Sniff, sniff, sniff. Ugh, what is that smell? Wait, you think, am I wearing deodorant? Uh-oh. Looks like you’re being attacked by a case of body odor.

Perspiration alone is not what is causing the problem, because it is mostly odorless, according to the deodorant brand Secret’s Web site (www.secret.com)

“In areas like underarms, where perspiration can’t readily evaporate, it causes the feeling of wetness,” Secret said. “Bacteria, which thrive in warm and moist surroundings, break down the perspiration and create an odor.”

So, even if you’re not sweating, you might be smelling.

And, as freshman Shannon Zirnhelt said, to go without deodorant would make her feel “yucky and sweaty.”

To defeat body odor, many different remedies, usually thought of as deodorants, have been used as a way to mask or prevent the smell over the centuries, according to the How Products Are Made Web site (www.madehow.com).

According to an article in the “The Daily Star: Egypt” the Egyptians developed natural remedies to serve as a type of deodorant.

These remedies included carob, incense and porridge, the article said.

Much, much later, deodorants still had not taken on their typical bar form found in many beauty aisles.

“Early antiperspirants were pastes that were applied to the underarm area,” according to How Products Are Made. One product like this was called Mum.

Mum was the first type of deodorant created, according to the About: Inventors website (http://inventors.about.com).

“The original formulation for Mum deodorant was invented in 1888, by an unknown inventor from Philadelphia,” according to the site.

The unknown inventor distributed this through his nurse, the Web site said.

Then, Helen Barnett Diserens became part of the “Mum production team,” said the site. Diserens developed a way to create deodorant that functioned similar to the recently invented ballpoint pen.

“This new type of deodorant applicator was tested in the USA in 1952, and marketed under the name of Ban Roll-On,” About: Inventors said.

But, deodorants only hide your underarm smell, the HowStuffWorks Web site (health.howstuffworks.com) said.

“If you sweat a lot, you probably need an antiperspirant, to slow down the production of underarm sweat,” the website said.

Antiperspirants contain an aluminum based ingredient that enters cells lining the top layer of the skin causing them to close and blocking any sweat that might try to leave, according to the website.

Whereas, “deodorants reduce body odor by killing the odor-causing bacteria,” according to How Products are Made.

Body odor guarding products have come a long way since their first invention.

One common brand of deodorant, Ban, sports a variety of selections, from invisible solid to roll on to clear gel, according to their Web site (www.feelbanfresh.com). Not to mention all the scents you can chose from.

Whichever deodorant brand you’re wearing, there’s plenty of reason to keep on applying.

“It makes you smell good and not smell bad, I guess,” Zirnhelt said. “And you just feel more confident.”