Make Your Own Deodorant

Most anybody reading this blog has probably already discovered that commercial antiperspirant is not particularly good for you for several reasons:

• Antiperspirant, contains aluminum.  Aluminum has been linked to Alzheimer’s and breast cancer.
• Antiperspirants work because the aluminum blocks, or clogs, your sweat glands, meaning you don’t sweat, when maybe you should. God made our bodies to perspire. Perspiration is a necessary, healthy function. Masking this function forces the body to find another pathway for temperature control and detoxification. Cutting off your body's ability to sweat is like not going to potty when you get the urge!! Yep! Same thing. The body experiences a backlog of toxins with nowhere to go.
• Just nixing the aluminum-filled antiperspirant and substituting plain commercial deodorant doesn't solve the whole problem. Deodorants contain many harmful chemicals such as the antibacterial Triclosan. Triclosan interacts with free chlorine in tap water and degrades under sunlight to produce chloroform, which is both toxic and carcinogenic following inhalation or skin absorption, particularly while bathing in warm water.
• Women have special cause to be alarmed by all of the above, since our routine usually goes something like this: shower in warm water, shave our underarms during the shower, exit and apply a generous dose of poison to the freshly-opened pores and newly-exposed hair follicles! 

But obviously no one wants to offend their neighbor with unpleasant odors--so what to do? Why not make your own healthy deodorant. It is simple and very effective once you realize, that without all those chemicals designed to give the bad stuff its long-lasting properties, the homemade version needs to be applied more frequently. Also, realize that you are making a deodorant--it will make you smell better, but you will sweat. People who have been accustomed to nary a bit of moisture will no doubt at first be somewhat unnerved by this. Take heart! You will get so used to feeling "bare" that applying antiperspirant will feel like slathering glue over your armpit. And as the days and weeks pass since your last chemical antiperspirant application you will begin to notice that you perspire less. Maybe not when you go for a run or work in the yard, but who cares about those times--you're supposed to be sweaty. But once your body realizes you have quit applying the daily mask it will relax and tell the sweat glands to quit pumping overtime.

Start out with this simple liquid spritzer. Here's all you'll need:

My slightly-used products.

Mix 4 oz of the lemon witch hazel (use Thayers-the no name drugstore brand smells funky) with 4-5 drops of grapefruit seed extract (a wonderfully powerful natural antibacterial about which you can read more here). Add a few drops of pure essential oil--lemon, grapefruit, rosemary, tea tree, or eucalyptus work nicely. Put in a spritzer bottle and carry with you everywhere, applying every 3-4 hours as needed. Remember to shake well before using.
Another great plus for making your own: You can use it on your face (close your eyes first) as a toner, on your pets (avoid their eyes too), or anywhere you'd use an air-freshener!

For those who prefer a solid deodorant, I'll have a recipe for that in an upcoming blog. I'd love to get similar recipes from some of you.