I recently saw a journalist request looking for information about doing an “armpit detox” which reminded me I’ve had this post in mind for a while now.
In case you didn’t already know, I stopped using shampoo and conditioner in March 2015 and I noticed a few cool things as a result.
The more I got into “greener” living, the more everyday household products I wanted to switch and deodorants were one of the first things I ditched.
I was reading about aluminium in deodorants and links to breast cancer and all that kind of scaremongering stuff. Whether or not aluminium is a danger to us I wouldn’t know but I like to take a “better safe than sorry” approach to these things and just see how I feel, better or otherwise.
So one morning, instead of using my trustee roll-on deodorant and engulfing myself in a cloud of antiperspirant, I simply swiped my armpits with coconut oil, added a dusting of bicarbonate of soda (yep, that’s a thing) and head off out the door.
Needless to say, I haven’t gone back to conventional deodorant since.
Why?
My chronic headaches have disappeared
Never mind how I smell or how much I sweat. Since I stopped using conventional aerosol sprays of any kind - antiperspirants, air fresheners, dry shampoos, perfumes, bathroom cleaners, the lot - the headache I woke up with every single morning for years has vanished completely.
This is literally my number one reason for recommending anyone to do an “armpit detox” - something something science Formaldehyde something something not cool man.
Also…
My chronic sore throat has cleared
I only get a sore throat in three situations:
- I’ve been eating sugar and carbs (more on that later)
- I’ve got a cold (duh)
- I, or someone close to me, has been spraying some nasty aerosol product
I’d completely cut out all of my own sprays but hadn’t managed to talk Graeme into it yet.
But the time came when a few mornings in a row he sprayed his antiperspirant at the other end of the flat, walked to the bedroom to kiss me goodbye, and my throat became so agitated that I had a coughing fit.
Soon after that he started his own armpit detox and of course, I haven’t had a coughing fit like that since.
The lowdown
I truly believe from experience that most low-level ailments like frequent headaches, colds and digestive distress are largely caused by the food and personal care products most of us are putting in or on our bodies.
If you eat junk food and use perfume and clean your toilet with bleach every day and you feel 100% fit as a fiddle, then whoopdeefuckingdo for you.
But if you feel like hell in the mornings and sluggish all day like I used to, I really believe that it might not just be because of your genes or hormones “acting up”.
Your body knows when something isn’t good for it and pain is like its way of asking you to stop what you’re doing - but too few of us listen to our bodies anymore, or even know how to.
Again, I’m no official source for scientific research, but as a starting point maybe take a look into endocrine disruptors and how they can play havoc with our hormones and cause all kinds of ailments.
There are lists out there of all the main nasty ingredients to avoid but to be honest, I have no bloody time for that and I’m sure you don’t either.
When it comes to personal care products I take the same loose approach as I do with my food - I generally only consume things I can pronounce that don’t really need super long ingredients labels.
So while the coconut oil and bicarb combo was working well enough it wasn’t amazing, so I decided to start buying pre-made natural deodorants online.
The “armpit detox”
Some people say that like with ditching shampoo your armpits can go through a detox of their own until your hormones balance out.
I hadn’t noticed any difference in my pits whatsoever after switching to coconut oil, but when I started using pre-made deodorants I found they made my pits smell really sour and stale even when I didn’t sweat.
So instead of waiting out the “armpit detox” I just binned the first few brands I tried until I found ones that worked for me.
This makes sense to me now as that’s what I did when I ditched shampoo - if something didn’t work, I moved onto the next method until I struck gold with my favourite DIY “shampoo” recipes.
Detox, schmetox.
What I use now
Graeme and I both tried deodorants from some of the major green brands out there and they just weren’t for us, but they might work great for you.
Equally you might decide to try the brands that we love and they might not work for you - it’s probably your personal genetic makeup, maybe you’re actually going through a detox - or you could be eating too much sugar, carbs and other rubbish food.
Honestly, I firmly believe in this theory from personal experience. When I eat stuff that upsets my gut suddenly morning breath, sweat and B.O come back with a vengeance.
In contrast, when I’m eating right I don’t feel like I need deodorant at all in terms of odour - I truly believe that an armpit detox actually has to start with your diet before you can decide whether or not a natural product is working effectively for you.
To be completely honest no natural deodorant always stops me sweating completely, but that’s only because I have a bit of social anxiety which I’m working on.
Plus something something science the body needing to sweat out toxins and antiperspirants being the devil.
Anyway, these are the three brands we love:
Fit Pit
We picked up a jar of this 100% natural and organic deodorant cream in hiSbe in Brighton quite recently - an amazing social enterprise supermarket that puts its customers and suppliers before profits and shareholders. Squee <3
The deodorant is handmade by The Green Woman in the UK, is suitable for vegans and is free from aluminium, parabens, BPAs, petrochemicals and plastic packaging.
It sounds a bit weird to use creams and balms instead of roll-on liquids and sprays, but Graeme and I get along really well with these types of deodorant.
We got one jar of the “man” one first to try the brand out and so far we both love the cypress scent.
