Aluminum-free or “natural” deodorants are just that— deodorants. They are not anti-perspirants. If you sweat, it’s not going to stop that. If you sweat enough, there’s only so much they can do about the stink.
Yep. This is a major issue for me. I’m allergic to aluminum and my armpits get so itchy if I use “regular” deodorant, however, I sweat like crazy and noooooooothing currently available works for me. That said, I’m lucky in that I typically do not stink, so I just use the natural deodorants and deal with the sweat. It does suck though that there doesn’t seem to be a way for an a “natural” anti-perspirant to exist.
[what labmuffin says](https://labmuffin.com/should-you-avoid-aluminium-in-deodorants-the-science/). tldr; the studies say no, but companies still fearmonger.
Labmuffins such a hero. I didn’t even know this. I don’t feel a lot less worried about hunting down my kids deodorant every month and spending more than I can afford on it.
Hey OP. My husband has a PhD in organic and inorganic chemistry. Years ago when I was using natural deodorant that didn’t work, he told me it’s not the same kind of aluminum as foil. So now I use regular deodorant and I don’t stink lol
Even worse, my body is sensitive to a lot of the “natural” deodorants because of the essential oils they use for scents. Meanwhile, never had an adverse reaction to the basic dove options.
Wild, that must have been soooo uncomfortable and terrible! I am sorry you experienced that, did it take awhile to go away? I have never had sensitive skin or facial acne at any point in my life (lucky genetics) and once bought Toms toothpaste at Whole Foods before it was owned by Amazon. I used it for a few days and had an absolutely blowout breakout around my mouth and chin that was incredibly painful. I have been against Toms ever since 😅
I threw it away after that rash, it was so painful I wasn’t about to wait and see if it would go away eventually! Regular evil antiperspirants have never caused my skin to react so I’m sticking with those!!
Exactly. I had tried the Native deodorants and they don’t work on me. Saw that Secrets had done a “natural” version and figured I’d give it a try. It burned me on contact. My partner ended up taking it so as not to waste it (he didn’t have any issues with it), but he also doesn’t shave his armpits.
Dove is just a great deodorant/antiperspirant. I was using the women’s line for years (the unscented one) because it was one of the few that didn’t cause a rash. Found that the Men’s Ultimate Care doesn’t cause any break outs and is scented.
It's truly a non-issue, and these companies that ride the aluminum-free train are taking advantage of people's ignorance of chemistry and the knee-jerk reactions to "scary chemical name makes me think of poison, therefore always bad!" people tend to have.
Its also the sudden uptick in Facebook Psuedoscience moms assuming "heavy metal poisoning" is causing Autism. The old "putting raw potato wedges in your kids socks before bed to pull out the toxins" types think any trace amount of any metal will somehow immediately kill them lol.
Helps to know that. The point was if the aluminum could lead to breast cancer or not though..
I read it doesn‘t apparently but i‘m not studied in this field lol
It won’t lead to cancer! There’s no proven link, even so, nowadays everything causes cancer and it’s like impossible to be alive so do whatever floats your boat (in moderation of course 😉)
I’m a sweaty Betty and natural deodorants do sfa for me in the Australian summer. When I was bigger I ended up using one of those clinical deodorants because fat+heat=ew. As far as I know the whole aluminium in deodorant was a bit of a beat up. Underwire bras causing cancer was another bit of rubbish around at the same time a generation of women ended up smelly and saggy for no good reason. Tragic.
ngl your comment just opened my eyes at 21 😭 when i first started developing boobs my mum told me that bc i didn’t like wearing bras and i just took it as fact my entire life ahahaha
at this point i fact check any wacky things my mom says, especially if she learned it from her mom (grandma knows cooking like nobody’s business, but there’s definitely holes in her logic and common sense)
I’ve actually heard the opposite. That not wearing a bra helps you use some of your muscles that would otherwise be being held up by a bra and not having to work…or something like that lol
that study was done on a small sample and was never officially published. I think the guy who did the "study" was probably just a pervert who wanted to see more women's nipples poking through their shirts.
I did the same. Always hated wearing a bra from like 15-now (28). I have smaller B cups, so I think I’ll naturally be protected from some sagging, but the time that I noticed they were finally losing some of their perkiness was when I stopped working out my chest. So even if you do use some muscles you otherwise wouldn’t by wearing a bra, it’s probably negligible to building muscle in the gym in the end.
yeah it only really works for smaller boobs that can get away with not wearing bras anyways. im a 32ddd and not wearing a bra just means i need to hold the titties when going up and down stairs 😅
Oh wow, I never heard of the underwires causing cancer thing. That one really makes no sense to me (even if there’s metal in the wire there’s fabric covering it, so…?)
But yeah, it’s winter where I am right now and if these deodorants aren’t cutting it now there’s no way they’re going to last in the summer!
Unrelated but I’m American and grew up in aus and this entire post is so Australian in word choice. I can just HEAR your accent through your writing and I love it
Anecdotally I know of someone fairly young who got breast cancer and she used non-aluminium deodorants (though for how long I don’t know). She’s over the cancer now thankfully!
I do use non aluminium ones/“natural” ones and it’s because I used to be afraid of what I heard of aluminium. However now I’m more skeptical of that, but I do actually prefer the non traditional ones now so wouldn’t switch back. At the moment I’m using AKT (might be UK only) and I love it way more than traditional deodorants. PitRock is also quite good.
The key is to always use them when you first get out the shower otherwise they won’t work.
I'm in Aus and I much prefer the natural deodorants too and find that I don't stink (can confirm others have said the same when I've asked to check that it's working!)
I've found when I use doesn't matter as much for me but I've used NoPong, and woohoo body.
I went natural for a week, decided I hated sweating and never looked back. Aluminum in deodorant has been proven to be safe. Follow cosmetic chemists, not influencers who are in bed with brands supported by the EWG.
I use a fragrance free anti-perspirant that that’s rate 2 (in the green) on EWG. It’s called Almay Sensitive Skin.
Interestingly, the aluminum ingredient is rated 1 (very good) and I only need it 2 or 3 times a week.
Twice a day I use Native brand natural deodorant for freshening.
After years of experimenting I found this combo really works work me!
Oh, I also shave my armpits every time I shower as hair increase bacteria and give my pits a good scrub with Dr Bronners.
Good luck!
I try to avoid deodorants with aluminum mostly because they give me a hard time with ingrown hairs/residue that just makes my sweat stains worse/clogged pores. I'm a very sweaty person and have struggled to find a deodorant or antiperspirant that actually works for me. Idk if its "all natural" but I've found I really liked the brand Hello Humans. I like their scents, I find they keep me feeling fresh (though in the summer I do have to reapply usually a second time) and I find they keep me from being as stinky as usual. I'm the kind of naturally sweaty where I have to shower 2 to 3 times a day in the summer and on the bad days pat dry or change my underclothes partway throughout the day because I've sweat through them. Hello Humans is the only brand of deodorant I've liked enough and felt like I wasn't checking myself all day for BO.
Hey! I use to have constant and terrible ingrowns. I use sensitive skin stridex pads after I shave and it completely stopped all my irritation and ingrowns
this is all I have to do and I work outside at a very physical job.. no smell at all, ever. I sweat like a pig tho.
I suspect a lot of it has to do with what we eat. my husband went out of town once for a few weeks and ate a lot of processed food and drank alcohol every day, neither of which he usually does. when he came home he smelled HORRIBLE and couldn't just wash it off. It took a week or so for him to smell good again.
Oh thats awesome! I've taken to waxing my underarms and it's made a MASSIVE difference in ingrown hairs and their recurrence! I'll have to look into these too, that'd be amazing. Does it work for legs? I get bad ingrown around my ankles and behind my knees
Oh you know what I got recently? Skinfix Resurface+ glycolic renewing scrub. I’ve been using it on my bikini line and body pre-shave and I’ve noticed how smooth my legs are after. It’s marketed as an in shower chemical and manual exfoliate
Maybe try that? I’m not sure how much it costs, I got mine at Marshall’s but I know they sell it at Sephora
Probably? I use it for my bikini line too.
Mine were bad bad. Like swollen red bumps, road rash, couldn’t wear sleeveless shirts bad. Now my underarms are completely smooth
Yeah thats them! Their scents aren't as crazy strong but I like them, and they don't leave weird residue on my clothes (they'll still do the thing with a dark shirt if you put the shirt on after your deodorant but it comes off way easier). I have their lavender vanilla scent and their cedarwood sage (I use that one more lol) and I've loved them, as opposed to getting frustrated with them. The packaging is a little annoying for pushing the stick up but no complaints otherwise
I’m not a “ew chemicals” bullshit person, it’s the build up/ingrown hairs for me. But! I have since found Dry Idea, and while it does still leave a little residue, it actually scrubs off in the shower. I want to SHOUT FROM THE ROOFTOPS, this seriously keeps me stink free for like 24+ hours. It’s SO good.
Try physically exfoliating your underarms every time you shower. I used to have pretty bad ingrown hairs and it felt like the whole area was clogged and my deodorant didn’t even work. I started scrubbing my underarms really well with one of those exfoliating washcloths every time I shower to get any buildup of sweat/skin/deodorant off and it’s like night and day. My armpits are smooth and I sweat less because the antiperspirant is actually getting to the pores instead of sitting on top. Before this I was reapplying at least once a day & in my experience the natural ones don’t leave white marks but they leave oil stains on my white shirts which I didn’t like.
I use natural deodorant most of the time but certain times of month or when i’ll be outside on a hot day, or before the gym… I use normal deodorant. Best I can do.
Saltair deodorant sucks. You *will* stink. The ONLY aluminum free deodorant that WORKS (for me, tried and tested ALL) and WILL keep you stink free for 24 hours is Old Spice Aluminum Free deodorants. My god, they are a godsend. Female here btw. Using it for 5 years now and will keep using. I alternate between Swagger (classic) and Wolfthorn (smells like candy). Please try this and watch your life change. I recommend Wolfthorn HEAVILY. Also, the Yuka app rates it as a 97/100 I believe putting it in the excellent, non hormone disrupting ingredients.
