EACH SUMMER, I search for shorts that meet two specific criteria: They must be cute and can’t cause thigh chafing. Despite cat-walking in fitting rooms and only buying pairs with longer inseams that look like they won’t betray me, the ultimate test is wearing them in real life. Inevitably, most of the shorts I purchase creep up my inner thighs like they aspire to be underwear, leaving my inner legs exposed, unprotected, and a hazard to themselves. And, yet again, I’m left wondering how to stop chafing.
I recently saw several reels of Instagrammers touting one trick to prevent inner thigh chafing for good. According to my sources (women in my Instagram feed), to prevent chafing, all you have to do is swipe deodorant on your inner thighs as you would your armpits and voila: Your legs are protected from the demonic red patches that haunt warm weather-enjoyers around the world.
Like many things on the internet, this information made me wonder whether it was too good to be true. So I tested it for myself.
How to Stop Chafing
Luckily, I had four natural deodorants collecting dust on my bathroom vanity. I was waiting for a good time to transition from using antiperspirant to natural deodorant on my armpits. There may, in fact, never be a good time. But testing them on my thighs, I could do right away.
Do you have to use “natural” deodorant? No. Antiperspirant works for some people, too. “Natural [deodorant] implies chemical-free,” says dermatologist Malika Ladha, MD, FRCPC. But that doesn’t mean they’re safe for everyone. “I have seen patients develop reactions to ‘natural’ deodorants.” (You’ll want to check the ingredient list and research. When in doubt, test your deodorant on a small patch of skin before applying it to larger areas of your body.)
You might be thinking: Weren’t full-body deodorants invented for chafing? And you’d be right. Ladha recommends these and petroleum jelly to use on thighs to prevent discomfort. On the other hand, I was looking for a way to make my existing products multi-functional instead of buying new ones. If you know, you know.
The Results
When I say that using natural deodorant on my inner thighs to stop chafing has changed my life, I mean it. It feels like I’ve ended a long, painful, expensive chapter in my life—buying shorts, being optimistic I wouldn’t chafe, being disappointed I do chafe, masking my pain to save face at social outings, giving away said shorts to a donation centre, looking for new shorts, rinse and repeat. The answer to my problem (and my HUGE beef with the shorts industry) was in my bathroom.
I also learned that my thighs have unique requirements for a deodorant:
- The scent is less important: Though I sometimes catch a whiff of the smell of my deodorant when I wear it on my armpits, I can’t smell the deodorant I wear on my thighs. Though I’ll always choose a fun aroma over no aroma, using the product to prevent thigh chafing is not as important. If you aim to mask the smell of your sweat, though, this may be a more important factor!
- The formula’s texture matters: This is important for armpits, but maybe even more so for thighs due to the near-constant friction. I needed the deodorant to be thick enough to last on a long walk but not get cakey or gloopy and be something I needed to wipe away or worry about. One of the four deodorants I tested didn’t work because it had a thin texture and didn’t stay on very long. It was fine for walking around at home, but it wore off quickly when I started sweating for a longer walk outside.
- I still need it not to stain my clothes: No one is delighted when they put on a black shirt and see the streaky remnants of the deodorant they just put on their armpits. When I tested deodorant on my thighs, I diligently checked whether I had those stains on my shorts. It wasn’t an issue with any natural deodorants I tried, even on black bike shorts.
In conclusion, using natural deodorant on my inner thighs has been a game-changer for preventing chafing. It feels liberating to no longer dread the discomfort and finally enjoy wearing shorts without worry. This simple, cost-effective solution has genuinely transformed my summer wardrobe experience.
