[ggman]

Okay-- here's my 2 cents. Kids are stinky. I have a caucasian bio daughter who is two and a half. If she doesn't get a bath everyday she smells like a foot. (She sweats in her sleep and sucks her thumb, so even her room stinks in the morning.) When she has a bath everyday she doesn't smell. I asked a friend of mine about it and she said that one of her kids was the same way--- some kids are just stinky. Sure, it's definitely worth asking your ped about, but lots of kids (of all races) are developing earlier. Another one of my friends had to let her 7 yo daughter start shaving over the summer because she had so much underarm hair.

Also, you may want to check that she's wiping properly when she uses the bathroom. When things are not in balance down there it can get stinky.

And an option of what to use-- my mother in law doesn't use deodorant b/c she's scared of the breast cancer link, but has been using apple cidar vinegar under her arms for years. She read about it in some natural book-- a swipe on a cottonball in each pit. I have never, ever known her to smell bad... just a suggestion.

Good luck!

[NDN]

Originally Posted by whoownsthis

salt crystal rock (in a push up plastic case so you don't have to hold it, you just wet it and roll it under your arm--no scent, supposedly dries quickly).

Does anyone have any experience with these?

I use the crystals. I have used them in several forms, liquid (which is just basically the salts in a water suspension) and in the rock form (with and without the plastic). They all seem to work well. Now, for people that sweat alot, they may require reapplication. I can use it in the morning and be fine all day, even if working outside but have been told by some that they have to reapply a few times through the day. Even with the reapplication factor, though, I think it is worth it to get away from using all those chemicals. I prefer the crystal to all the other natural choices that I have tried.

[whoownsthis]

Funny you should mention wiping. It's true that she needs work in that arena (she has hidden soiled diapers in the bottom of her laundry basket--grr!), but the BO smell clearly comes from her underarms because I have lifted her arm to see if that's what it was--whew! Ugh.

Underarm hair at 7 sounds like it could lead to premature bone development, which will end up with stunted growth (kids grow too fast then suddenly stop when the other kids start growing. This leaves them at under 5' typically.) There's a foundation that researches this: the Magic Foundation (wwwDOTmagicfoundationDOTorg).

[AeroBeachBaby18]

I've noticed that my little sister age 7 has light underarm hair thats the same tone to her skin like its not like alot of hair just light little ones is this normal? Also me personally I use Dove deoderant and a prescription Aluminum Chlorid solution for my my underarms because I'm a heavy sweater and have tried everything even natural products and I have yet to find something that works so any ideas would be greatly appreciated.

[mom3times]

Hello

I have two daughters not biologically related. We've had both since they were infants so their diets are virtually the same. The oldest who is Asian didn't begin her period till age 13 but the youngest who is Pacific Islander began her's at 11. The younger is small build, not overweight at all so its not related to size, weight etc.
The younger girl also has much stronger body order than her older sister and needed deodorant at an earlier age.
I guess what I'm trying to say is I think its a unique thing to each child depending on their genetics
I think I'd buy deodorant not AP at such a young age. There are also deodorants, AP's made for teenagers.

[Spydoor]

I might still take them to the doctors though. If they smell like sulphur-ish, or like almonds, or like apples, take them right away as that is a medical problem. A guy that I had to work with (in an enclosed space no less) had horrible BO ever since he was a kid. He took multiple showers a day, etc. Went to the doc and found out that it was an endocrine problem (?) that could be fixed with a mild medication. All those years of suffering, even through high school, and that's all he needed to fix it.


On the other hand, most of my friend's kids have been using deodorant since they were 7 or 8.