By Larry Plesent
I am not claiming that Cameron Diaz is singlehandedly responsible for the explosion of interest in organic deodorants. But the superstar’s announcement that she “has not used antiperspirants in 20 years….they are bad for you…” has sparked the interest from fans and others who have always suspected all was not well in underarm protection land. And she is not alone. Julia Roberts, Joan Rivers, Bradley Cooper and Mathew McConoughey have all come out saying that they avoid conventional underarm protection products.
Responding to this need are a slew of new additions to a marketplace traditionally dominated by only a handful of iconic brands.
EO and Weleda make two of my favorite alternative underarm sprays. Both are very natural, but EO features certified organic ingredients which is why they get my vote for first place in that category. Humans are all very different, and this type of natural underarm spray does not always work for everyone. My wife loves the sprays and never seems to smell stinky. But many active people do much better using organic push-up deodorants; which is why we chose to manufacture solid underarm products at Vermont Soap in Middlebury.
Vermont Soap makes an excellent range of push-up type products that are very effective. Sage Lime is quite nice, but I prefer Spicewoods Extra Strength for that longer lasting protection. Other good companies to check out include Organic 101, Truly Organic and Naturalnews.com. All of these companies make the grade for using 100% organic ingredients and for their effectiveness. Remember, organic means audited and found to be natural from farm to bottle. In today’s globalized market, it is nice to have a product you can actually trust as actually being nontoxic and natural. If you are especially aroma-challenged, try using Vermont Soap’s Blue Bar to wash with before using your deodorant. Its double strength tea tree and peppermint blend really seems to help in that department.
‘No-no’ ingredients in conventional underarm products include triclosan (now banned in Europe) and propylene glycol (used in typical anti-freeze) which can cause rashes in sensitive individuals. Why risk this? For a few dollars more you can be using a nontoxic and effective product that is safe for sensitive skin.
Switching to organic deodorants is easy (just do it) but here is a tip. When using organic deodorants for the first time. some people sweat more than usual for the first few days. I have no idea why but certain essential oils can trigger this temporary unintended consequence. You can either bear through it or switch scents until you find the one that works best for your metabolism.
This is The Soapman wishing you and yours an aroma-rific winter!
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