natural deodorant — Housewife's Whimsy

This summer I’ve been trying to find a green deodorant that works. If you’ve ever tried switching from antiperspirants you know the struggle. If you’ve never tried to switch, one stage you go through is being VERY stinky. This is due to your body detoxing from all the nasty chemicals you’ve been putting on your body.Here are several of those nasty ingredients commonly found in commercial antiperspirants :

Aluminum – some link it to breast cancer and Alzheimer’s disease.
Parabens – disrupt hormones; traces have been found in breast cancer tissue.
Formaldehyde – acts as a carcinogenic substance.
Phthalates – another hormone disruptor; linked to infertility.
Antibacterial substances – have an adverse effect on immune system function and affect hormonal balance.
Propylene glycol – an agent used in antifreeze.

When you decide to cleanse your deodorant from these products, there are several things you can do to help alleviate the stink of your detoxing armpits. One way is to detox your armpits. This is a fairly easy way to shorten the natural detox time.I personally tried two different ways of detoxing and found they both worked pretty well. The easiest way is with Bentonite clay. You typically find this ingredient in face masks or body detox masks. It is very effective at removing toxins from the body.[amd-yrecipe-recipe:85] The one issue I had with detoxing this way was my armpits then smelled very strongly of vinegar. Even when using essential oils the vinegar smell still lingered for a while. This was ok if I did the detox right before bed, but if I had anywhere to go I felt uncomfortable with the smell.I kept looking for another option and tried Root’s Peppermint Mud Mask. This actually worked AMAZING. I was very surprised with the results. Not only did it detox the armpit smell for just as long as the bentonite clay, it had a wonderful peppermint smell that lasted for quite a while.If you are having trouble switching over to a natural, green deodorant I would highly suggest trying to detox your armpits to help shorten the “stinky” period. Good luck!

Natural deodorant can be so expensive so I wanted to try and find an alternative that I could make on my own. Not only would this save money but I would also be able to get a deodorant without all of the nasty additives. I tried a couple of different recipes and I found on that works very well for my body.You can try different levels of baking soda and essential oils in order to get an odor coverage that works for your body type. Because I have such sensitive skin I have used very little baking soda since it is so abrasive. During the summer you can add a tablespoon of beeswax to help it keep shape since Coconut Oil is liquid above 76 degrees. If you don’t add beeswax in the summer you will want to keep your deodorant in the fridge.

Homemade Natural Deodorant:2 Tablespoons Baking Soda¼ Cup Arrowroot Starch5 Tablespoons Coconut Oil4 Drops Lavender Essential Oil3 Drops Lemon Essential Oil2 Drops Tea Tree Essential Oil Melt the coconut oil in the microwave, you want it to be liquid so everything will mix evenly.

When the oil is melted add the baking soda, arrowroot starch and essential oils.

Pour the mixture into a clean deodorant container or a container with a lid.

Use as you would normal deodorant. I find that it takes a few extra minutes to dry. I've never had any issues with smell as long as I use it consistently.