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By iris, on July 14th, 2009 Body Odor

Removing Sweat Stains – Homemade remedies for removing sweat stains from clothes

When it is summer time many women ask the same question, how to get rid of sweat stains and sweat odor from clothes? Many a times conventional washing fails to completely remove the sweat stain or odor or both.

Are you one of those women who discard white tee shirts like disposable gloves due to excessive underarm sweating? Then this article is for you.

There are a number of tried and tested home based approaches to remove sweat stain and odor from your summer clothes.

Baking Soda ‘Paste’ to remove Sweat Stains

Make a paste of six Tablespoons of baking soda and 1/2 cup of warm water. Rub it onto the stained area. Let it sit for about 30 minutes before laundering. Wash as usual. If you are washing brand new clothes, be sure to check for colorfastness first.

White Vinegar to remove Sweat Stains and Odor

Perspiration or sweat is not what is causing the odor but the bacteria that grows on it after the fact. You can use white vinegar to remove the sweat odor from your clothing. Just add a cup of white vinegar to the wash load along with your regular laundry soap.

If you have an expensive white dress, which you really want to keep without sweat stains, you can try this more effective approach. As with any cloth stain, the newer it is, the easier it to remove.

Right after taking off the garment, rub white vinegar into the affected area (arm pits). The white vinegar is acidic which can directly neutralize the alkaline components of your sweat. You can let the garment dry and wash at a later time or wash it immediately. Once you apply the vinegar it doesn’t matter much whether you wash right away or not.

Using liquid dishwashing detergent to remove Sweat Stains

Before doing your laundry, rub some dishwashing detergent on the stain. You can use Palmolive or any other quality brand. You should soak the area with the detergent. Let the cloth sit for an hour and then wash it as usual.

Hydrogen Peroxide (H2O2) to remove Sweat Stains

This inexpensive chemical does a wonderful job at our home. You can buy it from Wal-Mart or Costco for a couple of dollars, which can last for several months. We use it for cleaning several articles starting from laundry to dentures.

For white fabrics, hydrogen peroxide is one of the best possible solutions for sweat stain removal. Hydrogen peroxide can also remove blood stains very effectively. You can soak the stained portion in hydrogen peroxide. After thirty minutes, wash your garment as usual using regular detergent.

For colored clothes, before you use hydrogen peroxide, test it on a small hidden area of your clothing to make sure that it does not damage the color.

Using Shampoo for removing sweat stains

Soak the affected area of your garment with hot water. The shampoo prescribed for oily hair is the best for this treatment. Rub the shampoo into the stain. Scrub the area with an old toothbrush. Wash the cloth normally.

Preventing Sweat Stains

Some anti-perspirants can stain your cloth when reacting with your sweat. Each person’s sweat can differ slightly in their chemical composition. Hence an anti-perspirant that work well for person A may not work for person B.

Try switching to a plain deodorant if you suspect your anti-perspirant as the culprit.

Preventing Sweat Odor

Clean Habits

Wash your body regularly. Pay special attention to underarms, groin and feet. Change and wash your clothes often especially during summer months. Use cotton instead of synthetic socks. Change your socks daily.

Watch what you eat and drink

Alcohol and tobacco are well known to contribute to foul body odor - cut back on these if you drink or smoke. Garlic and certain spices are also known to cause extreme body odor for some people.

Thanks for reading. Please rate this article if you found it useful.