Cologne

Fragrance is the least medical thing on this site, and it is here because it is part of how people feel about themselves, which is not nothing.

How to buy it

Fragrance smells different on different skin, and it changes over several hours as the lighter notes evaporate. Test it on your wrist and live with it for a day before committing. Never buy from a strip of card - it tells you almost nothing about how it will behave on you.

The concentration determines both cost and staying power: eau de cologne is lightest, then eau de toilette, then eau de parfum. In Indian heat a lighter concentration reapplied is often more pleasant than a heavy one that turns cloying by noon.

Looking after it

Heat and light destroy fragrance. A bathroom shelf is the worst place in the house for it; a cool dark drawer is the best.

The health footnote

Fragrance is among the most common causes of contact dermatitis. If a scent leaves your skin red or itchy, apply it to clothing instead. And spare a thought for enclosed spaces - a strong fragrance in a lift or a crowded office genuinely triggers migraines and asthma in some people, which is a reasonable argument for restraint rather than for abstinence.