Abstract

Although a natural function of the skin, perspiration and the odor it produces is considered offensive in many cultures, and consequently products addressing this problem are in high demand. Antiperspirants and most deodorants are normally formulated with aluminum salts. However concerns over environmental safety, health and wellbeing are driving innovation in new directions.
A wider appreciation of the effects of antiperspirants and deodorants on the skins natural microbiome is taking centre stage, and the desire for more natural microbiome friendly products is leading to new development, both in formulations and performance testing methods. In order to investigate the efficacy of antiperspirants at the early stages of development, a screening test based on the gravimetric sweat determination, by applying cotton pads to harvest the sweat, is preferably used. However, this standard test does not work with all aluminum-free antiperspirants, especially those containing film forming actives where the contact with cotton pads may lead to a measurement bias. In the present work we describe a new screening method using Capacitive Contact Imaging in which the sweat reducing effect of a new generation of non-plug forming actives can be evaluated without application of pads to sample the sweat. In evaluating the method, a differentiation between the effect of different substances was observed. In summary, Capacitive Contact Imaging with appropriate image analysis is a reproducible and innovative approach for the efficacy of non-aluminum containing, as well as aluminum containing antiperspirants, especially for those for which gravimetric methods fail to produce accurate results.