Antiperspirant & Deodorant: Is Yours Safe and Effective
ANTIPERSPIRANT & DEODORANT: IS YOURS SAFE AND EFFECTIVE
Article by Heather Jadus
Photo Credit: Dasha & Mari
Magazine: Issue #20
What do you use? What do you use to line your pits from stink and sweat? I would really like to know. Being a person who is trying her best to use clean, safe and effective products... antiperspirant and/or deodorant seems to be one of the hardest to muddle through.
Here's the Good, the Bad and the Ugly; Review to Follow:
Antiperspirant: The GOOD: it keeps you from sweating, The BAD: it keeps you from sweating, The UGLY: it keeps you from sweating...
Explanation: Sweating is one of the best if not the best ways of releasing toxins from your body. When you use an antiperspirant it blocks this detoxification process.
Deodorant: The GOOD: it makes you smell nice, The BAD: it contains fragrance, The UGLY: Fragrance is an ingredient on products that can contain so many harmful chemicals that it's scary. Those chemicals are considered "trade secret" so the company does not need to disclose what they are. MOST of those chemicals have NEVER been tested for safety.
I will not even go into the correlation between breast/lymph node cancer that resides near the armpit and the fact that women who shave are at even greater risk due to open "sores" where the product is applied. Now that I've said it let's hope you don't forget it and move on to find a solution!
Here's what I did. I bought and tried several "safe" underarm deodorants to see how EFFECTIVE they really are....
Below is the chart for the safety ratings system I use from the Environmental Working Group
What this means is that a product rated 0 is completely safe, all ingredients have been tested and all ingredients are safe for your body. A product with a rating of 10 means go throw it in the garbage and don't ever put it on your skin again!
Ok so here's the lowdown.....
A. Tom's Long Lasting Apricot - This deodorant works. It's not offensive, it's not thick or uncomfortable to wear. The EWG rating for this deodorant is 3. It's not a horrible rating and it's not a horrible product but I'm kind of miffed about the fact that they claim themselves to be "all natural" and they're not. They truly are not.
B. Druide Citrus Zest - This product makes me feel more sweaty than when I started. It goes on wet and feels wet. The scent was ok but it's not for me. It's rated a 2. I will never buy this again!
C. Druide - Pur & Pure Unscented - This product is also rated a 2. This product actually freaked me out a little bit. It felt wet like it's scented counterpart above but as I used it, it acquired my underarm scent somehow.
So now I have BO scented deodorant. And it's staying that way!!! I have not used it for weeks... still smells like BO. Eeeeewwwww! I will never buy this again!
D. Junglemint All-Natural Deodorant - This stuff rates a 0! And I kinda like it. Once in a while it dries out a bit but if I wet it slightly it goes on nice. I personally prefer it because it goes on dry instead of wet. I will definitely be keeping this on hand. But don't get it on your clothes! NEVER on your clothes!
E. Thai Crystal Deodorant Stone - This thing is so freaking amazing! It's a solid piece of "potassium silicate" which is basically mineral salts. There is no scent. The only downfall is that you have to wet it to use it. I use it only at home. I can't throw it in my gym bag. It's rated 1 on the EWG scale. It's a good product that really surprised me. It's like rubbing a crystal on you pits. I will definitely buy this again! I'm really anxious to see how long the stick lasts.
F. Tom's Original Care Unscented - This product is rated a 2 rather than the apricot version above which scores at a 3. I keep this product on hand and use it. I'm still not happy with the all-natural claim from the company that truly isn't. I will save it for backup only.
G. Soap Walla Deodorant Cream - This hand applied paste smells awful. I used it once. I don' know what's in it. I don't care what it rates. That's all. Sorry.
H. Truly's Cream Deodorant - This is also a hand applied deodorant. Although the coconut scent was not offensive it was really strong and I went around smelling like an Mounds bar for an entire week. Not a fan. It's rated a 1 and totally safe. I may keep it for my next beach vacation. No one there will notice I smell like a pina colada!
So that's it! I know there are others out there. What do you use? I know some people make their own. This is just not my style.
Please comment below with any thoughts, suggestions.
Be Informed. Be Safe. Be Healthy.
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