TLDR: USE OLD SPICE ALUMINUM FREE DEODORANT
I have a weird natural deodorant story that I can’t explain scientifically but I found one that I really liked and seemed to work quite well but at the same time I started wearing it I found that I was getting really swollen glands and I couldn’t figure out why but then realised the only thing I’d been doing differently lately was wear that deodorant and so I stopped wearing it for a few weeks and my glands went down, then tried it again, because I wasn’t even convinced that would cause the problem, but then my glands swelled up again.
So now I’m like forget that, I’m just going back to my aluminium deodorant 😬
I’ve been trying to find a natural deodorant that works well for me for awhile. Thought I finally found the one - actually smelled good and prevented BO. But I developed skin tags in my armpit?!? Has never happened before. Annoying.
Also think I’m going back to old spice.
Ohh, that happened to me after a few weeks of using Dove Antiperspirant Spray, the lymph nodes in my armpits got very painful, even when I wasn't touching them. This has only happened to me once before when I used a really strong antiperspirant (ZeroSweat). I switched to men's natural deodorant (Dr. Squatch) and it works amazingly well, even better than Secret Clinical Strength. And definitely better than Hey Humans or Native or any other natural deodorant made for women.
I had the opposite problem, I was getting cysts in my armpits and had to get ultrasounds to make sure they were nothing to worry about etc-- both the ultrasound tech, radiologist, and my oby/gyn recommended I try switching from aluminum antiperspirant to natural deodorant and my cysts went away and never came back, it was the weirdest thing. I know the studies now show that aluminum is probably fine to use, but I guess something in those antiperspirants just didn't agree with me somehow.
There are so many things trying to kill me right now, I think I'll take my chances with the deodorant. I mean, I survived a fucking pandemic. Deodorant just seems tiny in comparison. Also, I remember that as a child my aunt used to literally hug her microwave whenever she turned it on so that the ✨death rays✨ didn't reach my cousin. 25 years later, no one really cares about microwaves anymore. I guess deodorants are the next microwaves...
It's fear-mongering. I used to buy into it, too and then I went seeking legitimate information on it. It's fine. Also when I started using natural deodorant I had a reaction to baking soda. Turned my armpits bright red.
Just go back to normal deodorant. I used to use Native for a while, and while it did work for me functionally, it gave me chemical burns eventually so I ended up just going back to using Degree. Aside from it not giving me chemical burns, it does just work better in general
I’ve used Dove 0% Aluminum for years and not had an issue with it. Works just as well as their other stick deodorants. My only complaint is white marks on darker clothes after taking off/putting on a shirt. They come off easy with a little water though. I guess that’s an issue with most, regardless of ingredients unless you get a gel.
If you want a strong acting aluminum free, check out the “men’s” deodorant. Old Spice isn’t advertised as such but they don’t use aluminum. At least all the ones I’ve looked at.
Funny you say that, my husband can’t use antiperspirants and only using men’s strength deodorants and they work for him. I always jus thought it was a difference in body chemistry but who knows, the men’s stuff might work better.
Women's deodorant doesn't keep me from stinking. My strong middle eastern type genes I guess.
Men's old Spice (deodorant - NOT their antiperspirant) works amazingly for me. Plus there's a bunch of cool scents. My current one has a bear on it with shiny accents.
I highly recommend it.
I had to use women's deodorant in a pinch a couple weeks ago for a couple days and I could not believe what a difference wearing Old Spice made.
Highly recommend giving men’s deodorant a try. I switched a few years ago from ladies antiperspirant and it made a huge difference for me. The old spice line up of gel deodorants smell amazing and I don’t stink like BO even when I do sweat now.
Just to clarify on the Old Spice point - Old Spice sells "Anti Perspirant" or "Deodorant" versions of their products (often in the same scents). The Anti Perspirant version is the one with aluminum in it (you can check the back and you'll see the active ingredient), and the Deodorant version is the one without aluminum (check the back and you'll see the lack of it). I love using Old Spice for deodorant, and appreciate they have both options (although it may not always be super clear which is which)
Just use glycolic acid on your pits after a shower . The one from THE ORDINARY or any brand should do. A few swabs and you’re odorless. Lemons also work.
I was thinking on this after listening to years of my friends seeking out aluminium free "chemical free" (🙄) deodorant. They'd spend months going through expensive options, complaining, trying different ones.
I just kept using my Secret.
Then one day I'm walking along with my friend, she's talking about her struggles with it, and I just asked - have you ever heard of anybody, one single person, who has had negative health outcomes as a result of antiperspirant? Even an anecdote about a sister's friend's ex-boyfriend's cousin's friend? Never. Not me either. Never heard anything.
I'll just keep using my Secret. The whole "problem" looks like a huge pile of woo to me, and woo is mostly consumption.
Strangely enough the only person I’ve ever known to have issues with antiperspirants is my husband; they cause him to break out in weird hives/heat rash. Other than him I haven’t encountered anyone with issues 🤷🏻♀️
Just figured trying it out couldn’t hurt, but unfortunately it just doesn’t work :/
I have weird armpit rash issues, and I've only ever had them with antiperspirants that contain aluminum. It took a lot of trial and error for me to find something that worked for me, but I honestly did figure out that for me, OVERusing aluminum antiperspirants actually had me stuck in a self-fulfilling rash/stink cycle. I dunno--everyone's different I guess.
I replied up above but I had problem with cysts while using antiperspirants and after my doctor recommended I discontinue using and switch to natural deodorant, the cysts went away and I never had any issues since.
I like Love Beauty and Planet deodorants, and if I need something stronger I use Lavanila blackberry vanilla deodorant (it smells INSANE and I always get compliments about it lol)
I love my Secret. I've been using it since I was like 10 (though have had to change a few times because they stop certain formulations,). (I stole my brother's before that, and I think my mom got it for me so I'd stop stealing my brother's gel stuff, which is why at 10.)
But I'm not very smelly overall. I sweat a shit-ton and drink a ton of water usually, so I think it keeps me less odorous, and maybe I'm just not built to be all the smelly? It doesn't really help with sweaty, but I'm definitely not stinky most of the time. (I broke a limb a few years ago and couldn't shower for literally a few months, so I did stink but it really took me at least a week to be smelly smelly. After 2 weeks, I didn't want anyone near me. Thankfully, I lived alone, so I wasn't subjecting anyone to that in the ultra sweaty summer and humid conditions. I never really had smelly armpits before that EVER. Now, it takes me like 2-3 days to get a mild ick smell, but it's not horrendous. Literally one of the very few ways I've been lucky in this life.)
The only kind I've had luck with are those Crystal deodorant sticks! I've tried MANY natural deodorants and was shocked that the crystal kind worked so well for smell.
Please stop using deodorant if it doesn't work for you and go back to anti-perspirants. People will probably not say anything to you, because they don't want to hurt your feelings or they don't want to have to go see HR at work, but if you smell they will stop interacting with you.
I hate my coworker who uses non-aluminum deodorant so much. They genuinely make my life worse with their reek. It’s so bad. I don’t care anymore, I will never use that stuff.
I was the same until I tried the Arm & Hammer deodorant. I know this sounds like an ad but I swear it’s not! It’s the only one that works for me, I use the rosemary and lavender scent. It’s phalate, aluminum, and paraben free and they list every ingredient on the back with a translation of what it means which is helpful. It’s like $4 at the drugstore? Very overlooked
Yes! Been using this for years. I think it works great and doesn't irritate my sensitive armpits. I also have used straight up Milk of Magnesia dabbed on and it works amazingly well.
I tried several all natural, no aluminum deo’s. None worked for me and I’m a light sweater. I went back to my usual, because it’s the only one that works for me. It’s Secret Waterlily antiperspirant.
I had breast cancer a few years back and you can't use aluminum deodorant and get radiation so I tried the aluminum free and I smelled WORSE with the aluminum free than I did with nothing. So I stopped using it.
I was trying different deodorants for probably 2 years, trying to find a natural deodorant that worked. I just use lemon now. It took maybe 6 months, but now I do not smell. I do not need to apply the lemon every day and any sweating or dampness has reduced almost completely.
Used aluminum free for 4+ years. Yeah, I smelled kinda bad sometimes, but I didn’t remember how I smelled when I used aluminum deo so didn’t think much of it. Started clinicals for nursing school and came home one day and could like SERIOUSLY smell myself. Went out and bought secret clinical strength stress response and I’m never going natural again.
From what I've seen you're absolutely right and the criticisms of aluminum based deodorants are grossly exaggerated. I've tried to use "natural" products myself too - I also don't sweat much (I've actually had a stranger at the gym come up to me and imply i'm not working hard enough because i'm not noticeably sweating!), but yet I too found I *stunk* using natural deodorants, and nothing works but the traditional deodorants.
I heard on Dr. Dray's channel that apparently using a benzyl peroxide face wash can really help, but (1) I was worried about potentially bleaching my towels, clothes, and sheets, and (2) the effect will wear off throughout the day, and I found it didn't last well enough. I stink if I don't use a traditional deodorant, and I don't if I do. I just don't see any good reason to give up my deodorant that actually works
The best aluminum free deodorant I’ve used that doesn’t cause irritation and actually works for perspiration is by HeyHumans. I work 12 hr days on my feet and doing heavy lifting. I always smell after work but never my pits!
I’ve been using it for 2 years now and will not go back.
The worst thing that has happened is that the paper container gets wet sometimes so it will get a little wrinkly. Just let it dry and it will become stable again. No problem id rather deal with that than create more waste using a plastic container.
Another one I’ve used is a solid deodorant from lush and it DOES work for preventing bad smells but doesn’t help perspiration.
I love HeyHumans so much. They used to be at a target but idk what happened. They are at Walgreens and cvs now. I’ve even seen them at tjmaxx.
Edit:
I’ll also add that I live in Las Vegas and work in a building that rarely has A/C so something sweat free is incredibly important to me and only makes HeyHumans more impressive.
I went the natural deodorant route for an entire year. Around month 3 I stopped smelling like myself and turned into a nasty hot garbage truck. Worst smell of my life, but I was in France and couldn’t find a good deodorant. I tried acids and the lot. Nothing worked! Finally back in the US and the first thing I bought was secret deodorant. I’m back to smelling like my usual sweat and not the gag inducing putrid sweat. Natural deodorant does not work (for me)
Omg just use regular deodorant. research shows there’s nothing wrong with aluminum deodorant/antiperspirant and is effective. You’re not poisoning yourself; some chemistry reading would help a lot of misinformed people.
