Stinky cities
There's funk, like George Clinton, and there's funk, like an overcrowded subway car. According to George Preti, Ph.D., of the Monell Chemical Senses Center, only one is caused by a complex cocktail of sweat, skin and bacteria. Under the right conditions — hot, muggy weather, dry skin, stress and smoke — this aromatic stew can thrive and create body odor, Preti says. Assessing climate history and smoking data, we ranked the smelliest regions in the U.S. See if your city made the list.
No. 7: Yuma, Ariz.
Serious sweating in the summer, plus lots of dead, dry skin (thanks to desert conditions), makes Yuma a haven for the bacteria on the skin that causes body odor.
No. 6: San Antonio, Texas
Forget the Alamo. Remember the deo — deodorant, that is. The second sweatiest city on Old Spice's list is blazing-hot in the summer months, and its citizens are in the top ranks of smokers.
No. 5: New Orleans, La.
The Big Easy's fragrant, eau de Post-Party Frat Basement scent doesn't help matters. It's also a very sweaty city, with high temperatures and humidity year-round. And it's a smoker's paradise — the state tax on cigarettes is low, and the public smoking ban doesn't extend to bars. About 20 percent of adults in this city smoke.
No. 4: Chicago, Ill.
Stress sweat — the kind released from apocrine sweat glands around your pits and privates — is the smelliest kind. As the number one most stressed out city in the U.S., according to a Forbes Magazine survey, with a high percentage of smokers (about 1 in 5 Chicagoans light up), the Windy City might need a little fresh air
No. 3: Phoenix, Ariz.
It's the sweatiest city in America, according to the Old Spice Top 20 All-Time Sweatiest Cities — with a painful 105 degree average temp in the summer. The dry, desert climate also means lots of parched, dead skin — an epidermal buffet for B.O.-causing bacteria.
No. 2: Houston, Texas
This swampy metropolis has one of the hottest summer temperature averages and chart-topping, year-round humidity — ideal conditions for a Texas-size stink.
No. 1: Las Vegas, Nev.
Sin City? Try Stink City. A scorching, dry summer heat makes it one of the sweatiest cities in the U.S., according to the Old Spice Top 20 All-Time Sweatiest Cities. Pack-a-day puffing residents (nearly one-quarter of the people smoke) also make for a smelly population.
Source: MSNBC
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