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Itchy groin after swimming

ocean-200x148Q. Dear Gear Guy. My friends and I do a lot of swimming in saltwater in the summer, and a common problem we have is the infamous itchy groin. Is there a solution?
— Itchy Ian, Baltimore, Md.

A. Hey Ian, I love the ocean myself, so I know all about that infamous itchy groin. As I see it, there are a couple things going on that are making you and your buddies itchy.

First off, when you swim around and play in the waves your thighs are rubbing against each other and the material of your swim trunks causing irritation. Add in little bits of sand and the tiny salt crystals that collect on your trunks and you’ve got something like sandpaper rubbing your skin raw.

To make matters worse you’re probably hanging around the beach all day in soggy swim trunks that never quite have a chance to dry. So that’s where all the irritation and itchiness probably comes from.

Once the itchiness sets in, there are a few things you can do to soothe your skin. First, get dry. Put on a fresh pair of underwear and a dry pair of shorts. Next, get a handful of baby powder and cover your whole crotch/groin area. This will help keep things dry down there. If your inner thighs are so raw that it’s uncomfortable to walk, rub some petroleum jelly or even diaper rash cream on the raw spots. That stuff helps reduce the skin-on-skin friction.

As for preventing the itchiness and irritation in the first place, after your day at the beach make sure you rinse out your trunks really well (inside and out) with fresh water, then hang them to dry. This will help remove all those little salt crystals that build up in the fabric. Do that stuff and you’ll probably be free of itchiness and irritation all summer long!


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17 Comments on Itchy groin after swimming

  1. Desitin Diaper Rash Cream (Thick white salve)

  2. Hurts extreme and I need to know what to put on it

  3. CoolKid101 // June 29, 2014 at 11:30 am // Reply

    My family is all boys (Other than my mom haha), and we all have suffered with the same problem. We have all had to walk back to the beach house with our legs spread VERY far apart:)

  4. Girl Scout // June 20, 2014 at 5:44 pm // Reply

    Take a shower.

  5. LOLmister // May 30, 2014 at 8:34 am // Reply

    Try cutting out any webbing in your trunks to stop the sand get stuck in it

  6. Try Gold Bond

  7. campchamp37 // June 21, 2012 at 2:00 pm // Reply

    i have had that problome before

  8. campchamp37 // June 21, 2012 at 1:58 pm // Reply

    good idea and I agree with eagle 312 and anoyous
    says

  9. Gold bond works for me 😀

  10. Sandpaper Swimming Suit, Troop 2017 // January 31, 2011 at 11:20 am // Reply

    Sometimes, it makes a difference if your swimsuit has a satin liner in the swimsuit instead of either wearing a thong or a jock strap inside of short swim suits that resemble regular shorts or cut-offs instead of swimming suit “speedo” brief swim suits. Make sure that the swim suit liner is clean. Jock Straps can become quite ragged and rough after dry rot sets in. Jock Straps that do not fit well or have alot of clorine rot in them can cause major chafing when swimming and are not soft like the satin liners in swimming suit briefs. Sometimes using clotrimazole cream will help soothe chafing caused by swimming suit fungus.

  11. I hate it when my groin gets like that it itches like crazy thanks gear guy

  12. yeah, me too

  13. i have had that problem befote

  14. Baby powder is 100% corn starch, but regular corn starch usually costs less because baby powder is more finely ground. Feel free to use either with equal confidence.

  15. I agree with Eagle 312.

  16. Instead of baby powder, try corn starch instead…It s an old remedy dating back to the 1700.

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