Happy Monday ladies,
My son turned 8 a couple of months ago and over the weekend I noticed that he had a little "musk" to him at the end of the day. At first I thought it was his feet, but on saturday before his shower I asked him to lift up his arms so I call take a wiff of his pits and sure as can be, he had some pretty stinky BO. Yesterday before his nightly shower the smell was there again but not as bad.
My husband and all my friends with older kids said they didn't start to "musk" until closer to 11 or 12. Is it possible that my son already needs to wear deordorant? Are there certain kinds that are better for younger kids? How old were your kiddos when you started to notice the "musk?"
Thanks in advance.
My daughter had stinky pits at 9, and started her period that same year.
Tom's of Maine or Arm & Hammer are safe for kids.
If he's stinky, he needs deodorant. Address the issue, not the age norm.
Age has nothing to do with it. Everyone develops at their own pace. If he was a she and had boobs developing, would you doubt it was time for a bra because of age*
Some of my kids' friends definitely needed deodorant by that age, especially if they were active kids. I buy Tom's of Maine for my younger kids - my 10 year old son needs it, my 8 year old likes to feel grown up like his older brothers. My husband sometimes will also get those obnoxious Axe washes or deodorants. I tend to throw them out after a couple of weeks because I'm not OK with my kids slathering toxins on their skin so they get "lost" after a short while.
8 is a common age in boys for a testosterone surge and with it comes BO.
A gym teacher requesting kids start using deodorant is usually a first clue a parent gets.
You might also want to remind him he needs to use soap when he showers (soap up the pits (and other sweaty places) and rinse) - some kids splash a little water around and call it done when it hasn't been enough to get really clean.
My 5yr old girl has terrible BO. I was shocked, didn't expect it till pre-teen time. But most people say it is normal. I found some natural deodorants at Bed Bath & Beyond, and on Amazon, etc
I actually just bought some Toms of Maine for my 7 year old daughter. Never expected to be doing that at this age! The only thing I made sure was that it was deodorant only. She doesn't have a sweating problem to justify anti-perspirent. She just has an odor problem.
Does he drink a lot of milk?
Try switching to organic if he does.
Milk and mass-produced meat have awful lot of hormones in them.
And find a mild natural deodorant in the meantime.
DS is also 8 (he'd want me to say 8 3/4... he'll be 9 in January). Around last spring when it started warming back up and they started playing outside every day, he started getting smelly under his arms!
We got him tea tree soap to use in the shower every night so he smells nice and cuts down on all over bacteria, and he uses an orange scented Tom's deodorant (not antiperspirant) under his arms when he gets out.
It's early but not abnormal (per his pediatrician).
HTH
T.
ugh I think I was actually about seven when that happened. Everyone is different.
I second the vote for Tom's of Maine deodorant -- not antiperspirant, but deodorant. The Tom's brand does not last forever like some of the chemical-heavy brands, but does the job for the school day and he can put on more before sports.
Perfectly normal for kids to start having body odor at pretty much any age. I'm not clear -- are you somehow worried that something's "off" if he's got underarm odor at eight? Nothing's wrong because there's no firm formula for when a kid "should" start to smell. Your husband's own experience of starting a few years older does not mean your son' body changes will follow a time line like dad's. Be aware of that as puberty comes along -- your son may hit it earlier than his dad did, so I wouldn't use dad's or other kids' experiences as yardsticks.
Yes, if you can smell him, it is time for deodorant. My 8 year old girl wears it.
I had a friend and her child was using just a drop of soap. The child never bothered washing w/ soap under her arms. So as silly as that sounds, tell him to wash and rinse twice under there.
Tom's of Maine in Orange is great.
Organic milk/chicken and grass fed beef are good food choices w/out all the chemicals.
My daughter just turned 9 and sometimes after playing hard she smells so strong that I can't take her anywhere before she showers. I did buy her 'teen' deodorant last year. It's got a cute girlie smell that she really liked. I'm sure they have milder fragranced deodorant for boys as well. I don't think you or your son want him to walk around smelling like the Old Spice man but smelling like BO is worse!
My son is 8 too, and he's had some pretty smelly days since 6. I pretty much have been putting deodorant on since the end of first grade, not as much in the summer. The other day, our morning routine was rushed and he forgot to put it on and that night, oh my goodness. Like his dad and brother, he is proud of his odor.
