A deodorant is a substance applied to the body to prevent or mask body odor caused by bacterial breakdown of perspiration, for example in the armpits, groin, or feet. A subclass of deodorants, called antiperspirants, prevents sweating itself, typically by blocking sweat glands. Antiperspirants are used on a wider range of body parts, at any place where sweat would be inconvenient or unsafe, since unwanted sweating can interfere with comfort, vision, and grip (due to slipping). Other types of deodorant allow sweating but prevent bacterial action on sweat, since human sweat only has a noticeable smell when it is decomposed by bacteria.
In the United States, the Food and Drug Administration classifies and regulates most deodorants as cosmetics, but classifies antiperspirants as over-the-counter drugs.[1]
The first commercial deodorant, Mum, was introduced and patented in the late nineteenth century by an inventor in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, Edna Murphey.[2] The product was briefly withdrawn from the market in the US.[2] The modern formulation of the antiperspirant was patented by Jules Montenier on January 28, 1941.[3] This formulation was first found in "Stopette" deodorant spray, which Time magazine called "the best-selling deodorant of the early 1950s".[4]
Use of deodorant with aluminium compounds has been suspected of being linked to breast cancer, but research has not proven any such link.[5][6]
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