Clinical Strength Antiperspirant

Clinical strength means the same chemistry at a higher load, sold with an application routine printed on the box. Aluminum zirconium tetrachlorohydrex GLY at 20 percent is the usual formula, the ceiling United States rules allow for a zirconium active, against roughly 13 to 19 percent in a standard antiperspirant.

Concentration is only half the gain, and the smaller half. Regulations let a product call itself an antiperspirant at a 20 percent reduction in sweat and claim extra effectiveness at 30 percent. Clinical formulas aim at the upper end. Timing is what gets them there. Applied at bedtime on completely dry skin, the salt sits in ducts that are barely flowing and forms plugs without being flushed away, and because those plugs lodge in the outermost skin they survive a morning shower and last several days. Applied to damp skin at 7 in the morning, the identical product performs like a weak one.

Soaked shirts on ordinary days are the reason to buy this rather than a standard formula, along with interviews, weddings, stage work and uniforms with no room for a jacket. It is not a treatment for hyperhidrosis, the medical name for sweating far beyond what temperature requires, which affects around 5 percent of people. When two to four weeks of correct nightly use has not moved the problem, a doctor has prescription aluminum chloride solution, a topical anticholinergic cloth, iontophoresis and botulinum injections available.

Stinging and itching are the usual price, and they land hardest on skin shaved the same day. Fragrance free and alcohol free versions cut that a lot. Yellowing on white cotton climbs with salt load, since the stain is a reaction between aluminum, sweat protein and body oil. Cost per stick is higher, though many people settle into applying three or four nights a week once the plugs are established, which narrows the gap.

Ignore the words on the front and read the Drug Facts panel for the active and its percentage. Wait 10 minutes after a towel dry before applying, because a towel leaves skin that feels dry and is still evaporating. Keep a full day between shaving and application. United States labels also carry a line telling anyone with kidney disease to ask a doctor first, since damaged kidneys clear aluminum poorly, and that warning is worth reading rather than skipping.