Is 8 Years Old Too Young for Deodorant?

Hi J.,

No , she is not too young for deoderant. Maybe on the early side, but not by much. 4th or 5th grade seems to be the norm. If you've ever been in a 5th grade classroom, you would know what I mean! My only suggestion would be to try the trial size, they're smaller and fit their underarms better. She can also try a lot of different types since they are small and inexpensive. They do make some "teen" deoderants, but the only real difference I've seen is the packaging. My daughter's 11 and has been using deoderant for at least 2 years. It's good practice for later. I would also get an antiperspirant/deoderant. Stop the sweating - stop the odor. Good luck - make-up isn't far behind! L.

No, I started my 6 year old last summer. I use the Teen spirit on her and she's had no problems with it.

I agree with many of the previous posters, get one without aluminum. I love the Tom's of Maine deodorant in Apricot scent. Another thing to keep in mind is routine baths with a mild soap. So many people go crazy with the strong/deodorant soaps and really mess up their skin. Especially for girls, those soaps than be unpleasant. Adidas makes an aluminum free deo. So do Burts Bees and many other companies.

J.,
There are all natural deodrants made by Tom's and others. I buy my daughter's at Target, but health food stores have a bigger variety of "natural" deodrants that don't clog the sweat glands, but keeps the odor under control.
I hope this helps.
W.

Kids are developing quicker than they used to. Most kids I know by the end of 8 are using deoderant. I know several who started at 6. I'd recommend using Arm & Hammer's all natural deoderant stick - dye/perfume free and no aluminum so it won't cause brain damage or trigger alzheimers the way antiperspirants do. Also, it won't stain the way alot of others do. And since it's a stick - no cfc's, ozone, or toxic inhalants like a spray.

Hope that helps!

I have 3 sons and they all had to use deodorant by age 10. We started out with sample/travel size to see if it worked. My sons are now 14,18,21. One of them can't use the gel type because it breaks him out, MISERABLE! The other thing is when bathing make sure that she is using a deodorant bar. Another trick is to use shampoo under the arms when bathing. I know if I need to shave and don't the odor from my armpits can be downright horrible. Good Luck

If she is having odor then it needs to be treated with deodorant, she is not too young. Body odor is a sign that children are entering puberty. http://www.bluesuitmom.com/health/pediatrician/deodorant....

There are some safe deodorants out there, non allergenic, fragrance free ones that would do well for her, like this one http://www.tomsofmaine.com/products/deodorant.aspx
Any mild or hypo-allergenic deodorant would work well.

It all depends on the kid... my 1st and 3rd totally needed it way early. my 2nd is barly noticable at 14. As far as which kind, to be honest I don't THINK there are any specificly for kids, but the "teen" stuff is pretty good. I swear by degree solids though. When I was younger that was the only stuff that worked well for me (I liked to be outdoors and active ALL the time)

G.

a nice fresh anti-perspirant is fine. Many girls start hormone changes as young as 8. It would be much worse to have her peers call her stinky, or worse, as kids can be cruel. I hope you talk to her very soon about body changes and her period, and body cleanliness. It sounds like her body is getting ready, even if her Mommy may not be!! Hard to think of your baby growing up so fast!!! :-) Good luck with puberty!

My now 8 yr old started getting BO last year after school and dance. Every night after her shower she puts deodorant on and in the summer in the morning also. I found a mild one called "Teen Spirit". It works for her.
Good luck.

Do not let an 8 yr old wear deodorant! Deodorant clogs the glands under the arm. Also, deodorant has high levels of aluminum in it, which can hurt the kidneys. I'd advise to go to a healthfood store and get a natural product. 8 years old the child isn't developed enough for harsh chemicals.

With having two girls of my own, I don't think that she is too young to use the same deodorant as us women do. My kids have been using deodorant since they were about her age.
The best deodorant that would be good for her (from experience) is the "Teen Spirit" by Lady Speed Stick. I think. So they are out there for teens. I hope that this helps you and your Sister in Law out.

My daughter is 5 1/2 and has been using deodorant for around a year now because of underarm odor. Our doctor recommended that we use the Dove unscented over all the others because the chemicals or whatever they use in it aren't as harsh. From what I understand the underarm odor is getting more and more common for younger girls.