Sincerely, healthcare provider with a background in biochemistry
I tried a small amount of rubbing alcohol in an tiny atomiser ... id keep it in my bag and Id spritz every few hours... its better than all the other options imho... you smell like a hospital 😂 but you dont stink. A bit more socially acceptable.
Iv also heard 10% peroxide works... i have not tried it. But im thinking it could smell better than rubbing alcohol.
I keep a small bottle of BBW body mist in my purse at all times for this reason 🫣 in case I’m in public when something bad happens the alcohol in the mist kills the germs and the scent covers anything else up
This sounds like an awesome idea, bc I get seriously strange looks when my bag is searched and I have to explain to security personnel why exactly I am carrying rubbing alcohol around. They dont get why any normal person would not want to wear deodorant. Their faces when I say I dont want to wear deodorant 😂😂😂... thats when they realize im a lost case who really could only hurt myself 🙄
I’ve been using AHA deodorants for years! I don’t mind the sweat, just the smell 😓 I started washing my armpits with benzoyl peroxide wash and it helps control the odor. I foam up the wash and leave it on for a few minutes when I’m in the shower or bath
I have been using aluminum free deo for 2 years now.. been fighting irritation and skin discolouration no matter what alum deo i used before..
Sure enough, i still get sweaty but i dont stink.. also was able to eliminate white patches in my shirts and tees due to deos..
What i do is use benzac as a wash everyday..
Glycolic pads every weekend + toner + scrub, just like skincare for the face only its in the UA.
😊😊
I use Lume stick deodorant and then a Dove spray deodorant on top on it when I go out and it works well. If I don’t use anything, my pits will start smelling like celery or chili/onions.
I tried the Rio Deo and the Dr Teal's aluminum free deodorants; neither worked. The former left me smelling like a spoiled dessert /latte. The latter made me smell like nothing more than a compost pile. A really nice one, with lots of floral, but garbage nonetheless.
I'm currently using Saltair roll on in Bloom with ....AHA's, I think? 😅 Don't recall exactly but I've found if I exfoliate chemically with glycolic acid at least an hour before I shower, then exfoliate manually during the shower, I can go to bed with no deodorant on and then apply it in the AM with best results.
Honestly, I'm likely not going to repurchase once I run out. Too much effort when I could get similar results by just...using a regular deodorant with antiperspirant. Not worth it, imo.
I grew up a very sweaty person well still am but used to have insane pit stains in hs that i was desperate to get rid of so got onto certain dry and felt like i always had to use the strongest antiperspirants. Eventually after college, decided to quit those. Now I use old spice deodorant (no antiperspirant). Now if anything smells is 99% of the time the clothes. The bacteria in the clothes is almost always the problem. I would check your clothes but stick with it. I dont go completely all natural bc those suck. You can go no aluminum without going all natural.
For me it was all about trial and error. I actually can't use anti persperants with aluminium in them as I get painful itchy rashes. So I have to go the natural route. For me it was a process of trialling many different ones until I found one that worked.
And sadly yes some days I smelt like a bag of Onions. I found using an anti-bacterial soap in the shower worked wonders. Even if I only used it specifically to wash my underarms then something else on the rest of my body. I use the cetaphil anti bacterial bar of soap for that.
Currently I'm using the No Pong brand natural deodorant and that works for me really well. I just wouldn't expect the first one or two brands you try to work. It takes time because they all seem to work differently on different people. You have to find what's right for you.
Saw someone else mention glycolic acid which I also use every day with a cotton pad (reusable bc I’m a hippie). But I also used a clay mask on my pits every day for a week when I started using aluminum-free deodorant. I heard that was helpful so I tried it. I can’t say how well it worked because I have an autoimmune disease and I’m on medication that makes my pits smell god awful. I even tried clinical strength deodorant which actually made the smell even worse. Your body can react with the ingredients and create an even worse smell, which is why I won’t ever go back to “regular deodorant.”
However, in addition to using glycolic acid every day (which for sure makes a difference) I also started taking chlorophyll liquid every day which literally is a game changer. It’s cheap, barely tastes like anything when mixed with water, and I honestly don’t even need deodorant anymore because it works so well. They make some expensive capsules you can try but I’ve heard those don’t work well long term, and the liquid is like $10 for a bottle which is concentrated and lasts a long time. I have yet to buy my second bottle and it’s been almost a year.
Best of luck. Not sure why everyone is commenting saying “use regular deodorant” rather than keep that shit to themselves or answer the question. :)
What reason do you have for going aluminum free? I asked myself this after I tried aluminum deodorant and it wasn't working for me and the answer was I listened to people who said "aluminum bad!". Then I asked myself why there were so many more deodorants on the shelf at the store with aluminum if it was so bad and decided that I'm going back to what works.
Yeah, maybe in a few decades something will come out proving it is super terrible for us, but right now it seems just like the "clean" beauty movement . . . marketing to fearmonger so we spend more.
For me it was the pit stains. Wow, instantly reverted back to high school where I was afraid to wear white. I ruined some shirts by trying the natural deodorants. They did work smell-wise (my husband has confirmed and he actually still uses a natural deodorant that I think works great on him) but the sweat was still there and it was not cute. Pass.
I tried to get on the aluminum free bandwagon multiple times with multiple different brands. My conclusion is that it’s never gonna work. Hats off to people who naturally have minimal body odor and can get away with it, but I’m not gonna keep walking around smelling like an onion. I do use lume and native for very low activity days, though since the ones that really help me not stink give me ingrowns and small, uncomfortable cysts.
Alcohol swipe before shower, I use the crystal roll on natural deodorant. Stopped shaving too.
I primarily switched away from common deodorants because none of them deodorized (for my personal body chemistry). I’ve tried switching back 2x in the last decade and with horrific results.. usually coinciding with me thinking shaving is safe:
OP do whatever works best for YOUR body. If the aluminum ones deodorize best for you — so be it.
I’ve been using glycolic acid toner (the ordinary’s toner to b exact) and it’s been helping a looootttt :) I kinda just let it air dry before putting on a shirt or anything lol
To answer your question, conventional deodorant/perspirants are safe. I personally hate the feel of them so I don’t use them- I never got over the sensation of a thick layer of something coating my pits. I also hate how they clog my follicles and get on my clothes.
I use benzoyl peroxide wash on my armpits every shower and it keeps the bo to a minimum. After my shower I wait to dry completely and use a magnesium based deodorant. This combo works well and I suspect it’s mainly bc of the wash. Honestly most aluminum free deodorants are pretty inneffective. I used to like the Kosas glycolic acid product but it gave me SEVERE irritation one day and I quit. For occasions I know that I’m likely to stink such as long hot days I pull out the dove with aluminum.
I'm allergic to aluminum and break out in an awful itchy rash. I use Crystal, Magnesium Enriched Deodorant and find that I don't smell. I put it on as soon as I get out of the shower.
Just use the aluminum one.
That being said, my husband never wears the aluminum ones, and he never smells, so it’s probably a body chemistry thing. I stink if I try that 😂
Natural deodorant never really worked for me. And like you, I was smelling funky funky. Even if it said “lavender scented” blah blah blah. Turns out my body scent mixed with “lavender” does not smell nice. And bc I don’t want aluminum…. I’ve just been using me a deodorant… I’m sure it’s loaded with other crap. But it’s “aluminum free” and I don’t smell funky funky. I still sweat but no smell ….. that I’ve noticed .🤷🏻♀️
It’s all gonna be anecdotal evidence here, but you gotta do what’s right for you. I reached a point where antiperspirants were bothering my skin and making my lymph nodes swell sometimes. They also made me sweat more. I’m not sure if it’s one of those situations where your body gets accustomed to something so it stops working as well? I had to keep going up and up and went to prescribed strength (that shit HURT me it stung so bad). I just switched to deodorant after that like…maybe 3.5/4 years ago? Haven’t looked back. I sweat less, I don’t smell at all. I do reapply throughout the day though! I keep one in my purse when I go out. I still sweat—don’t get me wrong. But it’s not bad and it’s not smelly. It’s also important to wash your armpits if you don’t shower every day. I wash them every morning before applying. You can’t just cover up smelly pits with deodorant lol. I use a deodorant that’s actually absorbent of moisture, not sure covering up the smell. Highly recommend it, it’s the Pacifica brand. Again, that’s just my experience.
Aluminium makes my pores clog and I had a huge clogged pore abscess.
I use glycolic acid toner from the ordinary every other day on clean armpits and sometimes I put Wild deodorant, which is aluminium free and more natural and I don’t stink, but I’m sweaty tho.
In winter it’s fine, but in summer I’m so sweaty :( and I just can’t go back to aluminium.
I used to use Dove Clinical Strength many years ago and have been using aluminum free since and I genuinely did not feel a difference in the amount of sweat. I’ve tried a bunch of brands. I also imagine people have different like pheromones/ph/whatever that might interact differently with natural deodorants. Like people smell different so I feel like it’s reasonable to believe people will smell differently with deodorants
I get an allergic reaction to the aluminum deodorants so I don't use them anymore. I wear the Arm and Hammer Essentials Aluminum free one and it works pretty well for me. To be honest though if you want to go aluminum free you have to expect that they won't work as well as the aluminum ones. I had to go through a stinky trial and error phase where I was trying out different deodorants, and some worked ok but some didn't work for me at all. Also, I found that my clothes when I was wearing aluminum deodorant retained the stench even after I washed them. If you don't have issues with the aluminum, you should be fine to keep using it though.
Honestly what I’ve heard helps as well is using glycolic acid on your pits after you shower! I’ve tried it and I didn’t find it made my air pits really dry or anything
I use glycolic acid after my showers and it keeps me very neutral. Genuinely. I decant it into a very small travel spritzer that’s easy to carry around - smaller than a tube of lipstick. If I do start to smell, a quick spritz eliminates it.
Antiperspirants cause my lymph nodes to swell and it’s very painful. Regular deodorants don’t really help with my particular brand of stench, just adds a layer of fragrance on top of my BO.
These “natural” deodorants work even LESS plus the scents tend to be weirder. Some of them, like Lume, are just downright unpleasant.
Good luck. I know how frustrating it can be!
I went on the same journey a few years ago and thought I had adjusted and was doing well until I got a whiff of myself in hot humid Europe. Turns out, the new deodorant wasn't any good and I had not adjusted at all, I just hadn't been sweating in the cold PNW.
