Summers are just around the corner and a long walk along a shoreline, a beautiful evening stroll, or a run in the park is on everyone’s mind. But all you can think about is the itch, rash and burn. Many of us have to go through the unpleasant circumstance of inner thigh chafing, especially in the summers.

What exactly is thigh chafing?

Caused by friction and sweat, thigh chafing occurs with repetitive rubbing of the skin. As the condition deteriorates, the damaged skin turns red, becomes very sensitive and sore to the touch, and will render you inactive as the pain increases. This uninvited red guest shows up mostly during the summertime.

Why Summers?

Chafing mostly shows up in seasons like summer and spring, and less so in the colder months. As summer is a hot, humid and sweaty season, we are more prone to chafing during this time. Salts & minerals present in body sweat, get rubbed on the surface of our skin every time thighs rub against each other. The damage is caused as sweat, salt and minerals continuously cut into the skin and the top layer of our epidermis gets stripped away. As a result, you experience raw and puffed up inner thigh skin in the form of a rash.

Why not winters?

Our bodies generate sweat to cool us down to regulate temperature and avoid over-heating. As the environment becomes cold in the winter, our bodies are naturally cooled and we don’t sweat as much. So, lesser sweat leads to negligible salts & minerals on the surface of the skin. The thighs easily glide past each other making the winters almost rash free. However, people with excessively dry skin and improper moisturization may experience chafing in winters too.

How to prevent inner thigh chafing?

The best way to repair our skin would ideally be that we stop walking and let our skin rest and repair! Unfortunately, that is not a possibility in today’s busy life.  We do not have that kind of time to stop and rest whenever we please, we have to meet the demands our daily jobs put on us and therefore need to find a solution. The market today is full of  anti-chafing products, most of them have been unsuccessful in preventing or curing this condition.

What doesn’t work?

Creams & Lotions - Over the counter creams, ointments and gels can sometimes make the situation so much worse. Some lotions create too much moisture and let the sweat lock-in, creating more problems. Besides this, they rub off very quickly, so if you walk for 5-10 minutes after you apply the creams, your going to continue to get chafe.

Talcum powder - Undoubtedly talcum powders and baby powders dry up the moisture and relieve you from sweat, but they hardly stay on the skin! Powders fall from the skin faster than any other product on the market, and therefore if you put them between your thighs, within 5 minutes all of the powder will have fallen off. Moreover, they are potentially dangerous for humans. Did you know they have been associated with cancer? Yes! studies have revealed that there are agents in talcum powder that could be a cause for ovarian cancer.

What works?

Dealing with the friction, which is the root cause of the chafe, is a good place to start! This is where good quality thigh guards can come to your rescue. Creating a physical barrier between your thighs is the best form of protection for people who are prone to chafing. Make them your second skin this summer and create a protective & effective barrier against chafe.

Happy Summers!