Jakarta, CNBC Indonesia – Koreans could be one of the luckiest people in the world because they don’t need to wear deodorant for the rest of their lives. Because their bodies naturally do not emit body odor.

In fact, the use of deodorant is not popular in the K-Pop country. Because of this, foreigners usually find it difficult to buy deodorant when they are in Korea.

So, what is the reason why Koreans don’t have body odor? Researchers discovered that Koreans have a rare gene that prevents their bodies from producing underarm odor.

Launching from Medical News Today, a study found that two percent of people in the world have an unusual gene, namely ABCC11. Among the lucky two percent group, the majority are East Asians, including South Koreans and Japanese. Because they have a rare gene, they never experience underarm odor.

These results were found by a study involving 6,495 women enrolled in the Children of the 90s study at the University of Bristol, England. In published research Journal of Investigative Dermatology Of that, 117 participants or only 2 percent were “lucky” because they had a gene that meant they didn’t need to use deodorant.

Despite this, the researchers found that 78 percent of people with genes that do not produce underarm odor still use deodorant every day.

On the contrary, research results found that around 5 percent of people who have underarm odor do not use deodorant. Meanwhile, more than a fifth or 26 out of 117 participants had no underarm odor when not using deodorant.

“Three quarters of those who don’t have underarm odor regularly use deodorant because they follow socio-cultural norms. This contrasts with Northeast Asian people who don’t need to use deodorant and they don’t need it,” said one of the study authors, Prof. Ian Day.

How to find out the presence of the anti-underarm odor gene

The researchers noted that people who have this unusual genetic variant also have the potential to have dry earwax. According to experts, the best indicator to find out whether someone has underarm odor is to check earwax.

Previously, there was a study that showed a link between genetic variants located in the ABCC11 gene and underarm odor.

Underarm odor comes from sweat glands which produce sweat mixed with bacteria. Odor production depends on whether the ABCC11 gene is active.

The report also analyzed deodorant use in relation to ABCC11 genotype and also compared with several factors, such as background, age, home cleanliness, and the much stronger impact of ABCC11 genotype.

“These findings have the potential to use genetics in the selection of personal hygiene products,” said researcher Dr. Santiago Rodriguez.

“A simple gene test can strengthen self-awareness and avoid unnecessary purchases and chemical exposure for those who do not have underarm odor,” he continued.

[Gambas:Video CNBC]

(hsy/hsy)