Welcome to brain stuff from how stuff Works. Hey, their brain stuff Lauren Vogel bomb here. If you're preparing for a hike, especially one that involves sleeping under the stars, every last thing you pack should be questioned, will you need rain gear? One walking sticker to which freeze dried snacks are actually tasty enough to eat? One essential rule from experienced hikers is no cotton clothing. Clothes made of
cotton can act as a sponge. The material soaks up sweat and holds moisture next to the skin, which eliminates the insulating effect of the cotton, causes skin irritation, and eventually leads to copious amounts of body odor. A body odor isn't a personal affront. Every adult whose body temperature becomes high enough to cause certain glands to secrete fluid onto the surface of the skin is at risk for emanating at least a little bit, and it isn't without purpose.
Sweat produced by the acrine glands that cover most of the body helps regulate body temperature, while the milky or fluid released by the apocrene glands in the armpits and growing area is a signal that the body is under stress. Apricrene glands are primarily responsible for body odor, and although acrene glands secrete primarily odorless sweat, the smell produced by this sweat changes over time. Perspiration acts as a magnet to bacteria on the skin, and these bacteria use it
as a fuel to multiply. When the growing numbers of bacteria metabolize the sweat, they produce a smelly byproduct commonly called body odor. Clearly, cotton isn't the right choice for working up a sweat, since it can actually make body odor worse. But what about other types of fabrics? Do all fabrics increase a person's propensity to develop body odor. The key to using clothing to prevent or lessen body odor lies in the fabric's ability to release sweat quickly
before bacteria can begin to feast on it. There are natural and man made fabrics that expertly wicked moisture away from the skin and to the edge of the material, where it can evaporate. Other fabrics, however, will trap moisture in the fabric and on the skin and make body odor worse. Fabric's ability to transmit and release moisture is known as breatheability, which is the common term for the
moisture vapor transmission rate, or m v TR. The m v TR is measured by calculating how many grams of moisture move through a square meter of fabric in twenty four hours. Generally, the greater the m v t R, the less likely the fabric is to absorb and retain odor causing moisture. You may be thinking, great, now, all I have to do is find clothing labeled breathable, and bo will be a problem of the past. Not so fast.
There's not an industry standard regarding breathability. Nearly any label can carry the term, usually preceded by words like ultra or extremely. This means you'll need to arm yourself with information about specific fabrics rather than relying on label hype as a guide. Natural fabrics created from the fibers of animals, bugs, or plants are a good place to start. You'll want to steer clear of one cotton fabrics because they take a long time to dry and will allow body odor
to bloom in the meantime. This is largely because cotton fabrics are composed of fibers that swell with moisture and thereby reduce the pores of the fabric. However, other natural fabrics absorb and release sweat quickly, including hemp, a fabric woven from these stem fibers of the Cannabis sativa plant, and linen woven from flax stems. While it sounds counterintuitive to wear wool to prevent body odor, this natural fiber
is an excellent choice. Wool can absorb up to thirty of its weight and moisture without feeling wet, and will dry quickly. Will also releases minute amounts of body heat as it absorbs moisture, so it will help keep you cool. Plus, will is naturally antibacterial, which means you can wear it, sweat in it, and keep wearing it, sometimes for consecutive days without reeking. When it comes to making body odor worse, synthetic fabrics tend to trap odors at a greater rate
than natural fabrics. Although many of these man made fabrics, like polyester, are quick to wick moisture away from the skin and equally quick to dry, their construction can up the stinc quotient within the weave of synthetic moisture. Waking fabrics are notches designed to pool minute amounts of sweat as it transfers from the inner layer to the outer layer of the fabric. The concept is a good one, as the moisture will generally evaporate once it reaches the
fabric's outer layer. The problem is that as sweat collects in the mix and crannies of the fabric on its way to freedom, it is devoured by bacteria that have themselves made a home in those same recesses. This traps body odor within the fabric. To reduce rowdy odors, look for sympthetic fabrics that have an added antimicrobial ingredient. For example, the addition of silver to polyester or spandex fibers can
help prevent body odor from accumulating. Silver nano particles. That's, particles so small that eighty thousand of them could fit within the diameter of a human hair can be integrated into synthetic fabric. When they get wet, the silver nano particles release silver ions that initially slow the growth of odor causing bacteria area and eventually kill them off altogether. Some fabrics are infused with a different type of odor
inhibiting agent, molecules of volcanic ash. The ash molecules have a poor size that's similar to that of an odor molecule. When the two meat, the odor molecule is adsorbed and trapped within the ash molecule. This prevents the odor molecule from releasing its characteristic smell until the fabric is washed in warm water. To prevent body odor, look for clothing made from fabrics that will help keep you dry and have the added mite of antimicrobial helpers, and don't forget
the antiperspirant or deodorant. Today's episode was written by Laurie L. Dove and produced by Tristan McNeil. For more on this and lots of other stink free topics, visit our home planet, how stuff Works dot com