Earwax and Armpits

Those who needlessly use deodorant probably have dry, rice bran earwax, while those with honey type wet earwax should probably stock up.

People lacking body odor have inherited a double homozygous AA genotype of the single-nucleotide polymorphism rs17822931 allele on ABCC11, or a rarer 27 base pair deletion. They also have “dry” or “rice bran” earwax rather than the more prevalent “wet” or “honey” type. There are marked differences in rs17822931 allele frequencies across ethnic groups: Compared with European and African populations, East Asians have a higher prevalence of the A allele and, therefore, of the dry earwax type.

Investigators predicted that adults with the rs17822931 AA genotype of ABCC11 (“odorless”) would use deodorants less frequently than others. They studied more than 6000 mothers and more than 5000 fathers in the Avon Longitudinal Study of Patients and Child…

Reviewing Author

Mark V. Dahl, MD

Disclosures

Consultant / Advisory board Ulthera, Inc.; AuBio LifeSciences, LLC; Paris Therapeutics

Equity Elorac, Inc.; Makucell, Inc.; Paris Therapeutics

Editorial boards UpToDate

Leadership positions in professional societiesNational Rosacea Society (Chairman, Medical Board)