Antiperspirants very harmful to human beings

Most people put antiperspirants on their bodies before leaving their house. However, these products can cause some side-effects to human beings.-Diane Uwimana

Dr Elie Mupera: “When you see someone who uses an antiperspirant, his/her skin can burn or deteriorate”.©Iwacu

These products are used to control sweat and odour in our underarms. Some people use perfumed deodorants to cover up underarm smells, but if you sweat a lot, you probably need an antiperspirant to slow down the production of underarm sweat. “I can’t leave my house without using my antiperspirant. How on earth I will pass by if I sweat like before? ” says I.D., who daily uses an antiperspirant. He goes on saying that he usually puts it on his body due to his bad smell. “When I sweat, I deliver a bad underarm smell. So, I use an antiperspirant as a solution”, adds I.D. Dr Elie Mupera, a dermatologist, notes that antiperspirants are used for two purposes: “there are used for decreasing sweat and bad odour.” It is worth mentioning that our bodies are constantly producing sweat, but very often they can produce a lot more. Additional sweat is produced on our bodies when we are exposed to heat, physical exercise, stress or nervousness. Furthermore, Dr Mupera indicates that those antiperspirants can cause many diseases due to their harmful substances. “When you see someone who uses an antiperspirant, his/her skin can burn or deteriorate. Even if there are people who use it on the clothes while they are sensitive to it, their bodies can also be affected”, says Dr Mupera.

“Antiperspirants should be used with caution”

There is a group of people who use these kinds of antiperspirants on their erogenous zone to increase their libido. “When someone use an antiperspirant for his/her body at the lesion level, depending on different sensibility degree of people, the skin can burn and the hair can disappear,” points out the dermatologist. He notes that some cases of cancers have been already registered and written in literature. “Personally, I haven’t yet discovered any kind of cancer in Burundi”. According to him, it is very important to use them with caution. “Users may avoid using products from black market and use those from drugstores. Then, if there is a problem, users may contact a dermatologist to help them have a better choice,” suggests the dermatologist. Moreover, he calls upon the Ministry in Charge of Public Health and Fighting Against HIV/AIDS to control any kind of products on the market in order to fight against side-effects which may occur or harm human beings. The Ministry can also encourage and motivate the users to utilise the right way. “Users of antiperspirants may avoid mixing different products. May someone mix two or eight antiperspirants, this can hide the cause of his/her disease because they are used in disorder,” he concludes.