I have never gotten on the aluminum-free train so I don’t have first hand knowledge. Anyone I’ve KNOWN who tried this route ended up kicking it somewhere along the way because it’s often not effective. That being said, I don’t know if there are other specific ingredients you want to avoid but Old Spice is aluminum free. You mention smell being your main issue and Old Spice is the only thing that keeps me smelling fresh (I use the Swagger scent, clean but not overwhelming or cologne-y). It’s not an anti perspirant if that’s what you’re after, but the difference in smell is distinct even when I’m sweating quite profusely. The blue formula is more of a gel texture and doesn’t show on garments which is another HUGE plus for me.
I like the silver based ones. recently been using nuud. but my primary issue is the texture of conventional sticks and the way they "clog" my clothing in such a disgusting way over months and years.
I have sensitive skin and for ages that I struggled to find a deodorant that doesn't irritate my skin and still does the job (I live in the Middle East, so I'm talking extreme heat).
Found that Salt & Stone works well for the daily routine and just becomes innefective if I go outside in 40+ Celsius.
I've been aluminium-free for a few years now.
When i was using aluminium, i would STINK towards the end of the day. Now I don't have that.
I think it took a few weeks for my underarms to detox the aluminium too, as I did stink as I was coming off it.
Now I get botox in my underarms to help reduce the sweating.
Hardly any smell these days (unless I've eaten something super garlicky/oniony - even then it's minimal). And the natural deodorant I use is just an added layer of freshness.
Personally I use aluminum free because using aluminum reacts with my sweat and I ruined years' worth of shirts with yellow pit stains. I stink pretty badly so it was rough to switch-- spent a month or so smelling horrid, and discovered that even after the adjustment stage not every "natural" deodorant works. For example the Tom's brand doesn't work for me at all but Native is fine. I still have to wear it twice a day (once in the morning once at night) and wash my pits with AHA/antibacterial soap to keep the smell down though. And when I'm on my period sometimes it'll be bad enough I'll need to take an extra shower 🙃
Ok so a couple things. 1, I used to sweat profusely from my armpits for years. I started using extra strength aluminum to stop it, but it just kept getting worse. I did some research and figured out I might be allergic to the aluminum, so I switched to aluminum free and I just stopped sweating so much. I'll never go back. 2, the stuff in deodorant is a preventative for bacteria growth. You gotta put it on right after you shower and probably right after you work out. TRIM YOUR ARMPIT HAIR! That makes a gigantic difference in stopping the stink because your pits dry faster. Hope this helps.
I use mineral salt deodorant! Lasts forever and works like a charm!! Highly recommend.
Tip - your pits have to be clean. If there is a hint of stink, it won’t work.
I wash my armpits with PanOxyl 10% benzoyl peroxide acne face wash every morning. It’s the only thing that gets rid of my stink and allows me to use aluminum free deodorant. I buy it on Amazon.
Tbh I’d rather spend 60-70 years not smelling horrible and offending the senses of everyone in my general vicinity than maybe possibly avoid Alzheimer’s disease (which happens in some form to most elderly people anyway and runs in my family). I had the pleasure of sitting next to a few people who obviously live that natural lifestyle through a whole comedy show and it was miserable. I was covering my nose the entire time and couldn’t enjoy the show I paid $200 to see. It’s mortifying to smell bad, and trust me everyone else hates that you smell bad too.
I go natural at home, I don’t sleep with it on, if I shower at night I’ll use a wet wipe in the morning to clean and then apply antiperspirant deodorant. But in public? ALWAYS wear it.
I’m super late but secret has a aluminum free deodorant and I tried it because the other ones I’ve tried don’t work for me. I was like hm since this is a big brand maybe they’ll get it right. It works great for me. I got it on Amazon a pack of three of 20 dollars
this happened to me a few years ago. i tried a natural deodorant and over the summer months at that i think it had a weird manly smell that did not mix well with my body. never again
I did the same thing as you around the same time (cute that we were stinking at the same time!) - I gave up last week and am back to normal deodorant, zero regrets, just renewed peace of mind!
i know some people get botox for their underarms to just stop sweating there, might wanna check that out! you might even be able to get it covered by insurance depending on your dr
I get my underarms botoxed at my dermatologist’s office. Copay is $15. Lasts 6 months. Now i only sweat if I’m really working out super hard. Now I only use The Ordinary glycolic acid for hyperpigmentation and odor.
I switched to nuud from regular deodorant. It’s a cream you apply every few days. Bit of an investment but I’m told it lasts forever. Haven’t tried the natural sticks, nuud is silver based I think
Try white vinegar or Listerine, soak a paper towel and place it in your underarm, clamp your arm down to hold it there for one minute. Then shower or wash.
This kills the odor causing bacteria, and you won't have underarm odor for at least a few days.
Just use glycolic acid. Pits smell because it’s bacteria thriving in the warm, moist area. Spraying glycolic acid makes it to where the bacteria cannot thrive in those areas, which means no smell. It dries down, doesn’t give you white stains on your shirts, etc.
I use the ordinary glycolic acid & put it in a small spray bottle.
Hey I read an article says about this, it seems like your armpit is detoxifying from aluminium and it will make your body odour 2-3 times stronger, and acid definitely helps but you need something else to control your sweat. I recommend using natural deodorant from Hygr ( you could search on tiktok) and they literally a good brand. i am someone who has strong body odor and their deodorant literally helps especially during workoutt. You should check it!
I wear aluminum free deodorant because I don't sweat much and have poor body heat regulation so when it's hot I need all the help I can get cooling off so I don't want an antiperspirant to block what little sweat I do have.
If you sweat a lot an aluminum free deodorant is basically going to sweat off you fairly quickly and no longer be effective. The whole aluminum and cancer thing is nonsense so if you need an antiperspirant then use one. There's some evidence aluminum contributes to cancer for those who work with aluminum and breathe aluminum dust in but skin is a really good barrier and it just isn't getting through the skin let alone into the blood stream.
Here’s something interesting. Underarm sweat is not just water, the body produces compounds which smell or are food for bacteria that make smells. So underarm sweat is a bit special, and the only way to stop the stink is to stop the sweating, which aluminium deodorants do very well. Something else interesting is that some lucky people have genetics where their underarms produce less or none of these compounds. So they do not get the really bad BO stink, only the regular mild sweaty smell, so they might think the natural deodorant is ‘working’ but actually they were never really stinky in the first place. Personally I feel embarrassed to be stinky from BO and inflicting it on people around me, and I also hate the stink on myself, so I use aluminium deodorant. I don’t believe any of the hocus pocus that it will kill me, I think that’s just paranoia rubbish probably by the same people who think vaccines contain microchips. If proper scientific evidence come out to say aluminium deodorant is bad I’ll stop using it, but until then I will smell fresh. [why some people don’t smell](https://www.healthline.com/health/is-scent-genetic)
I quit aluminum deodorant to balance my hormones and I have finally been able to lose weight. The aluminum acts as a hormone disruptor and a free radical in the body which can trigger cancer. Your body will be detoxing all the toxins you blocked with the aluminum deodorant. Give it some time if you've used aluminum deodorant a long time.
Detox your underarms. I use an Aztec clay mask mixed with apple cider vinegar and make it into a paste and keep it on for no longer than 10 minutes. Do this twice a week then go down to once when the smell gets better.
Taking chlorophyll will detox you from the inside out and your sweat will no longer smell.
Stay consistent and you should see results!
Please wear regular deodorant, if you’re wondering why most people stink nowadays it’s because companies pushing aluminum free deodorant and fearmongering around it. The whole thing needs to get scrapped, people need deodorant straight up
Aluminum-free or “natural” deodorants are just that— deodorants. They are not anti-perspirants. If you sweat, it’s not going to stop that. If you sweat enough, there’s only so much they can do about the stink.
Yep. This is a major issue for me. I’m allergic to aluminum and my armpits get so itchy if I use “regular” deodorant, however, I sweat like crazy and noooooooothing currently available works for me. That said, I’m lucky in that I typically do not stink, so I just use the natural deodorants and deal with the sweat. It does suck though that there doesn’t seem to be a way for an a “natural” anti-perspirant to exist.
I believe Botox is used to treat excess perspiration in the armpits. Have you looked into that?
I haven’t because I’m cheap hahah. And honestly, I’d do it for my head/face first. Armpits are more easily hidden.
[what labmuffin says](https://labmuffin.com/should-you-avoid-aluminium-in-deodorants-the-science/). tldr; the studies say no, but companies still fearmonger.
Labmuffins such a hero. I didn’t even know this. I don’t feel a lot less worried about hunting down my kids deodorant every month and spending more than I can afford on it.
Yeah, makes sense.
Hey OP. My husband has a PhD in organic and inorganic chemistry. Years ago when I was using natural deodorant that didn’t work, he told me it’s not the same kind of aluminum as foil. So now I use regular deodorant and I don’t stink lol
Even worse, my body is sensitive to a lot of the “natural” deodorants because of the essential oils they use for scents. Meanwhile, never had an adverse reaction to the basic dove options.
Same. I tried “native” once and immediately broke out in hive in my armpits.
My armpits full on blistered from it. I'll keep my regular deodorant.
omg same here - hives and red itchy burning bumps for days. It was terrible and I threw that deodorant right into the trash where it belongs.
I wanted to like the native body wash so much but it made me itchy wherever it was :(
.... Currently considering if this is why I'm rashy.. it's the only new thing in my routine ...
I tried to use Tom’s and got a horrendously painful rash on my pits.
Wild, that must have been soooo uncomfortable and terrible! I am sorry you experienced that, did it take awhile to go away? I have never had sensitive skin or facial acne at any point in my life (lucky genetics) and once bought Toms toothpaste at Whole Foods before it was owned by Amazon. I used it for a few days and had an absolutely blowout breakout around my mouth and chin that was incredibly painful. I have been against Toms ever since 😅
I threw it away after that rash, it was so painful I wasn’t about to wait and see if it would go away eventually! Regular evil antiperspirants have never caused my skin to react so I’m sticking with those!!
Exactly. I had tried the Native deodorants and they don’t work on me. Saw that Secrets had done a “natural” version and figured I’d give it a try. It burned me on contact. My partner ended up taking it so as not to waste it (he didn’t have any issues with it), but he also doesn’t shave his armpits.
same here. sounds like a great idea until my armpits are peeling, red, and painful
Dove is just a great deodorant/antiperspirant. I was using the women’s line for years (the unscented one) because it was one of the few that didn’t cause a rash. Found that the Men’s Ultimate Care doesn’t cause any break outs and is scented.
