Deoderant

 

Hygiene is an essential part of our lives and an important step in self care. In today’s world we have the luxury of shopping for a variety of hygiene products from various brands and countries. We can choose the preferred ingredients, colors, scents, and even aesthetic. Many people take pride in making their hygiene products part of their self love collection and routine. Now we can take it a step further, and make our hygiene products healthier and a part of our eco conscious decisions. 

1 | DEODORANT AND OUR BODIES

Before I touch base on how deoderant affects our planet, let's start off with how deodorant affects us! Deodorant is applied multiple times throughout the day on our body’s largest organ; our skin. From their, all the chemicals and toxins hiding in your deodorant are then absorbed into your skin and bloodstream Most deodorants contain this ‘magical’ thing called antiperspirant, but what exactly is this miracle sweat stopper?

Antiperspirant contains many harmful chemicals that can affect our health including Parabens, Aluminum, Propylene Glycol, Silica, and Triclosan. Parabens (also commonly labeled as methylparaben, propylparaben, and butylparaben) are the number one concern in antiperspirants. Because Parabens almost mimic the hormone estrogen, there is raised awareness as to the effects of parabens on our body’s hormone and growth levels. New research has also started investigating the potential threat of cancer linked to frequent use of parabens in deodorant, shampoos, and other hygiene products. 

Next well take a look at Propylene Glycol. This ingredient in both deodorant and anti freeze has become a new question to many health advocates. Like Parabens, Propylene Glycol is an additive with questionable health effects. Some research has hypothesized that Propylene Glycol can cause urinary, neurological, and cardiovascular problems.  However, despite this, Propylene Glycol has been deemed ‘usually safe’ by the FDA. But why is something that is ‘usually safe’ added to our daily products in the first place? 

Lastly we have Aluminum. Aluminum is the magic ingredient that clogs your sweat pores in order to make you stop sweating. Aluminum has begun a new topic of discussion as it accumulates and stay in your body for years. Although, the research on aluminum is new, anything that keeps your body from naturally sweating out toxins and cellular waste cannot be good for you.

All in all, the ingredients in our deodorant are questionable at best, but it doesn’t stop there.

2 | DEODERANT AND THE PLANET

Now most of us don't always think about how our hygiene products affect our planet or our bodies. But it's surprising that even something as simple as deodorant can leave a huge carbon footprint, hurt innocent animals, and put our bodies at risk. 

Unfortunately, deodorants generally come in non reusable and non recyclable plastic containers. The deodorant residue left inside the containers as well as their complex design is what makes the recycling process near impossible when it comes to deodorant tubes. This is probably why you have never see a recycling symbol on deodorant packaging! When we only use one deodorant tube for about a month or so, we are slowly building up the amount of plastic we use yearly, and we are slowly polluting our planet and ecosystems with each roll.

It’s not just the plastic containers that hurt our environment, it’s also the ingredients within the deoderant. Deodorants contain two big chemicals that should never be present in our hygiene products or our environment; aluminum and triclosan. 

Aluminum is one of the main ingredients in deodorant, and it is what allows us to smell like flowers for hours on end. A significant amount of energy and resources goes into refining and producing viable aluminum and on top of this, loads of greenhouse gases are emitted during this process, harming the air and the ozone. While showering we are washing down all of the chemicals we have previously placed on our skin down the drain, including aluminum. This contaminated water then ends up in our produce, oceans, and waterways. As a result, aluminum has been found in many of our water systems such as lakes, rivers, and our oceans. There it pollutes the water and posions the plants and animals that peacefully live there.  Aluminum not only requires a ton of processing to be produced but also washes off and harms ecosystems. 

Triclosan is our favorite hygiene PESTICIDE! Yes, you heard me right, pesticide. Once you wash that sucker off it eventually ends up in our precious waterways or back to our tap water. In the water ways, triclosan and the sun make a dangerous mix and produce Dioxin, which is one of the most toxic compounds to our environment. In our tap water, triclosan and chlorine, commonly found in tap water, can produce the poisonous chloroform which is toxic to…humans. 

Last but not least, we’ll talk about animal testing. Some of the most common and popular beauty brands test these toxic chemicals on our favorite animals. Brands such as Dove, Degree, Secret, and Suave, are all guilty of animal cruelty! Not only are they using harsh chemicals that affect us and the planet, but they are also testing these chemicals on innocent animals. Animal testing has been around for quite some time and the sad truth is that most animals are treated horrendously throughout the trials and often die from the side affects. During regulatory testing, as many as 1,000 subjects can be used per test, many subjects die throughout the process, and generally the test results are deemed ‘unreliable’. Studies use animals such as cats, dogs, monkeys, hamsters, rabbits, farm animals, and mice.

Seriously though, who would have thought deodorant could be this bad?

3 | WHERE TO BUY

Without a good deodorant your days can feel long and uncomfortable. But it can be hard to find a good deodorant without all the chemicals and plastic. So here is my compiled list of deodorants that can make a difference to your body and the planet! 

MYRO

Myro is a newly sprouted brand that I have come to adore. Not only is this brand eco friendly and animal cruelty free, but they also feature their super cute reuseable deoderant containers! I have been using Myro for about a month now and usually non antiperspirants don't work for me but this one keeps me smelling wonderful all day! Their deodorant is a bit more pricey centered at $10 a refill however, in comparison to popular deodorant brands like Secret Invisible it's only about a $2-3 difference!

BY HUMANKIND

Is another cute brand like Myro but on the more expensive side. They offer more natural based ingredients and they are fragrance free! They also have products such as a mouthwash and bar shampoo.

LOVE AND PLANET

Love and planet is another amazing brand and by far one of my favorites. Although they do not have refillable deoderant cases, they do have eco friendly and animal cruelty free products for the same price as typical brands! They are available at Target and other common retailers!

DIY
Now, we’ve been through some of my favorite brands that offer eco friendly deodorant, but what about a do it yourself? Here is a simple recipe to make your own at home deodeeant that is natural, eco friendly, animal cruelty free, and plastic free!

2 ½ Tablespoons unrefined coconut oil

2 ½ Tablespoons unrefined shea butter

¼ cup arrowroot (cornstarch is a substitute)

1 ½ tablespoons baking soda (because baking soda is literally a god send that can be used for anything and everything)

10 drops essential oil of your choice

1. Melt shea butter and coconut oil in pan, or preferably double boiler.

2. Mix in cornstarch, baking soda, and essential oils.

3. Pour mixture into the container of your choice (generally a jar), and cool to room temperature or fridge until solid.

4 | CONCLUSION

Deodorant has been a necessity for many of us over the years. I myself have come to love smelling body order free, hours on end. However, when antiperspirant deodorants come at such a high cost to our bodies, the environment, and animals, there needs to be a change. I hope this has inspired you all to find the perfect eco friendly deodorant that fits your needs and self care routine!

Photograph by Max Rivera Patton