Korean Job Discussion Forums

[chungbukdo]

personally, i didnt. i figured if these people can eat all these fragrant foods and not smell too bad, so can i. going a few years strong now.

[scorpiocandy]

Has anyone told you that you don't need deodorant? I don't think we have the same make up as Asian people. I've met (and smelled) many foreigners who are under the impression the no deodorant rules apply to them.

[cmr]

I tried a few times in the winter thinking that since I don't sweat much during the cold months it might be fine, but it wasn't.

I have met and worked with some foreigners who don't use any... well, to be honest, I don't "know" whether they use some or not, but they did smell as if they didn't.

I remember once a friend of mine having lunch with a female co-worker and their hagwon boss. During that lunch, their boss told the girl that he had received some complaints about some "body odors".

So, if you think you're fine, just to make sure you could always ask others around you. Maybe you are or maybe they're just being more tactful than my friend's boss and not saying anything in front of everyone.

[soomin]

No way~ Even as a vegan I always wore deodorant and always will... Some people say they can go without... but...

I wish I could buy deodorant easily here~ It's one of my needs from the States. I stock up like a crazy person whenever I go to visit, lol.

[NYC_Gal 2.0]

I always wear deoderant. I don't wear anti-perpirant, though, unless it's a special occasion and I'm wearing a blouse that would show a little bit of sweat (colored silk or cotton, for example.)

I order mine from iherb.com because it costs just about the same as it does at home, plus shipping, but I only order it when I need to get something else.

[K1020]

When I told a good Korean friend I was coming over here to teach the first thing she said was "make sure you take enough deodorant" she said her high school English teacher was nicknamed whatever the Korean term for B.O. is.
I would be mortified if I found out my kids or co-workers thought about me like that.

[schwa]

Asians are known to exude less body odor.

I eat fairly low on the food chain (fishatarian) & I have a retarded sense of smell, but I know I can still smell fairly ripe in any season without precaution.

Big fan of crystal deodorant. Natural, cheap (a $5 investment lasts years), effectively stops odor. Google it.

A few with hypersensitive skin have issues with it, but definitely worth a trial.

[lemak]

[Kimchifart]

[soomin]

[metalhead]

Of course food plays a big role. Eat Indian or a hefty Italian meal with lots of spices and garlic and that comes out through your pits big time. Same with drinks such as strong rum. Middle Eastern food, too. Without deodorant I'd be doomed, especially how the a/c gets turned on here by date and amount of sunlight and not actual temperature or humidity, it's a sweatfest when I am not at home.

Has anyone ever run out of deo and tried one of those home remedies, like vinegar under the pits that supposedly neutralizes the stench? Try it one day and see how long it takes before your students want to drag you outside and lynch you.

[Fat_Elvis]

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Apocrine_sweat_gland

"East Asians have fewer apocrine sweat glands compared to people of European or African descent, and it may be for this reason that they are less prone to body odor."

Unless you're of East Asian descent you probably want to keep using deodorant.

[chungbukdo]

[some waygug-in]

Yes, but back then everyone smelt the same. Deodorant caught on for a reason. ^_*


It's a bit different if you are living in a foreign country and are expected to set an example for your students.

[shaftula]

Is this really a debate? It's just as much about smelling good as it is about not smelling at all. Beyond that, I know I couldn't learn my ABC's if I were around a teacher that could clear a room faster than tear gas.