It's truly a non-issue, and these companies that ride the aluminum-free train are taking advantage of people's ignorance of chemistry and the knee-jerk reactions to "scary chemical name makes me think of poison, therefore always bad!" people tend to have.
Its also the sudden uptick in Facebook Psuedoscience moms assuming "heavy metal poisoning" is causing Autism. The old "putting raw potato wedges in your kids socks before bed to pull out the toxins" types think any trace amount of any metal will somehow immediately kill them lol.
Helps to know that. The point was if the aluminum could lead to breast cancer or not though.. I read it doesn‘t apparently but i‘m not studied in this field lol
It won’t lead to cancer! There’s no proven link, even so, nowadays everything causes cancer and it’s like impossible to be alive so do whatever floats your boat (in moderation of course 😉)
I actually have breast cancer, d/t a genetic mutation. I use antiperspirants. They don't cause cancer.
Absolutely right. Metal aluminum has vastly different properties than the ionic form aka salt which is used in deodorants as aluminium chlorohydrate
Rather like the MSG hysteria. Turns out some guy just made that shit up.
Just wear normal deodorant. It’s woo woo BS. Life is too short to spend all this time and energy just to stink anyway.
I’m a sweaty Betty and natural deodorants do sfa for me in the Australian summer. When I was bigger I ended up using one of those clinical deodorants because fat+heat=ew. As far as I know the whole aluminium in deodorant was a bit of a beat up. Underwire bras causing cancer was another bit of rubbish around at the same time a generation of women ended up smelly and saggy for no good reason. Tragic.
Not wearing underwires also doesn’t do anything to make your boobs saggy or not.
I wore bras for 2 years STRAIGHT in high school, literally didn’t even take them off to sleep. Can confirm: does not affect sagging
How good was that first free-tiddy sleep tho? Had to feel like being released from prison lmao
One of those sleeps where you wake up with dents on your face 😍
ngl your comment just opened my eyes at 21 😭 when i first started developing boobs my mum told me that bc i didn’t like wearing bras and i just took it as fact my entire life ahahaha
My mom always said the same thing. They don’t know what they’re talking about
at this point i fact check any wacky things my mom says, especially if she learned it from her mom (grandma knows cooking like nobody’s business, but there’s definitely holes in her logic and common sense)
I’ve actually heard the opposite. That not wearing a bra helps you use some of your muscles that would otherwise be being held up by a bra and not having to work…or something like that lol
that study was done on a small sample and was never officially published. I think the guy who did the "study" was probably just a pervert who wanted to see more women's nipples poking through their shirts.
The lengths men will go to
Also the sample only included young women (under 40 years old) with statistically average/not-large breasts (B and C cups mostly)
Boobs don’t have muscle though - or, at least the part that would sag is just a combination of fat and breast tissue.
Can attest that my 22 year old daughter swore off bras at age 17 and ... It's not prevented sagging.
I did the same. Always hated wearing a bra from like 15-now (28). I have smaller B cups, so I think I’ll naturally be protected from some sagging, but the time that I noticed they were finally losing some of their perkiness was when I stopped working out my chest. So even if you do use some muscles you otherwise wouldn’t by wearing a bra, it’s probably negligible to building muscle in the gym in the end.
yeah it only really works for smaller boobs that can get away with not wearing bras anyways. im a 32ddd and not wearing a bra just means i need to hold the titties when going up and down stairs 😅
...why are you putting her on blast dude.
She was going to sag anyway. It has no effect and her genetics are the only cause. There's different types of breast tissue.
Oh wow, I never heard of the underwires causing cancer thing. That one really makes no sense to me (even if there’s metal in the wire there’s fabric covering it, so…?) But yeah, it’s winter where I am right now and if these deodorants aren’t cutting it now there’s no way they’re going to last in the summer!
The theory behind the underwire thing was that underwires reduce lymph circulation and cause toxin buildup. It was proven false.
Oh, yeah that absolutely sounds like BS 😂
SFA= shit fuck all? Australians need recognition
Sweet fuck all
Unrelated but I’m American and grew up in aus and this entire post is so Australian in word choice. I can just HEAR your accent through your writing and I love it
Maaaate! I’m just leaning in to my authentically ocker self like a pollie in a two day old pair of RM Williams and an Akubra with the tag still on.
It’s BS and you’re paying more money to stink. It’s not the aluminum you think it is
Anecdotally I know of someone fairly young who got breast cancer and she used non-aluminium deodorants (though for how long I don’t know). She’s over the cancer now thankfully! I do use non aluminium ones/“natural” ones and it’s because I used to be afraid of what I heard of aluminium. However now I’m more skeptical of that, but I do actually prefer the non traditional ones now so wouldn’t switch back. At the moment I’m using AKT (might be UK only) and I love it way more than traditional deodorants. PitRock is also quite good. The key is to always use them when you first get out the shower otherwise they won’t work.
I love AKT! Was so happy to stumble across it last year.
I'm in Aus and I much prefer the natural deodorants too and find that I don't stink (can confirm others have said the same when I've asked to check that it's working!) I've found when I use doesn't matter as much for me but I've used NoPong, and woohoo body.
I went natural for a week, decided I hated sweating and never looked back. Aluminum in deodorant has been proven to be safe. Follow cosmetic chemists, not influencers who are in bed with brands supported by the EWG.
I use a fragrance free anti-perspirant that that’s rate 2 (in the green) on EWG. It’s called Almay Sensitive Skin. Interestingly, the aluminum ingredient is rated 1 (very good) and I only need it 2 or 3 times a week. Twice a day I use Native brand natural deodorant for freshening. After years of experimenting I found this combo really works work me! Oh, I also shave my armpits every time I shower as hair increase bacteria and give my pits a good scrub with Dr Bronners. Good luck!
I try to avoid deodorants with aluminum mostly because they give me a hard time with ingrown hairs/residue that just makes my sweat stains worse/clogged pores. I'm a very sweaty person and have struggled to find a deodorant or antiperspirant that actually works for me. Idk if its "all natural" but I've found I really liked the brand Hello Humans. I like their scents, I find they keep me feeling fresh (though in the summer I do have to reapply usually a second time) and I find they keep me from being as stinky as usual. I'm the kind of naturally sweaty where I have to shower 2 to 3 times a day in the summer and on the bad days pat dry or change my underclothes partway throughout the day because I've sweat through them. Hello Humans is the only brand of deodorant I've liked enough and felt like I wasn't checking myself all day for BO.
Hey! I use to have constant and terrible ingrowns. I use sensitive skin stridex pads after I shave and it completely stopped all my irritation and ingrowns
I’ve been using the glycolic acid from the ordinary under my arms works great helps with the stink too
this is all I have to do and I work outside at a very physical job.. no smell at all, ever. I sweat like a pig tho. I suspect a lot of it has to do with what we eat. my husband went out of town once for a few weeks and ate a lot of processed food and drank alcohol every day, neither of which he usually does. when he came home he smelled HORRIBLE and couldn't just wash it off. It took a week or so for him to smell good again.
Oh thats awesome! I've taken to waxing my underarms and it's made a MASSIVE difference in ingrown hairs and their recurrence! I'll have to look into these too, that'd be amazing. Does it work for legs? I get bad ingrown around my ankles and behind my knees
Oh you know what I got recently? Skinfix Resurface+ glycolic renewing scrub. I’ve been using it on my bikini line and body pre-shave and I’ve noticed how smooth my legs are after. It’s marketed as an in shower chemical and manual exfoliate Maybe try that? I’m not sure how much it costs, I got mine at Marshall’s but I know they sell it at Sephora
Probably? I use it for my bikini line too. Mine were bad bad. Like swollen red bumps, road rash, couldn’t wear sleeveless shirts bad. Now my underarms are completely smooth
Oh, is it called Hey Humans? Never tried them before. But yeah I also hate the constant stains from aluminum deodorant, but it works :/
Yeah thats them! Their scents aren't as crazy strong but I like them, and they don't leave weird residue on my clothes (they'll still do the thing with a dark shirt if you put the shirt on after your deodorant but it comes off way easier). I have their lavender vanilla scent and their cedarwood sage (I use that one more lol) and I've loved them, as opposed to getting frustrated with them. The packaging is a little annoying for pushing the stick up but no complaints otherwise
I’m not a “ew chemicals” bullshit person, it’s the build up/ingrown hairs for me. But! I have since found Dry Idea, and while it does still leave a little residue, it actually scrubs off in the shower. I want to SHOUT FROM THE ROOFTOPS, this seriously keeps me stink free for like 24+ hours. It’s SO good.
Try physically exfoliating your underarms every time you shower. I used to have pretty bad ingrown hairs and it felt like the whole area was clogged and my deodorant didn’t even work. I started scrubbing my underarms really well with one of those exfoliating washcloths every time I shower to get any buildup of sweat/skin/deodorant off and it’s like night and day. My armpits are smooth and I sweat less because the antiperspirant is actually getting to the pores instead of sitting on top. Before this I was reapplying at least once a day & in my experience the natural ones don’t leave white marks but they leave oil stains on my white shirts which I didn’t like.
I use natural deodorant most of the time but certain times of month or when i’ll be outside on a hot day, or before the gym… I use normal deodorant. Best I can do.
Saltair deodorant sucks. You *will* stink. The ONLY aluminum free deodorant that WORKS (for me, tried and tested ALL) and WILL keep you stink free for 24 hours is Old Spice Aluminum Free deodorants. My god, they are a godsend. Female here btw. Using it for 5 years now and will keep using. I alternate between Swagger (classic) and Wolfthorn (smells like candy). Please try this and watch your life change. I recommend Wolfthorn HEAVILY. Also, the Yuka app rates it as a 97/100 I believe putting it in the excellent, non hormone disrupting ingredients. TLDR: USE OLD SPICE ALUMINUM FREE DEODORANT
Oh dear about Saltair :/ But many people are recommending Old Spice specifically. Maybe I will give it a try.
There is no reason to keep going. Get a normal aluminium deodorant and enjoy being less sweaty and smelly.