Not necessarily. My daughter needed it at that age. She is now 10. She actually was in stage 1 at 8 years old. She started her period 27 days after she turned 10. When the body starts going through the changes, I explain to her that hormones smell... they make your body smell. And her feet!!! Whew!!! They are worse than her armpits!!

I just let her pick out whichever scent she wanted to wear... teen spirit has some cool scents.

Girls tend to mature faster than boys and can begin adolescents (puberty) a lot sooner. I'm not saying that your neice is hitting puberty but I work for a pediatric endocrinologist and we see girls come in with precosious puberty at around 7-8 years old. Which means they may not be having a period yet but they are needing to wear deodorant, starting to get pubic hair, and are developing breast buds. Sounds so young but we see it everyday. Now, I'm not saying that's the case with your niece but alot of our patients that age wear deodorant. I'd say - get her some Teen Spirit deodorant and start having her to wear it. I make my 8 year old son wear it because when he goes out and plays hard he comes back in smelling pretty bad, so he needs it.

She should shower or bathe daily, and by all means if she needs deodorant, she should use it. There are a few "normal" brands (easy to find and not expensive) that make uncented formulas (Arrid, Sure and Arm and Hammer), if that is a concern. (I know that because my husband will only use unscented deodorants). It would be a lot worse for her to go around smelling bad than to start using modern products as she needs them. It should become part of her morning routine just like brushing her teeth. I was very embarrassed when I was about her age (maybe a little older) and started getting breast buds, and didn't have a bra yet. No one said anything, but I got one asap and took care of business.

Hello J.,
8 is not too young for deodorant. Teen spirit makes a nice "girly" deodorant and there may be other brands. Girls have hormone development at various stages and ages and that brings active sweat glands and body odor. I have girls 17 and 11 and there hormonal developments are totally different. My older girl had early development and my younger is a late bloomer. God does answer prayers! Be blessed.

Not too young for deodorant, just make sure it does NOT have aluminum in it.

My girls started using deodorant at 8 years old as well. There are a lot of potentially harmfull chemicals in mainstream deodorants. Even Toms of Maine uses propylene glycol (Used in anti freeze, bad stuff) I have my girls use a natural deododorant that works all day and smells great. You can find them at http://www.teendeodorant.com

Deoderants do not have aluminum in them - only antiperspirants. But I get squimmish at the thought of using the national brands that have been recommended by some. These copies have yuk in them that is not building health...and can slowly cause problems over time.

Good advice to go to a natual brand like Tom's or others; use a brand you can trust to be really healthy.

I am a fan of Melaleuca's. My husband thought Mitchem was the only thing that worked on him (a really strong antiperspirant)...and found that he didn't need but a deorderant when he switched to Melaleuca. Although their antipersperirant has natual aluminum in it (unlike the synthetic that the scares are based on)- which have larger molecules and less is absorbed - if you can find just a deoderant that works...that is the safest route yet.

These women are right - our daughters are exposed to too many hormones at a young age...that is the root of all this. Don't get meat with hormones in it...don't microwave in plastic (estrogenic effects leach into food). What Your Doctor May Not Tell You About Menopause is an education on this subject. Or ask a Hispanic new to the USA - their daughters start their periods around 15/16 - best time, by the way...because their diets are not hormone laden.

J. B.
www.joyboudreau.com

I agree with everyone- if she is smelly, she needs it. It's hard not to go by our own age milestones, but kids aren't the same now. If you are concerned about the chemicals, there are lots of natural products out there. As far as I know, aluminum is the bad ingredient to watch out for. Any whole foods type store, and even regular stores, have natural products. Tom's of Maine is one I can think of off the top of my head.

Please buy deodorants withOUT aluminum in them. Tom's is one brand [also found in stores]. Adidas is another, in stores, as well.

www.tomsofmaine.com/products/deodorant.aspx

No...8 yrs old is not too young. My son is 8 & has been using it for about a year. He is very active & I am sure that is what helped trigger it. A "little bit" goes a long way; no need to slap it on her as if she is a teenager or young adult. :) All kids are different. Some tend to "get a little smelly under the arms" sooner than others. Your sister-in-law can purchase her the "teenage" deodorant.

