Ever had that problem when you wanted to raise your hand but couldn't because your underarms are all sweaty? Or when somebody enters your room but suddenly had to pinch their noses and turn back? This may be a case of excessive underarm sweating which is a major cause of body odor.

Excessive sweating, or Hyperhidrosis, is a very common problem that approximately 2-3% of all Americans have. Problems with underarm sweating usually begin in the late adolescent period around the age of 13.

Sweat is responsible for controlling the temperature of our body. It is also the one responsible for causing body odor. We have two types of sweat glands that are found all over the body. These are the Eccrine glands and Apocrine glands. Eccrine glands produce the normal sweat that has salt and other toxic materials from the body. As this sweat comes in contact with the skin, it softens the dead skin layers and creates the smell in the process. Bacteria will now feed upon this and will produce a more distinct odor that smells bad. The smell is worse in areas where the skin is folded over, moist and warm because it has a lot of bacteria to eat away at the sweat and dead skin cells.

Apocrine glands on the other hand, are located in the scalp, groin, and armpits. They make sweat with pheromones - substances that elicit a response from members of the opposite sex. This type of sweat is also eaten by bacteria and in turn produces bad odor.

Combine the two types of sweat and the fact that the underarm is the perfect breeding ground for bacteria because of its moist and warm environment is one of the major body odor causes.

Antiperspirants can sometimes remedy the body odor by eliminating the excessive armpit sweat. Keeping your skin dry and clean as much as possible is also another way to decrease body odor. Foods like caffeinated drinks, onion, garlic adds to the stench that one smells when perspiring. Avoiding these foods greatly reduce the incidence of body odor.

Body odor doesn't necessarily smell bad all the time. Body smell is used to identify people and can be bad smelling depending on the person and who smells it. The smell itself is largely influenced by their diet, gender, genetic traits, medications, and health of the person. Generally speaking, one's smell doesn't smell bad to everyone but as a general rule, proper hygiene will make sure that you smell good to everybody.

But then again, why do we have excessive sweating in the first place? One of the most basic explanations for excessive perspiration is what we call the sympathetic nervous system or more commonly known as the fight or flight response of the body. This system affects the heartbeat, blood pressure, and anxiety levels of a person. When a person becomes excited or threatened, this system kicks in and the body begins to produce a lot more sweat than usual.