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The Complete Handbook of Deodorant & Anti-Perspirant
The professional's guide to formulation, selection, application, and business opportunity in the deodorant and anti-perspirant market
by Alumigogo Books
Chapter 1: Understanding Deodorant & Anti-Perspirant
Deodorant and anti-perspirant are two fundamentally different products that do two different jobs. Most people use them interchangeably, or assume one product can do both. Neither assumption is correct. Understanding the distinction—and understanding the actual chemistry and biology that makes each one work—is the foundation for everything that follows in this handbook: selecting the right product, applying it correctly, troubleshooting when it fails, and making sound commercial decisions around these products.
What These Products Actually Do
Deodorant does one thing: it masks or eliminates odor. It does not stop you from sweating. A deodorant typically contains fragrance, antimicrobial agents (such as triclosan or zinc ricinoleate), and a carrier—usually a wax or oil base, or alcohol in the case of a spray. The antimicrobial component kills or inhibits the bacteria that live on skin and convert sweat into the compounds that smell bad. Without bacteria, there is no odor, even though sweat is still being produced.
Anti-perspirant does a different job: it reduces the amount of sweat produced, or blocks sweat from reaching the skin surface. It does this by delivering active ingredients—almost always aluminum-based salts, typically aluminum chlorohydrate or aluminum zirconium tetrachlorohydrex glycine—into the sweat duct. These salts form a temporary gel or plug that reduces or blocks the flow of sweat to the skin. Anti-perspirants may also contain fragrance and some antimicrobial agents, but their primary mechanism is sweat reduction, not odor masking.
Many commercial products sold as "deodorant" are actually what the