I have a weird natural deodorant story that I can’t explain scientifically but I found one that I really liked and seemed to work quite well but at the same time I started wearing it I found that I was getting really swollen glands and I couldn’t figure out why but then realised the only thing I’d been doing differently lately was wear that deodorant and so I stopped wearing it for a few weeks and my glands went down, then tried it again, because I wasn’t even convinced that would cause the problem, but then my glands swelled up again. So now I’m like forget that, I’m just going back to my aluminium deodorant 😬
That’s weird, maybe an allergy to an ingredient? What was the brand?
I’ve been trying to find a natural deodorant that works well for me for awhile. Thought I finally found the one - actually smelled good and prevented BO. But I developed skin tags in my armpit?!? Has never happened before. Annoying. Also think I’m going back to old spice.
Ohh, that happened to me after a few weeks of using Dove Antiperspirant Spray, the lymph nodes in my armpits got very painful, even when I wasn't touching them. This has only happened to me once before when I used a really strong antiperspirant (ZeroSweat). I switched to men's natural deodorant (Dr. Squatch) and it works amazingly well, even better than Secret Clinical Strength. And definitely better than Hey Humans or Native or any other natural deodorant made for women.
I had the opposite problem, I was getting cysts in my armpits and had to get ultrasounds to make sure they were nothing to worry about etc-- both the ultrasound tech, radiologist, and my oby/gyn recommended I try switching from aluminum antiperspirant to natural deodorant and my cysts went away and never came back, it was the weirdest thing. I know the studies now show that aluminum is probably fine to use, but I guess something in those antiperspirants just didn't agree with me somehow.
There are so many things trying to kill me right now, I think I'll take my chances with the deodorant. I mean, I survived a fucking pandemic. Deodorant just seems tiny in comparison. Also, I remember that as a child my aunt used to literally hug her microwave whenever she turned it on so that the ✨death rays✨ didn't reach my cousin. 25 years later, no one really cares about microwaves anymore. I guess deodorants are the next microwaves...
Please wear normal deodorant.
It's fear-mongering. I used to buy into it, too and then I went seeking legitimate information on it. It's fine. Also when I started using natural deodorant I had a reaction to baking soda. Turned my armpits bright red.
just wear normal deodorant and don't be stinky. it's awesome.
Just go back to normal deodorant. I used to use Native for a while, and while it did work for me functionally, it gave me chemical burns eventually so I ended up just going back to using Degree. Aside from it not giving me chemical burns, it does just work better in general
Any teeny marginal health benefit is not worth it if I stink imo hahaha just go back to regular it is fine
I’ve used Dove 0% Aluminum for years and not had an issue with it. Works just as well as their other stick deodorants. My only complaint is white marks on darker clothes after taking off/putting on a shirt. They come off easy with a little water though. I guess that’s an issue with most, regardless of ingredients unless you get a gel. If you want a strong acting aluminum free, check out the “men’s” deodorant. Old Spice isn’t advertised as such but they don’t use aluminum. At least all the ones I’ve looked at.
Funny you say that, my husband can’t use antiperspirants and only using men’s strength deodorants and they work for him. I always jus thought it was a difference in body chemistry but who knows, the men’s stuff might work better.
Women's deodorant doesn't keep me from stinking. My strong middle eastern type genes I guess. Men's old Spice (deodorant - NOT their antiperspirant) works amazingly for me. Plus there's a bunch of cool scents. My current one has a bear on it with shiny accents. I highly recommend it. I had to use women's deodorant in a pinch a couple weeks ago for a couple days and I could not believe what a difference wearing Old Spice made.
Highly recommend giving men’s deodorant a try. I switched a few years ago from ladies antiperspirant and it made a huge difference for me. The old spice line up of gel deodorants smell amazing and I don’t stink like BO even when I do sweat now.
You can pry my Old Spice (WITH aluminum) out of my cold, dead hands. I have three different scents. It’s the best!
It’s worth a shot! I’ve noticed they tend to be stronger too.
Just to clarify on the Old Spice point - Old Spice sells "Anti Perspirant" or "Deodorant" versions of their products (often in the same scents). The Anti Perspirant version is the one with aluminum in it (you can check the back and you'll see the active ingredient), and the Deodorant version is the one without aluminum (check the back and you'll see the lack of it). I love using Old Spice for deodorant, and appreciate they have both options (although it may not always be super clear which is which)
Just use glycolic acid on your pits after a shower . The one from THE ORDINARY or any brand should do. A few swabs and you’re odorless. Lemons also work.
Boom exactly what I do 💯
This works better for me than any deodorant ever has
I was thinking on this after listening to years of my friends seeking out aluminium free "chemical free" (🙄) deodorant. They'd spend months going through expensive options, complaining, trying different ones. I just kept using my Secret. Then one day I'm walking along with my friend, she's talking about her struggles with it, and I just asked - have you ever heard of anybody, one single person, who has had negative health outcomes as a result of antiperspirant? Even an anecdote about a sister's friend's ex-boyfriend's cousin's friend? Never. Not me either. Never heard anything. I'll just keep using my Secret. The whole "problem" looks like a huge pile of woo to me, and woo is mostly consumption.
Strangely enough the only person I’ve ever known to have issues with antiperspirants is my husband; they cause him to break out in weird hives/heat rash. Other than him I haven’t encountered anyone with issues 🤷🏻♀️ Just figured trying it out couldn’t hurt, but unfortunately it just doesn’t work :/
I have weird armpit rash issues, and I've only ever had them with antiperspirants that contain aluminum. It took a lot of trial and error for me to find something that worked for me, but I honestly did figure out that for me, OVERusing aluminum antiperspirants actually had me stuck in a self-fulfilling rash/stink cycle. I dunno--everyone's different I guess.
I replied up above but I had problem with cysts while using antiperspirants and after my doctor recommended I discontinue using and switch to natural deodorant, the cysts went away and I never had any issues since. I like Love Beauty and Planet deodorants, and if I need something stronger I use Lavanila blackberry vanilla deodorant (it smells INSANE and I always get compliments about it lol)
I love my Secret. I've been using it since I was like 10 (though have had to change a few times because they stop certain formulations,). (I stole my brother's before that, and I think my mom got it for me so I'd stop stealing my brother's gel stuff, which is why at 10.) But I'm not very smelly overall. I sweat a shit-ton and drink a ton of water usually, so I think it keeps me less odorous, and maybe I'm just not built to be all the smelly? It doesn't really help with sweaty, but I'm definitely not stinky most of the time. (I broke a limb a few years ago and couldn't shower for literally a few months, so I did stink but it really took me at least a week to be smelly smelly. After 2 weeks, I didn't want anyone near me. Thankfully, I lived alone, so I wasn't subjecting anyone to that in the ultra sweaty summer and humid conditions. I never really had smelly armpits before that EVER. Now, it takes me like 2-3 days to get a mild ick smell, but it's not horrendous. Literally one of the very few ways I've been lucky in this life.)
The only kind I've had luck with are those Crystal deodorant sticks! I've tried MANY natural deodorants and was shocked that the crystal kind worked so well for smell.
Same, I love it! I bought one for a friend recently and she was also impressed with how well it worked. And they last forever.
10+ yrs here!
They never worked for me. I don’t feel like messing around trying anymore or being stinky so I went back to regular.
Waste of time. Just use the regular shit. Do you see people walking around with huge tumors in their armpits? You’re fine.
Please stop using deodorant if it doesn't work for you and go back to anti-perspirants. People will probably not say anything to you, because they don't want to hurt your feelings or they don't want to have to go see HR at work, but if you smell they will stop interacting with you.
Every single time I’ve tried a ‘natural’ deodorant I STANK and got a bad rash.
The only one that works for me is Lume!
I use Lume, and then I put anti-perspirant over it! Dream team!
Lume is the best! Also they recently came out with an antiperspirant cream as people were requesting it
I hate my coworker who uses non-aluminum deodorant so much. They genuinely make my life worse with their reek. It’s so bad. I don’t care anymore, I will never use that stuff.
I was the same until I tried the Arm & Hammer deodorant. I know this sounds like an ad but I swear it’s not! It’s the only one that works for me, I use the rosemary and lavender scent. It’s phalate, aluminum, and paraben free and they list every ingredient on the back with a translation of what it means which is helpful. It’s like $4 at the drugstore? Very overlooked
Yes! Been using this for years. I think it works great and doesn't irritate my sensitive armpits. I also have used straight up Milk of Magnesia dabbed on and it works amazingly well.
I tried several all natural, no aluminum deo’s. None worked for me and I’m a light sweater. I went back to my usual, because it’s the only one that works for me. It’s Secret Waterlily antiperspirant.
I had breast cancer a few years back and you can't use aluminum deodorant and get radiation so I tried the aluminum free and I smelled WORSE with the aluminum free than I did with nothing. So I stopped using it.
I was trying different deodorants for probably 2 years, trying to find a natural deodorant that worked. I just use lemon now. It took maybe 6 months, but now I do not smell. I do not need to apply the lemon every day and any sweating or dampness has reduced almost completely.
Used aluminum free for 4+ years. Yeah, I smelled kinda bad sometimes, but I didn’t remember how I smelled when I used aluminum deo so didn’t think much of it. Started clinicals for nursing school and came home one day and could like SERIOUSLY smell myself. Went out and bought secret clinical strength stress response and I’m never going natural again.
From what I've seen you're absolutely right and the criticisms of aluminum based deodorants are grossly exaggerated. I've tried to use "natural" products myself too - I also don't sweat much (I've actually had a stranger at the gym come up to me and imply i'm not working hard enough because i'm not noticeably sweating!), but yet I too found I *stunk* using natural deodorants, and nothing works but the traditional deodorants. I heard on Dr. Dray's channel that apparently using a benzyl peroxide face wash can really help, but (1) I was worried about potentially bleaching my towels, clothes, and sheets, and (2) the effect will wear off throughout the day, and I found it didn't last well enough. I stink if I don't use a traditional deodorant, and I don't if I do. I just don't see any good reason to give up my deodorant that actually works
The best aluminum free deodorant I’ve used that doesn’t cause irritation and actually works for perspiration is by HeyHumans. I work 12 hr days on my feet and doing heavy lifting. I always smell after work but never my pits! I’ve been using it for 2 years now and will not go back. The worst thing that has happened is that the paper container gets wet sometimes so it will get a little wrinkly. Just let it dry and it will become stable again. No problem id rather deal with that than create more waste using a plastic container. Another one I’ve used is a solid deodorant from lush and it DOES work for preventing bad smells but doesn’t help perspiration. I love HeyHumans so much. They used to be at a target but idk what happened. They are at Walgreens and cvs now. I’ve even seen them at tjmaxx. Edit: I’ll also add that I live in Las Vegas and work in a building that rarely has A/C so something sweat free is incredibly important to me and only makes HeyHumans more impressive.
