Majority of Men Self-Conscious About This

A new study has found a majority of American men are self-conscious about how they smell.

The poll of 2,000 US millennial men found that 72% of men are anxious about how their body smells on any typical day.

Body odour was found to be a heavy weight on men’s minds: 52% worry they have body odour and aren’t aware of it. Nearly as many (51%) have concerns they don’t know how to fix their body odour. Still, 59% said they’d want someone to tell them if they have bad body odour.

The body parts men are most concerned about when it comes to odour include their armpits, neck, head and hair, arms and hands.

Meanwhile, the body parts men felt were “important” to keep smelling good included their hands, chest and even their groin. Seven in 10 said their armpits were especially important to keep smelling good.

Men shared the situations where they felt they were most likely to have bad body odour, including during their first sexual experience with a new partner, during a job interview or after a workout.

Similarly, they believe the most important occasions to smell good are during the first sexual experiences with a new partner, during job interviews and first dates.

The results also found that if they notice body odour on themselves, men will put on more deodorant, change their clothes or apply powder.

Nearly eight in 10 (78%) will use products to control their body odour at least twice per day and have an average of three different products in their daily routine to ensure they stay smelling good.

Men also confirmed they feel the most confident when friends and family members compliment how they smell.

A third have even seen their relationships end over body odour. Thirty-five percent have been broken up with because of how they smelled — interestingly, 38% said they’ve been the ones to initiate a breakup because their partner smelled bad.