shirts, and you can stay smell-free for ten days easily after just one thorough washing. Very weird, eh?
>
> See [http://www.killbo.com](http://www.killbo.com) for info.
>
> (Oh, and _thoroughly_ mix that bleach into laundry water before adding colored or dark clothes.)
This advice is spot on. **zoe** provides the missing element: apply rubbing alcohol to your underarms each night for, say, three nights. Leave on for about 15 minutes and then wash off with soapy water. If you don’t kill the bacteria, it comes right back with a vengeance. You’ve got to get all your clothes sterile in the underarm area.
But you also mentioned more sweating, which suggests something else. It might simply be more anxiety, more stress in a new land. Some people resort to chlorophyl tablets, as a natural body deodorizer. Check Google.
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### Author:  [@Kempis](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kempis)
#### Post date: [March 26, 2004, 4:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/chemistry-buffs-i-think-france-has-given-me-b-o/235890/18 "2004-03-26T16:43:19Z")
> [@bbeaty](#):
>
> (Oh, and _thoroughly_ mix that bleach into laundry water before adding colored or dark clothes.)
Whoa… there’s no way to wash colored clothes in chlorine bleach water without making them fade can you?
-k
curious
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### Author:  [@Carnac\_the\_Magnificent](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Carnac_the_Magnificent)
#### Post date: [March 26, 2004, 10:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/chemistry-buffs-i-think-france-has-given-me-b-o/235890/19 "2004-03-26T22:02:46Z")
> [@Kempis](#):
>
> Whoa… there’s no way to wash colored clothes in chlorine bleach water without making them fade can you?
>
> -k
>
> curious
Ask and ye shall find…
1. Add a disinfectant to the wash water. For disinfecting, use only products that display an
EPA Registration Number on the label. This assures that the product has met EPA
requirements for disinfectants. When using any disinfectant, follow label directions. Most
disinfectants, other than chlorine bleach, are effective only on hard surfaces so make sure
the disinfectant that you use has laundry directions on the label. Liquid chlorine bleach is
the most accessible, cheapest, and easiest disinfectant to use. It effectively kills bacteria in
warm, hot, or cold water. Follow the directions on the label for disinfecting. Amounts
of chlorine bleach will differ depending on desired results, fiber content, and color.
A disinfectant like chlorine bleach reduces the number of bacteria to a safe level. Ordinary laundry
detergent and hot water are not enough.
A disinfectant in the wash water prevents harmful bacteria from being transferred from one article of
clothing to another during the wash cycle, or from remaining on the inner surface of the washing
machine and being transferred from one load of clothes to the next. In fact, not only should you use a
disinfectant when treating flood-soiled clothing, but also when there has been an illness in the family or
when using a coin-operated washing machine.
HOW MUCH BLEACH
Follow the recommended amounts given on the product label. However, if that is not available the
following guidelines can be used. Depending on desired results, fiber content, fabric color, and
item use, the following amounts of bleach:
•
To sanitize clothing, 2 tablespoons of liquid chlorine bleach per washer load effectively kills
bacteria.
•
Chlorine bleach is harmful to certain fibers, such as silk, wool, and spandex, and to durable
press fabrics and generally should not be used on them. However, research indicates that a
sanitizing amount of 2 tablespoons liquid chlorine bleach per washer load will kill bacteria
without substantially damaging clothes. Do not use more than 2 tablespoons per washer load.
Such disinfection should not be done on a regular basis.
•
Brightly colored fabrics that may fade when chlorine bleach is used at higher levels, generally
can be successfully sanitized with 2 tablespoons of liquid chlorine bleach per washer load
without significant color loss.
•
For stain removal or heavily soiled items ½ to 1 cup of liquid chlorine bleach per washer load is
generally needed. Check directions on bleach container for the specific amount to use. NOTE
restrictions for certain fibers and brightly colored items above.
DRYING
More bacteria are killed by drying clothes in an automatic clothes dryer than by line drying. Both
methods, however, will reduce the number of bacteria. Survival of bacteria varies with the size of
the load, the drying temperature, and drying time. Do not dry fabrics in a dryer unless you are
satisfied with the results. Drying in a dryer can set stains, making them impossible to remove
[http://216.239.51.104/search?q=cache:oMXsyahlmLoJ:www.ca.uky.edu/agcollege/fcs/FACTSHTS/ct-bjd.064.pdf+%2B"chlorine+bleach"+%2Bcolored+clothes&hl=en&ie=UTF-8](http://216.239.51.104/search?q=cache:oMXsyahlmLoJ:www.ca.uky.edu/agcollege/fcs/FACTSHTS/ct-bjd.064.pdf+%2B%22chlorine+bleach%22+%2Bcolored+clothes&hl=en&ie=UTF-8)
1. Chlorine Protection — Wash & Rinse Cycles
Did you know that most water supplies contain a low level of chlorine? Over time this chlorine can bleach and fade your colored clothes. In fact, after just 20 washes, your clothes could come into contact with about ¼ cup of chlorine bleach! Tide helps protect clothes from the chlorine in the wash cycle and Downy helps neutralize the chlorine in the rinse water.
[http://www.tide.com/articles/read.jhtml?articleId=3552](http://www.tide.com/articles/read.jhtml?articleId=3552)
1. Health Guard Laundry Additive and Disinfectant (non-bleach)
[http://www.revivalanimal.com/index.cfm?Detail=1&Product\_ID=1615](http://www.revivalanimal.com/index.cfm?Detail=1&Product_ID=1615)
1. Virkon, THE ULTIMATE BROAD SPECTRUM VIRUCIDAL DISINFECTANT (non bleach)
[http://www.dustless.com/alpha/chemicals/micro\_spray.html](http://www.dustless.com/alpha/chemicals/micro_spray.html)
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### Author:  [@Doctordec](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Doctordec)
#### Post date: [March 27, 2004, 5:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/chemistry-buffs-i-think-france-has-given-me-b-o/235890/20 "2004-03-27T05:01:51Z")
Just a thought but I have found out in my travels throughout the U.S. that the level of chlorine in tap water varies a lot. Is it possible that that water you were using in the states was heavily chlorinated and the water in France is not ?
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