What Is Chafing?
Chafing is a form of skin irritation caused by the friction of skin rubbing against skin or skin rubbing against other material.
Skin repeatedly rubbing against other skin is just part of how we naturally move. It could be the skin of your inner arms rubbing against your torso or the skin of your inner thighs rubbing against each other. But when you move repeatedly and delicate skin rubs against other skin, it can cause heat and friction, which can give way to a nasty and irritating rash.
Chafing is more likely to happen in hot weather. This is because:
- You’re more likely to have skin exposed, wearing sleeveless tops, shorts or skirts, and dresses without tights underneath
- The weather is warmer, which contributes to skin heat and friction
- You’re more likely to be perspiring—as we’ll see, sweat can really exacerbate chafing
But chafing isn’t exclusively a summer problem. It can also occur when delicate skin rubs against a thick seam or if your underwear is too tight. And if you’re prone to perspire more, it can also be irritated by sweat year-round.
Where on the Body Does Chafing Occur?
Chafing can occur almost anywhere on the body where something repeatedly rubbing against the skin causes heat and irritation. Some of the more common areas to experience chafing include:
The Heels of the Feet
Even broken in new shoes or worn your trainers without socks and felt the skin on your heel become red hot and irritated? That’s chafing caused by the material of your shoes repeatedly rubbing against the thin skin on your heels. Indeed, footwear that isn’t broken in can chafe your feet in other places too, which is why new shoes can be such a curse to wear! Very soon, every step feels like a form of medieval torture!
When you get new shoes, it’s advisable to wear them for shorter periods until they take on the shape of your foot. Wearing socks or socklets will also help form a physical barrier between your feet and your shoes, as will trusty band-aids. I’m sure we’ve all experienced heel chafing quickly turning into angry and broken skin. So this is one where a little bit of prevention goes a long way.
Inner Thighs
In winter, our thighs are usually tightly encapsulated in jeans or leggings. If we wear dresses or skirts, we often wear tights or pantyhose with them. But in summer, many of us love to throw on a floaty summer skirt or dress and enjoy the feeling of the sun and air against our skin.
Sounds ideal, right? It conjures days of picnics and beach walks in sweet floral prints. But beneath that pretty image, there’s often a whole lot of irritation besetting our inner thighs caused by repeated rubbing.
No matter what your weight, the thighs often rub against each other when you walk. And when this is bare skin on bare skin in summer, that can cause a whole lot of friction. Add some sweat, and you’re literally adding salt to the mix, and while those tiny crystals of salt may not be visible to the eye, they can cause tiny tears that further the irritation. If you shave ‘down there,’ stubble can also add to the friction.
Basically, it’s a recipe for a whole lot of hot, throbbing pain that will keep you awake later that night. Thankfully, there are products on the market to address inner thigh chafing (which you’ll sometimes hear referred to as ‘chub rub.’)
Beneath Your Boobs
Another area where the skin is super soft and delicate is around the breasts. And if you have an ill-fitting bra (especially an ill-fitting underwire bra), you may find that your bra causes friction and irritation, particularly beneath the breasts. Nipple chafing is also a common complaint in male and female athletes, though a good sports bra will certainly help prevent prolonged rubbing of fabrics against the nipples.
Like all chafing, sweat can exacerbate skin chafing beneath the breasts, and boob sweat is something many of us experience (especially on hot days) that can make chafing worse. So it’s possible that a bra that never gave you one iota of trouble in the winter suddenly starts to chafe in the summer months when your body temperature and rate of perspiration climb.
Again good news: A proper-fitting bra made of sweat-wicking materials will help you. If you’re shopping for a bra, consider a wireless one as it will be less constrictive and can expand and move with your body.
The Inner Arms / Armpits
Same principle here: The inner arms and armpits have really soft, delicate skin but also can rub against the sides of your body or against seams of clothing to cause irritation. The armpits are also known for sweat, so it’s no surprise that this delicate skin can sometimes be susceptible to irritation.
Who Does This Skin Irritation Happen to?
