Those that worked, and those that were the pits
By Katie Czenczek, Staff Writer
With the ever-growing push for natural products in the beauty industry, deodorant and antiperspirants have also joined the ranks of the natural beauty movement. It can be daunting to make the switch from chemically-filled pit-sticks to natural deodorants, just because you might wonder if natural products are strong enough to prevent you from smelling like you fear showers—instead of like flowers. No one wants to sing a song about how their body odor caused them to lose friends the way Pumba from The Lion King did. That’s exactly why I decided to provide a list of products that work and those that failed to hit their mark.
Before getting started, it’s worth noting that if you genuinely want to make the switch to natural deodorant and were using antiperspirants regularly beforehand, you may need to let your body flush out all of the gunk that antiperspirants have stopped you from sweating out. The process takes some people up to two weeks until they find that natural deodorants start to work. Antiperspirants block your sweat ducts, and therefore releasing years of built-up body excretion within a short span of time may cause you to smell particularly rank, but it’s all a matter of giving your body that time to adapt.
Also, natural products will not prevent you from sweating. They’re created to prevent stench while allowing your body to naturally flush out toxins from its system. It may be shocking how much you sweat on a regular basis without antiperspirants, but I remain skeptical that it can be good for your body to hold all those toxins in regularly.
The first deodorant I tried was from the band Jāsön. I tried out their soothing aloe vera deodorant stick, along with their apricot stick. I immediately felt as if I made a mistake trying this one out because not only did I noticeably smell worse, but it felt like I took a glue stick and rubbed it all over my armpits. I’m not exactly sure what caused this to occur. Every time I raised and lowered my arms I felt like I had to pry them apart. Overall, both sticks I tried from this brand were a hard pass.
Tom’s deodorant ultimately had the exact same results as the Jāsön products, only a little less sticky and a little smellier.
The next one I tried was from Saje. I tried out their crystal deodorant stick and found that it worked extremely well. All you have to do is add warm water to the stick and apply it to your armpits for the magic to happen. What’s wonderful about this product is that it feels like you don’t have anything on, because it’s ultimately a salt stick that has antibacterial agents to prevent bad smells. Although this stick was pretty costl ($10), the product itself lasts a ridiculously long time, as a little goes a long way.
The final brand, and one of my favourite products that I tried, is the deodorant cream from Fat and the Moon. I purchased this from a tiny shop in New West called Good Omen on 6th Street. It has coconut oil, aluminum-free baking soda, and a bunch of other natural ingredients that are body-safe and that give it a light, citrusy smell. All you do is smooth a little onto your pits and you’re good to go. Not only does this product work at preventing stench, you never need to worry about having any residue left on your dark clothes or staining your white shirts yellow because it is aluminum-free.
