Muscle aches and cramps are something that most people commonly deal with on the day to day. Whether that be in your back, legs, arms, or even on your neck, muscle aches and spams are bound to happen and something that is a top go-to item to use in this situation is bengay. Bengay is a topical cream that is applied onto the skin to help soothe and ease pains, cramps, and aches that an individual may be experiencing throughout different areas on their body. When it comes to bengay, one of the most well-recognized components of this product is the distinct odor it emits during its application onto the skin of a person. The smell of bengay is a strong scent that can fumigate an entire room just from using a small amount in the environment. The reason behind the smell of bengay is due to the chemical composition of the ingredients used in this pain relief cream. What can be done to eliminate this smell of bengay off of your skin after using this pain cream and will any solution completely neutralize the odor? In this article we are going to learn more about how to get rid of bengay smell on the skin and discuss how effective most soaps are at neutralizing the bengay chemical odors off of the skin.

What is Bengay?

Bengay is a pain relief topical cream that can be applied directly onto the skin where a person is dealing with minor pain that needs to be relieved. This pain relief cream is specifically used due to the impact it has when it interacts with the human skin, as it will cause the skin to feel cool and then warm after it is applied and rubbed into the area of the skin where a person is dealing with aches or pains. The creation of the cooling and heating sensations on the skin will help to distract the feeling of the pains and aches that are deeper in the muscles, joints, and tendons. This product is only for application on the skin, and it is important to following the directions of use on the cream, which state to avoid the use of the product near the eyes, mouth, nose, or genitals. The first development of bengay occurred in 1891 where it was brought to America by the Third French Republic. And today it has turned into one of the most popular pain relief products available for consumers to purchase in most convenient or drug stores without a prescription.

How Does Bengay Work

When you are using bengay it is best to read the instructions thoroughly to ensure the safe application of this pain-relieving cream. It is recommended that a person apply a thin layer of the bengay medication to the affected area, but this is to be done no more than 3 to 4 times a day. As we discussed previously, bengay works by producing both the cooling and heating sensations on the body to relieve the pains, cramps, and aches that have surfaced in that spot. This cooling and heating sensations are created by the chemical reaction that occurs when the different chemicals used in the bengay form together and thus is how bengay effectively works when applied onto the human skin. One downfall of bengay is that it sometimes acts as a quick fix for the time-being, as it will not work to remove the aches, pains, and cramps. Rather bengay works to soothe and alleviate pains for the moment while the cream seeps into the skin.  The cooling sensations elicited by the bengay have been proven to help alleviate irritation and inflammation in the body which is why this topical pain relief solution has been a well-received and popular option for most people who are experiencing acute pains.

What is Bengay Used for

The uses of bengay will be limited to human skin, in any area that is experiencing significant pain on the muscles or joints that may have been caused by strains, sprains, arthritis, bruising, or backaches. Bengay can come in a cream, gel, lotion, oil, ointment, or spray that can all be applied as a thin layer to the affected area and rubbed into the skin gently until the bengay is completely absorbed into the skin. The most common places on the body where people will apply bengay to is on the back, shoulders, neck, arms, and legs – these are the spots on the body where most people experience pains and aches. After you use bengay on your body to alleviate those minor aches and pains, you will be left with the ointment’s residue on your hands which will need to be removed properly. Washing your hands with soap and water immediately after applying bengay will help to remove the residual product from the surface of your hands. However, although washing your hands will help to remove the excess product it will probably do little to rid the bengay odor from your hands – which most people are highly familiar with and know very well!

Bengay Ingredients

The key component to the functions and mechanisms in which bengay work is focused within the ingredients that are used to form this pain relief product. These essential ingredients used in bengay will all work in specific ways to provide Customers with a solution to relieving aches, pains, and other joint issues that you may be plagued with due to physical activity or a bad movement. There are three active ingredients used within bengay – camphor 4%, menthol 10%, methyl salicylate 30%. Additionally, bengay also contains inactive ingredients which are components of a drug product that do not increase or affect the therapeutic action(s) of the active ingredients. The inactive ingredients in bengay can include the following; carbomer, disodium EDTA, glyceryl stearate SE, lanolin, polysorbate 80, potassium hydroxide, stearic acid, triethanolamine, water. Below we are going to discuss more about the active ingredients in bengay – camphor, menthol, and methyl salicylate, and what they do when applied onto the skin in the form of bengay.  

• Camphor: The first of the three active ingredients in bengay, this ingredient was once made by distilling the bark and wood from the camphor tree but today it is chemically manufactured from turpentine oil. When this active ingredient is applied to the skin it will increase the blood flow and will act as a counterirritant, which will create the cool-but warm sensations that will distract the user from the underlying aches and pains.
• Menthol: This ingredient is sourced primarily from peppermint and is a key component in the smell that is produced from bengay and other products similar to bengay like Icy Hot. Menthol will work as another counterirritant that will cause the cool-but-warm sensation on the skin.
• Methyl Salicylate: Another additional counterirritant used in bengay, methyl salicylate is known as a wintergreen oil that has anti-inflammatory properties. This anti-inflammatory will ultimately work to soothe underlying irritation when applied to the skin.

What Does Bengay Smell Like

As we discussed previously, the key ingredients used in bengay include camphor, menthol, and methyl salicylate that will all work together to form the soothing mechanisms of bengay. However, these ingredients together will form a strong odor that will spread onto both the affected area on the body where a person is experiencing pain, onto your hands, and it can even spread onto surfaces in your home that are tainted with this pain ointment. The smell of bengay is often compared to that of strong smell of peppermint, which comes from the menthol ingredient used in bengay. The smell that is produced from bengay is one of the top downfalls of this pain-relieving product, as many people cannot stand the smell especially those who are sensitive to chemical odors. The major battle with bengay that people deal with is getting the strong odor off of their skin, particularly their hands which the bengay will become absorbed into after using them to apply the ointment to your skin.

How to Remove Bengay Odor from Skin

If you have bathed your body in bengay (okay that may be an exaggeration, but you know what I mean!) than you will be stuck dealing with a strong, potent odor of bengay stuck on your skin. This bengay odor will be a challenging odor to remove from the skin of your hands, as the chemical ingredients of bengay will become absorbed into the skin and make it nearly impossible to be removed with the simple use of water and regular hand soap. Thus, many people are turning to a strong solution that is designed to work to remove odors from the skin, this includes some of the strongest odors like gasoline, cooking odors, and even chemical odors from products used like bengay. The OdorKlenz Hand Soap & Deodorizer is the ultimate solution for strong odors that have become absorbed into the skin including hands. The proprietary technology used in the OdorKlenz Hand Soap contains safe earth minerals that are designed to attack the odor causing residues at the source without the use of masking agents or added fragrances in its construction. As you wash your hands with this Castile based soap formulation it will begin to remove the various materials you have come into contact with from the surface of your hands. The odor-eliminating active materials will then breakdown those odors as you rub your hands together. When you rinse your hands with clean water, the odor compounds will go away with it.

Hand Soap & Deodorizer

$12.99

✓ Made of Safe, Natural earth minerals that provide a complete odor elimination

✓ Fast acting, without the use of masking agents or fragrances

✓ Made from castile soap, vegetable glycerin, and metal oxides

✓ Helps clean while it deodorizes