Chafing can happen to anybody. Sometimes it is portrayed as a challenge for those over a certain weight, but really anybody can experience this form of skin irritation. Indeed, if you research chafing, you will see it often afflicts professional or performance athletes, which makes total sense. After all, they’re often repeating the same movements over and over again, which would cause a lot of friction. They often wear minimal clothing, which would leave more skin exposed to rub against. And because they’re working out at the next level, they are sweating too.
But the rest of us mere mortals can experience chafing without that kind of intense workout regime. My body doesn’t tolerate the heat well, and I have very delicate skin. So on a hot day, I can feel the skin on my legs start to irritate simply walking my dog. The more delicate your skin, the easier it will be to irritate it. Case in point: Babies experience chafed skin that can result in diaper rash (again exacerbated by excess moisture).
And, of course, because chafing can happen almost anywhere on the body, it has a lot less to do with size and a lot more to do with how delicate your skin is and what you’re exposing it to. Wear thick, stiff leather shoes on bare feet, and you’ll discover NOBODY is immune to chafing!
What Can You Do to Prevent Chafing?
So, if anybody can experience skin chafing, what can be done to prevent it? Good news: there are more and more products to help address chafing in different parts of the body.
In general, you want to think about 2 things when trying to prevent chafing:
- Minimizing sweat / excess moisture: This can be done by wearing sweat-wicking materials, changing often, or applying topical products like anti-perspirant or various powders
- Creating a physical barrier between the skin to reduce friction: Okay, I know we all want to wear less in hot or humid weather, but a tight layer will help protect your delicate skin and reduce friction. There are more and more products to protect your delicate skin without adding bulky layers - like Thigh Savers or Leakproof Thigh Savers! (Note: You do still want to avoid irritating fabric with thick seams, which may also cause chafing on the skin surface.)
There are also products (like lubes and gels and even good old petroleum jelly) designed to help the skin glide and prevent friction and skin breakdown. These are often sold as athletic products, and while they may be effective, to me, it just sounds like a messy thing to apply (and reapply) petroleum jelly on the affected areas. (Side note: However, if you do experience chafing, petroleum jelly (aka Vaseline) can help treat chafing.)
Thigh Chafing Can Be Prevented by Wearing Thigh Savers
Anti-chafing underwear works by creating a physical barrier between your thighs. Usually, they’re light shorts that are form-fitting, and you can also look for styles (like our Thigh Savers and Leakproof Thigh Savers) that include moisture-wicking to help manage sweat.
The upside is that you can wear light summer clothes like dresses and still protect the delicate skin of your inner thighs from chafing. Simply switch from regular underwear to anti-thigh chafing shorts and wear all your favorite things while avoiding chafed skin! Plus, you’ll never get that feeling of sitting down on a gross subway seat or park bench again!
Stay Fresh and Clean!
Severe chafing can lead to skin tears which cause painful irritation and even skin infection. So staying clean and fresh is a must.
Discomfort from skin chafing can definitely accumulate, and a lot of the side effects (chafing, odor, risk of infection, etc.) become worse with time, so it’s important to stay clean and fresh. Good skin health means showering regularly with a mild soap, changing your underwear daily, and washing wet or sweaty clothes (especially workout clothes) after each wear.
Remember to always treat sensitive skin delicately (you can cause skin chafing by rubbing too aggressively in the shower or with a towel when drying.) Gently pat the skin dry instead. And keep the water temperature reasonably cool, too - searing hot water will make it easier to irritate the skin.
And if you already have chafed skin on your thighs or elsewhere, check out the tips over here on how to reduce some of that heat, pain, and inflammation.
Sweating is a completely normal body function, so as much as possible, let your body do its thing. But know that if it becomes a source of irritation or discomfort, you have options!
We hope you found this post informative — but remember: we’re not doctors and this post is not medical advice! While all posts are fact-checked and well researched, we always recommend you chat with your doctor about any questions or concerns you might have regarding a medical condition. We’re here to support and educate, but never with the aim of disregarding professional medical advice you’ve been given. Phew, now that that’s out of the way, you can go on living unapologetically free.