the state of my pits

i'm guessing everyone is on the edge of their seat wondering about the state of my armpits

are they stinky?

am i sweaty?

have i been banned from my cubical at work?

i'm slightly probably kinda a little bit more "natural" smelling when i get home at the end of the day

but i wouldn't say stinky

as far as sweaty - i'm pretty dry while at the office

and i would say i would have to commit far worse crimes than being smelly for them to ask me to leave

but no one's said anything either way

and i don't work with nice people

i mean that in the nicest way possible

i mean, if i smelt bad, no one would have an issue riding me about it.

so what have i been using?


naturally fresh deodorant crystal

this was the exact same product i used a couple of years ago, and i went back to it

as i searched the aisles of rainbow blossom (a local health store) there were several deodorants and sprays to choose from

but many had ingredients that left me wondering if they would cause me to break out too - like TOM's of Maine

Naturally Fresh contains :  Natural Mineral Salts (Ammonium Alum), Aloe Vera (Aloe Barbadensis Extract)

and since i knew it worked before, i went with it

the stick is pricey - about $7-$8 BUT.  it lasts FOR-EV-errr

i remember throwing my other stick out to reduce bathroom clutter when i switched back to secret.

i would say it lasts 3-4x longer than a regular solid deodorant (including reapplying if you wish during the day)

the "stick" is basically a hard crystal that you wet before swiping it on - not ideal, but not really a hassle either

there's no sticky residue - and nothing is left behind to rub off on your clothes

it creates an invisible barrier

which probably takes some getting used to - especially if you're like me and smell your armpits on the way to work to make sure you remembered to put on your deodorant in the first place

and you can't do the touch test either - because there won't be any residue to feel

this product won't keep you dry during a workout - but that's not really an issue for me, as i shower afterwards

they also sell a liquid version i might try - as it may feel more like conventional deodorant


but all in all i would say i give this guy 2 arms up

adventures in going natural

so recently i've been trying to switch my beauty products over to more

natural

organic

less chemical laden

products.

and originally i wasn't really going to blog about it, because, really, who cares - right?

buy whatever you want; we're mass marketed to - and pretty much mainstream media has made us believe that natural organic is the solution and everything else is the devil

and that's kind of true.  kinda.

so, this isn't like breaking news that i'm saying switch your sunscreen to one that doesn't contain oxybenzone!

but seriously - do that.  

About OXYBENZONE: Oxybenzone is a sunscreen ingredient associated with photoallergic reactions. This chemical absorbs through the skin in significant amounts. It contaminates the bodies of 97% of Americans according to Centers for Disease Control research.

there are several "studies" i would argue their claims - but when the Centers for Disease Control makes a claim, i usually consider that the WORD.

ok, so why am i going here

well because we are sheep that are lead to believe the claims on packages

and sometimes we're (i'm) too lazy to do my research - at least i WAS- on products 

and i ended up with a rash in my armpits.

let me backtrack.  that is, if you're willing to read about my armpits.

 

i decided to switch out my aluminum filled deodorant for something more natural

i had switched sometime ago to a "crystal" deodorant, but for whatever reason i went back to my "secret" brand.  probably because it made my pits smell like roses.  and the crystal deodorant left me smelling neutral.

how was i ever going to snag a husband with neutral smelling armpits?

anyways, i was pretty aware of the products out there

and i decided to purchase a stick of TOMS long lasting lavender scented deodorant

i liked that it was scented and that it was a stick - easy to apply

after about a week of use i realized i had incredibly smooth armpits!

awesome!

seriously - i've always suffered from dry peppered armpits.  i swear i could never get a close shave or maintain one 

leading me to keep my arms down at all times.

but now?

now i was going to raise my hands at any opportunity.

i was amazed and so happy that i switched to something "natural"

until about 3 days ago

i had got out of the shower and was admiring my armpits and putting on deodorant before bed.

when i realized my whole armpit area was red

i'll spare you any pictures - but like my whole pit area- an oval shaped red splotch was taking over

i kind of let it slide - i mean if that was the price i had to pay for smooth pits

until last night - i got out of the shower and was putting my deodorant on and i swear the red splotchiness was expanding - and looking more irritated.

it didn't hurt or itch, but my skin was inflamed.

i took to google.

and amazon - i love amazon - specifically their reviews.

i'll let you peruse those reviews - those are the one star reviews - there were several 4 and 5 star reviews too - but just as many 1 and 2 star reviews which is always a red flag to me when i DO check out products before purchasing.

so long story short - i wasn't the only one suffering from angry armpits!  i'm just glad mine aren't in the itchy phase.

and then i took to looking at the ingredients - namely

propylene glycol (anti freeze)

About PROPYLENE GLYCOL: Propylene glycol is a small organic alcohol commonly used as a skin conditioning agent. It has been associated with irritant and allergic contact dermatitis as well as contact urticaria in humans; these sensitization effects can be manifested at propylene glycol concentrations as low as 2%.

it's an irritant and allergic contact dermatitis - and at a low concentration...

ugh.

this product labeled "natural" is total bullshit.

i realize there's not any sort of regulation on products labeled "natural"

but i thought toms was a product i could trust

so i'm not wearing any deodorant right now

i ditched it cold turkey

not forever, just until i can get to the store on lunch and find something else

am i going back to my "secret"?

the short answer - no.

even though i never suffered from angry pits using their product

i can't feel the long term affects of highly refined chemicals being absorbed by my body 

and i'm still determined to use something ACTUALLY natural.

one resource i would encourage anyone to use who is interested in finding out what's actually in their beauty cabinet is EWG's cosmetic database

you can look up practically any beauty product - hair, skin, nails, etc

or, you can click on sub categories and browse products by rating

you're aiming for products in the 0-2 "green" range which are low hazard

you can see my toms deodorant score here

to my surprise it actually scores a 1 on the scale- which i guess skin irritant isn't on the same level as cancerous skin eating disease. 

and my secret deodorant is here which scores a 4 (moderate hazard)

natural to me are products that don't have chemically sounding names.

and that's what i'm aiming for

when i look at the EWG's site at "top" antiperspirants/deodorants

it's pages of the crystal style deodorant

what i used to use

and since i already snagged me a husband

i'm going back to smelling neutral

(i've switched out a few other products recently - i may or may not explore my happiness/sadness with those as well...i mean - if you made it this far maybe you like reading about my armpits and other crevices)