5 Tips for a Successful Switch to Natural Deodorant

I’ve switched to natural deodorant about 2 years ago now. It’s long been on my mind to blog about it and hopefully help you with some tips to make the transition, too!

I’m not gonna lie, I used to suffer from pretty pungent body odor. It was one of those things I’ve always dealt with. All my life, I didn’t know any different. I’d just mask it up with as much deodorant as possible.

Until I got into essential oils. And the desire for a more natural routine all around became a higher priority.

At first, I tried using straight-up essential oils to combat body odor instead. What I didn’t realize, was that there is a whole process to switching to natural deodorant.  There is a detox period. And commercial natural deodorants make your life a whole lot easier than making your own. At first, anyway. If you want, you can graduate to making your own essential oils deodorant, eventually. But I would honestly start simpler.

I’ll show you my top 3 choices in natural deodorant. I’ll introduce you to the background information of how and why natural deodorants work. Plus, I’ll show you what worked for me to successfully switch over to using only natural deodorant – and feeling confident even in the sweatiest of situations.

The Problem

Regular deodorants and anti-perspirants contain aluminum. Aluminum is not actually needed for any processes in the human body. In fact, Aluminum prevents your body from sweating naturally through your armpits and sweat glands ¹. Rather than sweating out your body’s toxins, the bacteria and toxins are trapped in your sweat pores. This bacteria is what causes body odor. The bacteria builds up and doesn’t have a way to escape.

Many deodorants are actually the cause for our bodies collecting so much stink.

Once you free your pores and switch to aluminum- and paraben-free deodorant, you can fight bacteria naturally. Using natural deodorant allows your body to sweat freely. It doesn’t trap any bacteria inside your body, and keeps those toxins from building up. Everything that should, gets flushed out with natural sweat.

The Detox Period

Your body will need a period of time to adjust to the natural deodorant. This is what I first wasn’t aware of, and got quite surprised by. It seemed like my body was smellier than ever! It smelled differently, too. But this was just because it was expelling the year long build-up of aluminum and odor-causing bacteria from my sweat pores.

Years of built-up bacteria and aluminum takes a while to work through! When you switch to a natural deodorant for the first time, the excess of bacteria and built-up toxins in your body may make it hard for your new deodorant to keep up. While the detox period length varies from person to person, it’s usually from anywhere between 3 days to 3 weeks. For myself personally, it was about 2 weeks.

Once the detox period is over, your armpits should feel normal again. You shouldn’t experience any prolonged issues with body odor or other detox symptoms.

Drinking plenty of water will help you during your sweat detox period.

To help you make the best transition (and shortest detox period), drink plenty of water so you stay hydrated. And then, just know what is happening, why it is happening, and allow yourself to sweat it out. Go with it. It’ll be over soon and your body will thank you forever.

Find Your Formula

I’ve tried and tested about 6 or 7 brands of natural deodorants by now. There are a few things I’d like to pass along.

Don’t be afraid to order a Classic Sampler Pack to try out different scents.
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• The scent choice matters. I have tried different scents from the same brand, with different results. This makes sense as essential oils are used in formulating these deodorants. And different essential oils react differently with our body chemistry. For example, I haven’t had much luck with NATIVE’s Lavender Rose scent, but their Cucumber Mint is my absolute go-to deodorant. Go figure, hey?! It’s the same brand, just a different scent. Don’t be afraid to order the sampler pack and try out the different scents. What works for me may not work for you, and vice versa.
• Baking soda or not? Some armpits may be more sensitive to baking soda compared to others’. Especially if you have shaved pits, you may  be more sensitive to baking soda. But, baking soda adds an extra layer of bacteria-killing protection for those with particularly strong body odor. You’ll have to try and see what works for you! You can also keep two types of deodorants on hand. One for regular daily use, and one for when you plan a workout or strenuous activity and want to feel confidently stink-free.
• Consistency. The best deodorants are easy to apply, but not so mushy that they feel more like a cream. Some natural deodorants are too hard for my liking, and applying them feels like scraping on a stick of wax or something. Most brands offer sampler sizes, and it’s not a bad idea to order a sample first, to make sure the consistency and way of application is also suitable for you. If you don’t like it, you’re at least not throwing out a whole tub full.

