While deodorants do a good job of masking any unpleasant smells, they don’t actually stop us from sweating. While a strong antiperspirant can reduce how much we sweat, it also doesn’t necessarily prevent it, meaning our clothes can start to appear stained over time.
With warmer weather quickly approaching, this can be particularly troublesome when trying to get the most wear out of our clothes, and it can be especially noticeable on lighter items of clothing. This usually happens as deodorant or antiperspirant builds up, reacting with the salt in our sweat and leaving a residue on our clothes. So, while it’s a sign that it’s working, getting those familiar yellow stains out can be a nuisance.
If you’re struggling to get rid of stains even after throwing them in the wash, cleaning guru Nancy Birtwhistle has advised doing one thing before putting them in your machine to get rid of any residue.
Appearing on This Morning, the former Great British Bake Off winner warned viewers that putting clothes straight into the machine on a hot wash cycle will make stains worse.
Before you think about putting your clothes on for a wash, Birtwhistle recommends giving it a spray of what she calls “basic magic”, which is just washing soda dissolved in water.
Mixing this in a spray bottle, she instructs viewers to spray this on the underarms, collars and cuffs where sweat collects, dissolving the greasy residue before putting it in the washing machine.
If you can still see the stains after doing this, she advises leaving clothes in a “tepid overnight soak in a washing soda solution”.
Add two or three tablespoons of bicarbonate of soda to a sink of hot water so that they dissolve, and let this cool down before adding your clothes to dissolve any stains. But Birtwhistle stresses the importance of using a cold wash, as this is more effective at removing stains.
If you don’t want to use your sink, you can also try this method by combining bicarbonate of soda with cold water until it forms a “milky consistency” and applying this to stains, before leaving it to soak in a plastic bag overnight.
Another easy way to prevent stains is by letting your deodorant or antiperspirant fully dry after applying it. Leaving it to dry before getting dressed avoids any residue getting onto clothing, which can build up over time.
You can also try wearing natural fibres like cotton that are more breathable, and let sweat easily evaporate from your body.
