Sodium Bicarbonate: What It Is and Why It's Used

Origin

Sodium bicarbonate (baking soda) is one of the oldest and most widely used chemical compounds known. Its use as a leavening agent in cooking dates to the 18th century, and its antiseptic and deodorising properties were known from the 19th century. Its appearance in natural and organic deodorant formulations is largely a phenomenon of the 2010s, driven by consumer movement away from aluminium-containing antiperspirants.

Why It's Used

In deodorant formulations, sodium bicarbonate functions by neutralising the acidic byproducts of bacterial metabolism that produce body odour — it does not prevent sweating (unlike antiperspirant aluminium salts) but addresses the odour component. Its alkaline pH (around 8.3 in solution) can cause skin irritation in some users, particularly in formulations with high concentrations.

Elsewhere

Sodium bicarbonate is used extensively in food as a leavening agent, in pharmaceuticals as an antacid, in fire extinguishers, in pool and water pH management, and in industrial processes including flue gas desulphurisation.

What the Framework Sees

Question Zero, completing the pair.

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