The Best Natural Deodorants

These are my top choices for natural deodorant.

Native

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NATIVE’s Cucumber & Mint natural deodorant is my daily go-to. It makes me smell and feel fresh! Native deodorant is free of nasty ingredients like aluminum, parabens or sulfates. Instead, its formula contains coconut oil, shea butter, and tapioca starch.

NATIVE’s Cucumber & Mint Natural Deodorant
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The deodorant application is smooth and seamless. The consistency is soft, supple, and easy to apply. Still, you don’t waste any by it being too soft or anything. It’s just perfect and I simply love it!

You can order Native deodorants in a traditional plastic tube, or opt for their plastic-free packaging made from responsibly managed forests.

Native Deodorant Contains Naturally Derived Ingredients, 72 Hour Odor Control | Deodorant for Women and Men, Aluminum Free with Baking Soda, Coconut Oil and Shea Butter | Cucumber & Mint

$12.97

Plant Therapy

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Plant Therapy is a leader in essential oils. Their natural deodorants are a perfect addition to your shopping cart.

Available in 2 scents, these natural deodorants cover ladies’ underarm pits of many characters and styles. The consistency is a lot like the one of NATIVE’s deodorant, which works well and applies comfortably.

Plant Therapy’s Natural Deodorant
Get yours here

The deodorant base includes coconut oil, shea butter, tapioca starch and baking soda. These natural ingredients work together to neutralize odor, absorb wetness and help your underarms stay fresh.

Overall, this is a great natural deodorant in fun scent choices, that applies well and works as expected. I do wish there were more than 2 scents available, though!

WildRoot

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WildRoot natural deodorants are a bit thicker in consistency, and apply a bit harder. This isn’t always a bad thing, but it doesn’t lend itself as easily to taking them camping, when colder overnight temperatures already don’t work in your favor.

WildRoot Meadow Sensitive Skin Formula Natural Deodorant
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The scent choices are a bit more limited, too, but they’re still fabulous if you have a chance to get them. The WildRoot “Meadow” sample was my favorite. I was excited about the “Wildflower”; but sadly Lavender just doesn’t seem to work for me and my body’s sweat glands.

WildRoot has two easy choices for their natural deodorant formulas: Performance or Sensitive. The Performance line includes baking soda as part of their ingredients. The Sensitive line does not.

This “Meadow” scented sensitive skin deodorant gave me no issues. I enjoyed it for everyday use.

Deodorant Comparison

Pair it with Natural Body Soap

This may be the best secret tip of my natural deodorant experience.

At first, I was still using a commercial grade “chemical-laden” body soap to wash my underarm pits. But here I was testing these deodorants and evaluating how I smelled with them. And I was frankly getting mixed results. It was better than my previous aluminum deodorant, but there was still something left to be desired.

Use natural soap for washing your body, too.

Then one day I had an epiphany about the aluminum and toxins in body soap, and thought that if I put that on my body, wouldn’t some of it absorb through the skin and stay? Doh! Commercial grade foaming body washes and the like, aren’t exactly a natural choice.

That’s the day I ordered NATIVE’s body wash as well and it changed my life. Suddenly, there was absolutely no more stink! I now use only natural body soap in the shower. And I use my own foaming hand soap made with essential oils and Castile soap for those days where I just do a quick armpit wash instead of a full shower. If you prefer soap bars, going the natural route there is also your best choice. Order a natural body soap or follow this recipe on how to make them at home.

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Final Thoughts

Since using the combo of natural body wash and natural deodorant, I am 100% stink-free every day. Even during workout and exercise, I am confident that my body won’t smell obnoxiously.

Even though it may take a little adjusting at first, I think you’re going to be thrilled with your switch to natural deodorant. I know I was, and I wouldn’t go back!

It feels so good to do good things for your body, and natural deodorant is a pretty painless way to treat your body right.

Natural deodorant yields happy armpits!

References

¹ SweatBlock.com: Aluminum Chloride – 6 Things You Need to Know