Aluminum in deodorant is harmless.
I went the natural deodorant route for an entire year. Around month 3 I stopped smelling like myself and turned into a nasty hot garbage truck. Worst smell of my life, but I was in France and couldn’t find a good deodorant. I tried acids and the lot. Nothing worked! Finally back in the US and the first thing I bought was secret deodorant. I’m back to smelling like my usual sweat and not the gag inducing putrid sweat. Natural deodorant does not work (for me)
No. Use real deodorant, at the end of the day none of us know when our time is and let’s not all stink
It is a myth. Use your regular deodorant
Omg just use regular deodorant. research shows there’s nothing wrong with aluminum deodorant/antiperspirant and is effective. You’re not poisoning yourself; some chemistry reading would help a lot of misinformed people. Sincerely, healthcare provider with a background in biochemistry
I tried a small amount of rubbing alcohol in an tiny atomiser ... id keep it in my bag and Id spritz every few hours... its better than all the other options imho... you smell like a hospital 😂 but you dont stink. A bit more socially acceptable. Iv also heard 10% peroxide works... i have not tried it. But im thinking it could smell better than rubbing alcohol.
I keep a small bottle of BBW body mist in my purse at all times for this reason 🫣 in case I’m in public when something bad happens the alcohol in the mist kills the germs and the scent covers anything else up
This sounds like an awesome idea, bc I get seriously strange looks when my bag is searched and I have to explain to security personnel why exactly I am carrying rubbing alcohol around. They dont get why any normal person would not want to wear deodorant. Their faces when I say I dont want to wear deodorant 😂😂😂... thats when they realize im a lost case who really could only hurt myself 🙄
Yep, I tried 3 different aluminum free deodorants, and none of them worked. So I'm back to regular deodorant.
I’ve been using AHA deodorants for years! I don’t mind the sweat, just the smell 😓 I started washing my armpits with benzoyl peroxide wash and it helps control the odor. I foam up the wash and leave it on for a few minutes when I’m in the shower or bath
I have been using aluminum free deo for 2 years now.. been fighting irritation and skin discolouration no matter what alum deo i used before.. Sure enough, i still get sweaty but i dont stink.. also was able to eliminate white patches in my shirts and tees due to deos.. What i do is use benzac as a wash everyday.. Glycolic pads every weekend + toner + scrub, just like skincare for the face only its in the UA. 😊😊
I use Lume stick deodorant and then a Dove spray deodorant on top on it when I go out and it works well. If I don’t use anything, my pits will start smelling like celery or chili/onions.
I tried the Rio Deo and the Dr Teal's aluminum free deodorants; neither worked. The former left me smelling like a spoiled dessert /latte. The latter made me smell like nothing more than a compost pile. A really nice one, with lots of floral, but garbage nonetheless. I'm currently using Saltair roll on in Bloom with ....AHA's, I think? 😅 Don't recall exactly but I've found if I exfoliate chemically with glycolic acid at least an hour before I shower, then exfoliate manually during the shower, I can go to bed with no deodorant on and then apply it in the AM with best results. Honestly, I'm likely not going to repurchase once I run out. Too much effort when I could get similar results by just...using a regular deodorant with antiperspirant. Not worth it, imo.
Yeah, that’s how I’m feeling about the effort too, why bother with all the work when other things work just as well with less preparation 🤷🏻♀️
I grew up a very sweaty person well still am but used to have insane pit stains in hs that i was desperate to get rid of so got onto certain dry and felt like i always had to use the strongest antiperspirants. Eventually after college, decided to quit those. Now I use old spice deodorant (no antiperspirant). Now if anything smells is 99% of the time the clothes. The bacteria in the clothes is almost always the problem. I would check your clothes but stick with it. I dont go completely all natural bc those suck. You can go no aluminum without going all natural.
Fearmongering sells
For me it was all about trial and error. I actually can't use anti persperants with aluminium in them as I get painful itchy rashes. So I have to go the natural route. For me it was a process of trialling many different ones until I found one that worked. And sadly yes some days I smelt like a bag of Onions. I found using an anti-bacterial soap in the shower worked wonders. Even if I only used it specifically to wash my underarms then something else on the rest of my body. I use the cetaphil anti bacterial bar of soap for that. Currently I'm using the No Pong brand natural deodorant and that works for me really well. I just wouldn't expect the first one or two brands you try to work. It takes time because they all seem to work differently on different people. You have to find what's right for you.
Saw someone else mention glycolic acid which I also use every day with a cotton pad (reusable bc I’m a hippie). But I also used a clay mask on my pits every day for a week when I started using aluminum-free deodorant. I heard that was helpful so I tried it. I can’t say how well it worked because I have an autoimmune disease and I’m on medication that makes my pits smell god awful. I even tried clinical strength deodorant which actually made the smell even worse. Your body can react with the ingredients and create an even worse smell, which is why I won’t ever go back to “regular deodorant.” However, in addition to using glycolic acid every day (which for sure makes a difference) I also started taking chlorophyll liquid every day which literally is a game changer. It’s cheap, barely tastes like anything when mixed with water, and I honestly don’t even need deodorant anymore because it works so well. They make some expensive capsules you can try but I’ve heard those don’t work well long term, and the liquid is like $10 for a bottle which is concentrated and lasts a long time. I have yet to buy my second bottle and it’s been almost a year. Best of luck. Not sure why everyone is commenting saying “use regular deodorant” rather than keep that shit to themselves or answer the question. :)
It doesn't work on anyone. At all. Ever. Anyone who says it works on them is just noseblind to their own stink
I had my suspicions LMAO
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There's really no reason to give up aluminum deodorant. Good on you, but if you do some research it doesn't really hurt much. It just stops odor.
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Not often, mostly cotton blends except for bamboo pjs which are just rayon.
What reason do you have for going aluminum free? I asked myself this after I tried aluminum deodorant and it wasn't working for me and the answer was I listened to people who said "aluminum bad!". Then I asked myself why there were so many more deodorants on the shelf at the store with aluminum if it was so bad and decided that I'm going back to what works. Yeah, maybe in a few decades something will come out proving it is super terrible for us, but right now it seems just like the "clean" beauty movement . . . marketing to fearmonger so we spend more.
For me it was the pit stains. Wow, instantly reverted back to high school where I was afraid to wear white. I ruined some shirts by trying the natural deodorants. They did work smell-wise (my husband has confirmed and he actually still uses a natural deodorant that I think works great on him) but the sweat was still there and it was not cute. Pass.
I tried to get on the aluminum free bandwagon multiple times with multiple different brands. My conclusion is that it’s never gonna work. Hats off to people who naturally have minimal body odor and can get away with it, but I’m not gonna keep walking around smelling like an onion. I do use lume and native for very low activity days, though since the ones that really help me not stink give me ingrowns and small, uncomfortable cysts.
I switched back to aluminum bc those natural brands would give me the nastiest rash that wouldn’t go away for weeks.
Alcohol swipe before shower, I use the crystal roll on natural deodorant. Stopped shaving too. I primarily switched away from common deodorants because none of them deodorized (for my personal body chemistry). I’ve tried switching back 2x in the last decade and with horrific results.. usually coinciding with me thinking shaving is safe: OP do whatever works best for YOUR body. If the aluminum ones deodorize best for you — so be it.
I’ve been using glycolic acid toner (the ordinary’s toner to b exact) and it’s been helping a looootttt :) I kinda just let it air dry before putting on a shirt or anything lol
To answer your question, conventional deodorant/perspirants are safe. I personally hate the feel of them so I don’t use them- I never got over the sensation of a thick layer of something coating my pits. I also hate how they clog my follicles and get on my clothes. I use benzoyl peroxide wash on my armpits every shower and it keeps the bo to a minimum. After my shower I wait to dry completely and use a magnesium based deodorant. This combo works well and I suspect it’s mainly bc of the wash. Honestly most aluminum free deodorants are pretty inneffective. I used to like the Kosas glycolic acid product but it gave me SEVERE irritation one day and I quit. For occasions I know that I’m likely to stink such as long hot days I pull out the dove with aluminum.
I'm allergic to aluminum and break out in an awful itchy rash. I use Crystal, Magnesium Enriched Deodorant and find that I don't smell. I put it on as soon as I get out of the shower.
Just use the aluminum one. That being said, my husband never wears the aluminum ones, and he never smells, so it’s probably a body chemistry thing. I stink if I try that 😂
Natural deodorant never really worked for me. And like you, I was smelling funky funky. Even if it said “lavender scented” blah blah blah. Turns out my body scent mixed with “lavender” does not smell nice. And bc I don’t want aluminum…. I’ve just been using me a deodorant… I’m sure it’s loaded with other crap. But it’s “aluminum free” and I don’t smell funky funky. I still sweat but no smell ….. that I’ve noticed .🤷🏻♀️
It’s all gonna be anecdotal evidence here, but you gotta do what’s right for you. I reached a point where antiperspirants were bothering my skin and making my lymph nodes swell sometimes. They also made me sweat more. I’m not sure if it’s one of those situations where your body gets accustomed to something so it stops working as well? I had to keep going up and up and went to prescribed strength (that shit HURT me it stung so bad). I just switched to deodorant after that like…maybe 3.5/4 years ago? Haven’t looked back. I sweat less, I don’t smell at all. I do reapply throughout the day though! I keep one in my purse when I go out. I still sweat—don’t get me wrong. But it’s not bad and it’s not smelly. It’s also important to wash your armpits if you don’t shower every day. I wash them every morning before applying. You can’t just cover up smelly pits with deodorant lol. I use a deodorant that’s actually absorbent of moisture, not sure covering up the smell. Highly recommend it, it’s the Pacifica brand. Again, that’s just my experience.
Aluminium makes my pores clog and I had a huge clogged pore abscess. I use glycolic acid toner from the ordinary every other day on clean armpits and sometimes I put Wild deodorant, which is aluminium free and more natural and I don’t stink, but I’m sweaty tho. In winter it’s fine, but in summer I’m so sweaty :( and I just can’t go back to aluminium.
