美国国家公共电台 NPR--Natural brands have taken over the deodorant aisle — but do they work?

Natural brands have taken over the deodorant¹ aisle² — but do they work?

Transcript³

Everything you wanted to know about body odor and deodorants⁴ but were afraid to ask.

MICHEL MARTIN, HOST:

We have more for your summer survival. We're talking deodorant now. Natural brands are in vogue⁵, but it can be hard to find one that works. NPR's Claire Murashima tells us about her search for the one.

CLAIRE MURASHIMA, BYLINE⁶: For the past five years, I've been looking for a natural deodorant that will actually, well, deodorize. Under my sink, there's a basket full of sticks, sprays and pastes collected during my search for the one. Before I moved to D.C. last summer, my mom voiced this fear on my behalf.

MOTHER OF CLAIRE MURASHIMA: That there would be body odor that other people could smell that you would not be aware of, and that that would affect people's opinions of you.

MURASHIMA: Because, of course, I wear natural deodorants, and to this day I have yet to find one that works as well as antiperspirant. So what's the difference? Many antiperspirants contain aluminum⁷, which blocks your pores from sweating. There are claims that the exposure can cause dementia and even breast cancer, though there's no solid evidence to support that. Those claims aren't what launched my search for an alternative.

I just like using natural products. I've tried the one that comes in a little glass jar that you smear⁸ onto your armpits with your fingers and the translucent⁹ rock that you run under the faucet¹⁰ and rub on your armpits. Deodorants are designed to reduce odors, not moisture. They use ingredients like baking soda¹¹ or alcohol, which makes it hard for that odor-causing bacteria to grow. Some have oils or powders to absorb sweat. But here's the problem.

GLORIA LU: Natural deodorants aren't true antiperspirants.

MURASHIMA: Gloria Lu co-founded the skincare line Chemist Confessions¹². She and her partner, Victoria Fu, wrote the book "Skincare Decoded¹³." Fu says the armpit is a great place to grow bacteria.

VICTORIA FU: It's dark. Especially when you sweat, it creates a really nice, moist environment. And because of that, that's how you get the odor.

MURASHIMA: But some people are lucky - they don't smell bad. Why is this? It comes down to the genes¹⁵ that control your body odor. Most people with East Asian ancestry¹⁶ - they lack this gene¹⁴. But if you have European ancestry, you may have more pronounced body odor. For me, I've got a foot in each gene pool. My mom is Dutch, and my dad's Japanese.

DON: As a child, I don't recall my parents or any of their friends - that anyone had an odor.

MURASHIMA: But unlike my dad Don and his family friends, I do have an odor. That's natural, so maybe I'll just embrace it. My co-workers, however, may be less accepting.

Claire Murashima, NPR News.

1 deodorant   

adj.除臭的；n.除臭剂

参考例句：

• She applies deodorant to her armpits after she showers.沐浴后，她在腋下涂上除臭剂。
• Spray deodorant and keep the silk garments dry before dressing.在穿衣之前，洒涂防臭剂并保持干燥。

2 aisle   

n.（教堂、教室、戏院等里的）过道，通道

参考例句：

• The aisle was crammed with people.过道上挤满了人。
• The girl ushered me along the aisle to my seat.引座小姐带领我沿着通道到我的座位上去。

3 transcript   

n.抄本，誊本，副本，肄业证书

参考例句：

• A transcript of the tapes was presented as evidence in court.一份录音带的文字本作为证据被呈交法庭。
• They wouldn't let me have a transcript of the interview.他们拒绝给我一份采访的文字整理稿。

4 deodorants   

n.（尤指去除体臭的）除臭剂( deodorant的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The U.S. is already a mature market for its razors and deodorants. 美国已经是使它的刀片和除臭剂得到充分发展的市场了。 来自辞典例句
• Deodorants are available as aerosols or roll-ons. 除臭剂有喷雾装或滚抹装。 来自辞典例句

5 Vogue   

n.时髦，时尚；adj.流行的

参考例句：

• Flowery carpets became the vogue.花卉地毯变成了时髦货。
• Short hair came back into vogue about ten years ago.大约十年前短发又开始流行起来了。

6 byline   

n.署名；v.署名

参考例句：

• His byline was absent as well.他的署名也不见了。
• We wish to thank the author of this article which carries no byline.我们要感谢这篇文章的那位没有署名的作者。

7 aluminum   

n.(aluminium)铝

参考例句：

• The aluminum sheets cannot be too much thicker than 0.04 inches.铝板厚度不能超过0.04英寸。
• During the launch phase,it would ride in a protective aluminum shell.在发射阶段，它盛在一只保护的铝壳里。

8 smear   

v.涂抹；诽谤，玷污；n.污点；诽谤，污蔑

参考例句：

• He has been spreading false stories in an attempt to smear us.他一直在散布谎言企图诽谤我们。
• There's a smear on your shirt.你衬衫上有个污点。

9 translucent   

adj.半透明的；透明的

参考例句：

• The building is roofed entirely with translucent corrugated plastic.这座建筑完全用半透明瓦楞塑料封顶。
• A small difference between them will render the composite translucent.微小的差别,也会使复合材料变成半透明。

10 faucet   

n.水龙头

参考例句：

• The faucet has developed a drip.那个水龙头已经开始滴水了。
• She turned off the faucet and dried her hands.她关掉水龙头，把手擦干。

11 soda   

n.苏打水；汽水

参考例句：

• She doesn't enjoy drinking chocolate soda.她不喜欢喝巧克力汽水。
• I will freshen your drink with more soda and ice cubes.我给你的饮料重加一些苏打水和冰块。

12 confessions   

n.承认( confession的名词复数 )；自首；声明；（向神父的）忏悔

参考例句：

• It is strictly forbidden to obtain confessions and to give them credence. 严禁逼供信。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》
• Neither trickery nor coercion is used to secure confessions. 既不诱供也不逼供。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》

13 decoded   

v.译（码），解（码）( decode的过去式和过去分词 )；分析及译解电子信号

参考例句：

• The control unit decoded the 18 bits. 控制器对这18位字进行了译码。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Scientists have decoded the dog genome. 科学家已经译解了狗的基因组。 来自辞典例句

14 gene   

n.遗传因子，基因

参考例句：

• A single gene may have many effects.单一基因可能具有很多种效应。
• The targeting of gene therapy has been paid close attention.其中基因治疗的靶向性是值得密切关注的问题之一。

15 genes   

n.基因( gene的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• You have good genes from your parents, so you should live a long time. 你从父母那儿获得优良的基因，所以能够活得很长。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Differences will help to reveal the functions of the genes. 它们间的差异将会帮助我们揭开基因多种功能。 来自英汉非文学 - 生命科学 - 生物技术的世纪

16 ancestry   

n.祖先，家世

参考例句：

• Their ancestry settled the land in 1856.他们的祖辈1856年在这块土地上定居下来。
• He is an American of French ancestry.他是法国血统的美国人。