Hey there Jamie. I'm not really saying anything new but wanted to agree that a more natural deodorant might do well. Your neice is probably developing fast because of the garbage hormones and who knows what else in our food. I will take your time up to share a story on this. Last Spring I woke up and felt an uncomfortable feeling just inside my vagina so I checked it out(sorry if this is offensive to anyone but you all will wanna know why I'm telling all my business- trust me). I felt this big,golf-ball size lump from just inside my vaginal wall..I was freaked out scared and went to the hospital ER(it is very scarey to wake up with a new part).I eventually was told by my gyno doctor that it was a Bartholins cyst and he scheduled surgery because draining it didn't work, it was persisitent. Any way, I was waiting in line at the grocery store one day shortly before the surgerry and there was a woman with all this healthy looking food in her cart and being the talky/nosey person I am, I asked her if her kids(who were hanging on the cart) liked to eat the stuff... she told me they indeed did(took some time though) and then she told me she had swithed to more natural,healthy foods and that her abdominal tumor had disappeared. So I was riding the fence about going healthy and this sort of pushed me. I was afraid of the surgery too. So I cancelled it. I switched to distilled water ASAP, then to whole grains,hormone-free milk, fatty fish etc(way less red meat and regular milk)..I now have been on the MUFA diet: rich in "mono unsaturated fatty acids" like olive oil,nuts,etc(about 2 months now).....so I was hoping to reap healthy benefits from all this change...but I really DID NOT think my big ol'nasty cyst would DISAPPEAR!!!(just last week-so it's been nearly a year) Also, I'm on a low-income food budget, and I manage to feed our family of five very healthfully. Sorry about being sloppy,in a hurry.

I don't have time to read all the other posts. Glad you got so many! :) But, it is never to early... well you know. As a former second grade and first grade teacher..SOME KIDS NEED IT! I'd rather my kid not be smelly. Sounds like a great time to start some of the big girl talks.

Eight years seems rather young, but kids seem to develop and mature so fast these days. I think the first thing I'd do would be to call or schedule a visit with the girl's pediatrician, just to rule out any other physical cause. If she's developing normally and there's nothing else wrong, then why not let her use deoderant, especially when she's playing sports. I wouldn't give her adult deoderant, though. I don't think they make deoderants for "children", but they do for adolescents. Adolescents often have stronger body odor than adults, actually, so there are several brands that address teenagers. "Teen Spirit" I think is a good one (I use it myself in the spring/summer, when I garden), and it comes in several different scents. I believe it is by Mennen. But there are others, too, and it might be fun for her to experiment with scents and brands. Good luck!

Dear J.,
I agree with the others on the no aluminum products and to help you find the ratings on the "safe" deodorants, go to www.ewg.org/skindeep. There you can search out the safest deodorant for your girl. Teen Spirit has a rating of "5" out of a possible "10" and it's number was 567 out of 862 so it's not one of the safest ones rated. The "0" to "2" ratings are shown with green colored indicators, "3" to "6" are yellow which indicates caution to be used and "7" to "10" are in red. If you click on the product name, it will show you what is hazardous about it and what has been shown to happen as a result of using that specific ingredient. It's really an eye opener and an education about how your FDA is NOT PROTECTING YOU.

The other thing that bothers me about girls smelling at 8 years old is that they are often eating burgers, poultry, or milk that is laiden with hormones. You might suggest to her parents in a nice way the dangers of eating out fast foods or buying foods that do not assure no hormone or antibiotic use. Soft drinks are very acidic too and can cause the "stink" as the body tries to rid itself of the toxins and chemicals she is eating in candies, cookies, etc... I hope this helps. ;-)

Not in my opinion. My son is about to turn 9 and I just recently started trying to get him to wear it too....one day he leaned over me and about knocked me over! I figure it's just a fact of life, so he may as well get used to it now...

nope when they start smelling it's time
G.

That is about the age where they do start sweating and all.

I gave my daughter the lady speed stick. They have baby blue and pink and looks girly. Works really well and unlike the aerosols, they are safer and can be less conspicuous in the gym dressing room. Since then, Dove has also come out with a stick and that's a fresh scent too.

if she stinks she needs deodorant! it doesnt matter how old no one wants to be the smelly kid lol. they do have some stuff for teenagers you can tell by looking at them when you go in to the store. let her pick out a scent she likes.