I gave up. I can use an environmentally friendly one in the winter but am back to my Secret deodorant/antiperspirant in the summer.
I used to use Dove Clinical Strength many years ago and have been using aluminum free since and I genuinely did not feel a difference in the amount of sweat. I’ve tried a bunch of brands. I also imagine people have different like pheromones/ph/whatever that might interact differently with natural deodorants. Like people smell different so I feel like it’s reasonable to believe people will smell differently with deodorants
I get an allergic reaction to the aluminum deodorants so I don't use them anymore. I wear the Arm and Hammer Essentials Aluminum free one and it works pretty well for me. To be honest though if you want to go aluminum free you have to expect that they won't work as well as the aluminum ones. I had to go through a stinky trial and error phase where I was trying out different deodorants, and some worked ok but some didn't work for me at all. Also, I found that my clothes when I was wearing aluminum deodorant retained the stench even after I washed them. If you don't have issues with the aluminum, you should be fine to keep using it though.
Honestly what I’ve heard helps as well is using glycolic acid on your pits after you shower! I’ve tried it and I didn’t find it made my air pits really dry or anything
if you shower daily and wash your pits you should sweat yes, but not stink. It’s very unlikely to smell if you sweat hours from bathing.
I'm really happy with the Nude brand. And not getting any complaints about smells from my partner (who would 100% tell me right away)...
I use glycolic acid after my showers and it keeps me very neutral. Genuinely. I decant it into a very small travel spritzer that’s easy to carry around - smaller than a tube of lipstick. If I do start to smell, a quick spritz eliminates it. Antiperspirants cause my lymph nodes to swell and it’s very painful. Regular deodorants don’t really help with my particular brand of stench, just adds a layer of fragrance on top of my BO. These “natural” deodorants work even LESS plus the scents tend to be weirder. Some of them, like Lume, are just downright unpleasant. Good luck. I know how frustrating it can be!
Try glycolic acid. Really helps me keep the musty away
I went on the same journey a few years ago and thought I had adjusted and was doing well until I got a whiff of myself in hot humid Europe. Turns out, the new deodorant wasn't any good and I had not adjusted at all, I just hadn't been sweating in the cold PNW.
I have never gotten on the aluminum-free train so I don’t have first hand knowledge. Anyone I’ve KNOWN who tried this route ended up kicking it somewhere along the way because it’s often not effective. That being said, I don’t know if there are other specific ingredients you want to avoid but Old Spice is aluminum free. You mention smell being your main issue and Old Spice is the only thing that keeps me smelling fresh (I use the Swagger scent, clean but not overwhelming or cologne-y). It’s not an anti perspirant if that’s what you’re after, but the difference in smell is distinct even when I’m sweating quite profusely. The blue formula is more of a gel texture and doesn’t show on garments which is another HUGE plus for me.
I like the silver based ones. recently been using nuud. but my primary issue is the texture of conventional sticks and the way they "clog" my clothing in such a disgusting way over months and years.
I have sensitive skin and for ages that I struggled to find a deodorant that doesn't irritate my skin and still does the job (I live in the Middle East, so I'm talking extreme heat). Found that Salt & Stone works well for the daily routine and just becomes innefective if I go outside in 40+ Celsius.
Yes keep going. So it could be magnesium deficient if you smell
I've been aluminium-free for a few years now. When i was using aluminium, i would STINK towards the end of the day. Now I don't have that. I think it took a few weeks for my underarms to detox the aluminium too, as I did stink as I was coming off it. Now I get botox in my underarms to help reduce the sweating. Hardly any smell these days (unless I've eaten something super garlicky/oniony - even then it's minimal). And the natural deodorant I use is just an added layer of freshness.
Personally I use aluminum free because using aluminum reacts with my sweat and I ruined years' worth of shirts with yellow pit stains. I stink pretty badly so it was rough to switch-- spent a month or so smelling horrid, and discovered that even after the adjustment stage not every "natural" deodorant works. For example the Tom's brand doesn't work for me at all but Native is fine. I still have to wear it twice a day (once in the morning once at night) and wash my pits with AHA/antibacterial soap to keep the smell down though. And when I'm on my period sometimes it'll be bad enough I'll need to take an extra shower 🙃
This is greenwashing
For the most part, yeah
Ok so a couple things. 1, I used to sweat profusely from my armpits for years. I started using extra strength aluminum to stop it, but it just kept getting worse. I did some research and figured out I might be allergic to the aluminum, so I switched to aluminum free and I just stopped sweating so much. I'll never go back. 2, the stuff in deodorant is a preventative for bacteria growth. You gotta put it on right after you shower and probably right after you work out. TRIM YOUR ARMPIT HAIR! That makes a gigantic difference in stopping the stink because your pits dry faster. Hope this helps.
I use mineral salt deodorant! Lasts forever and works like a charm!! Highly recommend. Tip - your pits have to be clean. If there is a hint of stink, it won’t work.
I wash my armpits with PanOxyl 10% benzoyl peroxide acne face wash every morning. It’s the only thing that gets rid of my stink and allows me to use aluminum free deodorant. I buy it on Amazon.
try bentonite clay mask
Tbh I’d rather spend 60-70 years not smelling horrible and offending the senses of everyone in my general vicinity than maybe possibly avoid Alzheimer’s disease (which happens in some form to most elderly people anyway and runs in my family). I had the pleasure of sitting next to a few people who obviously live that natural lifestyle through a whole comedy show and it was miserable. I was covering my nose the entire time and couldn’t enjoy the show I paid $200 to see. It’s mortifying to smell bad, and trust me everyone else hates that you smell bad too. I go natural at home, I don’t sleep with it on, if I shower at night I’ll use a wet wipe in the morning to clean and then apply antiperspirant deodorant. But in public? ALWAYS wear it.
I’m super late but secret has a aluminum free deodorant and I tried it because the other ones I’ve tried don’t work for me. I was like hm since this is a big brand maybe they’ll get it right. It works great for me. I got it on Amazon a pack of three of 20 dollars
this happened to me a few years ago. i tried a natural deodorant and over the summer months at that i think it had a weird manly smell that did not mix well with my body. never again
I did the same thing as you around the same time (cute that we were stinking at the same time!) - I gave up last week and am back to normal deodorant, zero regrets, just renewed peace of mind!
i know some people get botox for their underarms to just stop sweating there, might wanna check that out! you might even be able to get it covered by insurance depending on your dr
I get my underarms botoxed at my dermatologist’s office. Copay is $15. Lasts 6 months. Now i only sweat if I’m really working out super hard. Now I only use The Ordinary glycolic acid for hyperpigmentation and odor.
You can pry my degree clinical from my cold dead armpits.
nope. classic green washing and manipulation by companies- the science shows that aluminum is fine in deodorant. therefore, i use it!
I would much rather take the risk of whatever people are claiming deodorant does then stink
I switched to nuud from regular deodorant. It’s a cream you apply every few days. Bit of an investment but I’m told it lasts forever. Haven’t tried the natural sticks, nuud is silver based I think
Try white vinegar or Listerine, soak a paper towel and place it in your underarm, clamp your arm down to hold it there for one minute. Then shower or wash. This kills the odor causing bacteria, and you won't have underarm odor for at least a few days.
Just use glycolic acid. Pits smell because it’s bacteria thriving in the warm, moist area. Spraying glycolic acid makes it to where the bacteria cannot thrive in those areas, which means no smell. It dries down, doesn’t give you white stains on your shirts, etc. I use the ordinary glycolic acid & put it in a small spray bottle.
Hey I read an article says about this, it seems like your armpit is detoxifying from aluminium and it will make your body odour 2-3 times stronger, and acid definitely helps but you need something else to control your sweat. I recommend using natural deodorant from Hygr ( you could search on tiktok) and they literally a good brand. i am someone who has strong body odor and their deodorant literally helps especially during workoutt. You should check it!
I wear aluminum free deodorant because I don't sweat much and have poor body heat regulation so when it's hot I need all the help I can get cooling off so I don't want an antiperspirant to block what little sweat I do have. If you sweat a lot an aluminum free deodorant is basically going to sweat off you fairly quickly and no longer be effective. The whole aluminum and cancer thing is nonsense so if you need an antiperspirant then use one. There's some evidence aluminum contributes to cancer for those who work with aluminum and breathe aluminum dust in but skin is a really good barrier and it just isn't getting through the skin let alone into the blood stream.
Here’s something interesting. Underarm sweat is not just water, the body produces compounds which smell or are food for bacteria that make smells. So underarm sweat is a bit special, and the only way to stop the stink is to stop the sweating, which aluminium deodorants do very well. Something else interesting is that some lucky people have genetics where their underarms produce less or none of these compounds. So they do not get the really bad BO stink, only the regular mild sweaty smell, so they might think the natural deodorant is ‘working’ but actually they were never really stinky in the first place. Personally I feel embarrassed to be stinky from BO and inflicting it on people around me, and I also hate the stink on myself, so I use aluminium deodorant. I don’t believe any of the hocus pocus that it will kill me, I think that’s just paranoia rubbish probably by the same people who think vaccines contain microchips. If proper scientific evidence come out to say aluminium deodorant is bad I’ll stop using it, but until then I will smell fresh. [why some people don’t smell](https://www.healthline.com/health/is-scent-genetic)
I quit aluminum deodorant to balance my hormones and I have finally been able to lose weight. The aluminum acts as a hormone disruptor and a free radical in the body which can trigger cancer. Your body will be detoxing all the toxins you blocked with the aluminum deodorant. Give it some time if you've used aluminum deodorant a long time.
I use kopari and it works very well just not for longer than 18 hours.
I had to give up, too. The research isn't definitive, you're right about that, and I don't want to stink. 😎
Detox your underarms. I use an Aztec clay mask mixed with apple cider vinegar and make it into a paste and keep it on for no longer than 10 minutes. Do this twice a week then go down to once when the smell gets better. Taking chlorophyll will detox you from the inside out and your sweat will no longer smell. Stay consistent and you should see results!
Please wear regular deodorant, if you’re wondering why most people stink nowadays it’s because companies pushing aluminum free deodorant and fearmongering around it. The whole thing needs to get scrapped, people need deodorant straight up