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C
OTTON IS NOT ONLY AMERICA’S top cash crop (stimulating $120 billion in annual
U.S. retail revenue), it’s also the most popular fabric in the world. With its comfort, wearability,
durability and versatility, cotton is always a great choice for promotional apparel. But did you
know that cotton also outperforms its synthetic counterparts in both resisting odor-causing bac-
teria and coming out cleaner in the wash?
The Stink Studies
A 2014 study by Chris Callewaert and a team of researchers from the
University of Ghent in Belgium revealed that bacteria didn’t grow as much
on cotton as it did on polyester. The study, published by the American
Society for Microbiology, involved collecting t-shirts from 26 people
after they completed an hour-long spin session. Researchers incu-
bated the shirts for a day, and then extracted and identified the
microbes. A trained odor panel found that micrococcus, the
bacteria that causes unpleasant body odor, was more
prevalent on the armpits of polyester shirts than it was
on cotton t-shirts.
Another study in 2013 revealed that when
washed, cotton emerged cleaner and fresher smelling
than polyester. University of Alberta Professor
Rachel McQueen and a team of researchers had 18
students and staff hit the gym 20 times in either
cotton or polyester t-shirts and then wash the
shirts. After 10 weeks, trained sniffers cut out
samples from the shirts’ armpits and concluded
that cotton fabric retained less odor compared
to polyester.
The 2014 study notes that because syn-
thetic fibers gather moisture in the free
space between the fibers but do not absorb
it, they are less susceptible to bacterial
breakdown. More bacteria means more
odor. Cotton is a natural fiber with high
absorption and breathability, which helps
with bacterial breakdown and therefore
results in less odor. Assuming body odor
is generally something people want to
avoid, and since sweating doesn’t just
happen when you work out, cotton
apparel makes good sense—and scents.
JULIE RICHIE IS ASSOCIATE EDITOR
FOR
PPB
.
12 •
PPB
• SEPTEMBER 2015
INNOVATE
STUDIES SHOW COTTON PASSES THE SMELL TEST
BY JULIE RICHIE
GO AHEAD AND SWEAT
EYE ON APPAREL