At £8 for 100ml I think it’s excellent value for money - they say 100ml is about a three-month supply but based on the rate I use cream deodorants this would have lasted me around eight months had I not been sharing it with Graeme.
Clean Living Collection
If you’re US-based or don’t mind paying for international delivery, another natural deodorant I love is by Clean Living Collection.
I originally connected with owner Ariel on Instagram, a fellow shampoo-free green beauty who makes her own natural products, and when I ordered some of her hemp and green tea cleansing “cold” cream (which I talk about here) she very kindly included a deodorant and lip balm (which I talk about here) and both have become firm favourites.
The deodorant is a more traditional stick so for anyone who doesn’t like the thought of dipping their fingers into balms every day, this one’s for you. The consistency is pretty solid so I just let the stick sit against my skin for a few seconds to let it soften a little before gently and slowly rolling it across my skin.
Ariel sent me her jasmine and lavender version and I really like the smell, it’s much stronger than most natural deodorants I’ve tried which is nice as I usually leave the house smelling of nothing at all since I realised that sprays and perfumes cause my headaches.
She also does an “extra strength” version for the hygiene-obsessed out there, as well as unscented versions, so if you’re worried about being sensitive to essential oils this is a good place to start for any armpit detox.
At $10 for 2.65oz (about £8 for 75ml-ish) this is a great option if you’re State-side or happen to be ordering other bits from Ariel - besides the lip balm and cleanser I mentioned above I also use her tooth powders which I talk about here - she is a bit of a natural skincare wizard.
The Natural Deodorant Co.
The first brand I found that really worked for me is called The Natural Deodorant Co. (that is some pretty low-hanging fruit for any armpit detox enthusiasts out there).
I found them through buying samples from natural and organic retailer Naturisimo and even gave some to friends and family as I loved them so much.
This was also the first natural deodorant that worked for Graeme after a few failed attempts at buying him “normal”-looking products.
He was a little reluctant to use a cream as a deodorant but, like me, he went onto repurchase it.
They have different ranges depending on how much sodium bicarbonate you want in your formula. The more you use the more odour control you get but some people are sensitive to bicarb so definitely try out their samples - and don’t use it on freshly-shaven pits, you’ll feel a bit raw after.
At £11 for 60ml it’s not as good value as Fit Pit or Clean Living Collection, so personally we won’t be repurchasing it anymore, but we do love their formulas, scents - and their rather pretty Instagram feed 😉
Or, make your own all-natural deodorant…
If you take a look at the ingredients on natural deodorants, you should figure out pretty quickly just how easy they are to get hold of (and if they’re not, maybe ask yourself why…).
Usually the lazy in me stops me from making stuff like this for myself, but I’ve been feeling a bit thrifty lately and I happened to have some coconut oil, shea butter, bicarbonate of soda and some essential oils lying around.
The only extra thing I wanted to buy to make a very basic deodorant was arrowroot powder, which I picked up from my local health food store for 50p.
I even refilled my old deodorant jars with the mixture - we have a couple of drawers in the kitchen dedicated to empty jars and spray bottles - reduce, reuse, recycle and all that jazz.
I’m really sorry to say I completely eyeballed the recipe and didn’t make any notes (I honestly didn’t expect it to actually work), but I think I used:
- 2 tablespoons of coconut oil
- 2 tablespoons of shea butter
- 4 tablespoons of bicarbonate of soda
- 4 tablespoons of arrowroot powder
- 5 drops lavender essential oil
- 4 drops lemon essential oil
- 4 drops ylang ylang essential oil
I melted everything in a double boiler and, somehow, it worked itself into a lovely smooth texture which, on my already detoxed pits and high-protein/fat, no-processed-food diet, does a lovely job all day long.
I made about 120ml of deodorant which should last me about 10 months, and although I don’t know the exact costings I’m pretty sure it cost me about £1-£2 to make and so I’m feeling pretty jammy like.
The arrowroot and bicarb cost is pretty minuscule, and let’s be honest, we all have a jar of coconut oil knocking around these days - the only thing that’s not too normal to have on hand is shea butter and maybe the essential oils.
I bought my shea butter over a year ago from Naissance, when 100g of unrefined, organic shea butter cost me £2.99.
I don’t think I even used a quarter of the pot of shea butter making my deodorant, so yeah, saved me some mega bucks.
The essential oils were just ones I bought from a high street retailer years ago before I took a real interest in organic and sustainable living - but they smell fine, I’ve not had any adverse reaction to them and for now that’s all I really care about.
It’s weird, this whole green living lark has really helped me think outside the box and given me tons more confidence in the kitchen - both food and product-wise.
So I encourage you to play and experiment, and don’t be afraid to colossally fuck it up.
You get used to it, you learn from it, you eventually get it right (well, good enough anyway).
Whatever brand or type of natural deodorant you decide to go for doesn’t matter to me so long as you have your health. If you’re a fellow headache sufferer an “armpit detox” could be just the thing for you - try cutting out all the spray bottles you’ve got lying around the house, crack open a window and see how you get on.
Much love.
Disclaimer
• Your life and health are your own responsibility.
• Your decisions to act (or not act) based on information or advice anyone provides you—including me—are your own responsibility.
