Scientists think our ancestors evolved sweat glands between 1.5 million and 2.5 million years ago as we moved from under the cool canopy of the forests into the grasslands and prairies, long before we evolved our big brains.īut most other animals don't sweat, and they need to find other ways to keep from overheating - through panting, for example - if they can't find shade, a river or a pool.
#Knock knock gif skin#
The microbes that give rise to body odor help protect your skin from dangerous pathogens and even help prevent eczema.Ī light sudsing with regular gentle soap should be enough to knock down the stink, at least temporarily, without wiping out bacterial pals. The bacteria behind BO are actually your alliesĮven if you're worried about your smelly sweat, don't go scrubbing yourself with antibacterial soap in pursuit of fresh pits just yet.
It's the byproducts of these bacteria, feeding on your sweat, that produce body odor.ģ. The sweat glands in those places are called apocrine glands, and they release a protein-rich form of perspiration that gets eaten by bacteria. But something is different about the sweat from your armpits and groin that makes it stink. Perspiration is mostly odorless - at least that's true of the sweat dripping from your forehead and arms after a run. The now-cooler blood then travels around your body and back to your core, helping keep all your inner parts at the right temperature to function. When the sweat on your skin evaporates, transforming from a liquid into a gas, it takes some heat from the blood right under your skin with it. Those glands are basically coiled loops that help move some of the liquid sloshing around in the spaces between your cells, bones and organs up and out through the body's surface. Sweat is mostly just water and salt secreted by millions of glands in your skin. Sweat keeps you cool by turning into a gas These lessons are based on their reporting:ġ.
Several NPR science staffers braved the heat this summer to get the dirt on sweat. And there's so much more to the briny stuff than meets the eye. You might find perspiration a nuisance most of the time, but that salty liquid oozing from your skin is key to keeping you cool. Phew, this summer was hot - and some places are still roasting! With people around the world experiencing dangerously high, record-breaking temperatures, we've all been sweating it.
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