One of the things they don’t tell you about conventional deodorants is that they interfere with your body’s natural process to remove bacteria. Unfortunately, your body has likely become dependent on those chemicals to keep stink at bay. Problem is, these are the kinds of chemicals you’re dealing with in most deodorants:

Common Deodorant Ingredients

Aluminum: Some studies have shown a connection between aluminum to cancer and Alzheimer’s Disease.

Parabens: Disrupts natural hormones and are frequently found in biopsied tissue with breast cancer.

Formaldehyde: Known carcinogen that kills germs, but also can kill healthy cells

Phthalates: Natural hormone disruptors that can create an imbalance in your system.

Propylene glycol: Otherwise known as antifreeze. Carries a slight risk of being toxic for your immune system.

The problem with all these ingredients is that they find their way into your bloodstream. Have you ever noticed that the skin on your armpits feels different than say, the skin on your arms? That thin skin in your armpits is especially susceptible to chemicals seeping through the pores and effecting your lymph nodes. By the way, your lymph nodes play a major role in your immune system. The lymph nodes’ job is to help get rid of toxins, cancer cells, viruses, bacteria, and more. If you’ve ever felt a little lump in your armpit, that is your lymph nodes trying to get rid of something nasty that crept into your pits. Yes, so basically, applying normal deodorant is kind of like putting carcinogenic chemicals and harmful toxins right on top of your lymph nodes!

Obviously, all this talk makes deodorant sound like some secret weapon of massive bodily destruction, which it usually isn’t. But if you’re anything like us, we much prefer to just not take any risks.

There’s something you should absolutely know before buying all-natural deodorant. It probably won’t work super well to begin with. If only we could drop our Dove and Secret deodorant, start using natural deodorant, and immediately start smelling good. Nope! Switching to all- natural deodorant is a process, which is why the detox is so important. There’s one guarantee with conventional deodorant: your body will forget how to manage bacteria (and by extension, odor) on its own. Think of it like going back to school and natural deodorant is the teacher. As your body gets used to not having those nasty chemicals around, it will naturally correct the bacterial imbalance in your armpits, and your sweat won’t smell nearly as bad!

Also, just another bit of inspiration, studies have shown that conventional deodorant messes with the natural microbiome of your underarms, causing bacteria to overproduce and make you smell even worse when your body stop depending on chemicals to control odor. Which is why the detox period is so imperative!

How to Detox

The first step in a thorough detox in buying an all-natural deodorant. Which is probably why you’re here. But be warned! The first few days after you stop using your old deodorant, your sweat could be extra smelly. Reason being your body is still reliant on the deodorant to balance bacteria levels. It might be a wise idea to work out from home for a few days when making the switch to all-natural deodorant if you’re feeling a little self- conscious about it.

Here are 4 tips to get through detoxing your armpits:

Drink Plenty of Water

This one is easy. Water helps your body remove everyday toxins in an efficient, natural way. Drink filtered water for the best benefit!

Mind What You Eat

Believe it or not, certain foods will change the way that your body odor smells! Gross? Yes. But, now that you know, you can avoid smelling worse than you need to. A safe route is to go vegetarian for a few days, which will maintain a neutral body odor. Beware garlic and onions!

Dry Off Carefully After a Shower

Think back to high school science. Bacteria love warm, moist environments! Which basically describes your armpit after coming out of the shower. Make sure you dry your armpits well, and when you’re on the go, wipe off excess sweat in your pits with a paper towel.

 Get Moving and Sweat

From an early age, we’re taught that smelling bad is gross, therefore sweating is gross. We should try to prevent sweating from happening altogether, however this isn’t healthy or natural at all!Anti-perspirants may prevent sweating, but they also clog pores and block sweat glands with aluminum in the process. In other words, you sweat inside the body instead of outside! Which means that nasty combination of bacteria and chemicals stays deep in your tissues. A little exercise to break a sweat, and maybe a little time in the sauna can help speed up the detoxification process as your body relearns how to control bacteria naturally.

Tips for using natural deodorant:

Remember that detoxing is a process

A little sweat is good for you. If you’re not sweating, you’re not efficiently removing toxins from your body.

If you shave your armpits, shave at night and apply deodorant in the morning to avoid irritation (typically caused by slight exfoliation and reaction to baking soda)

DIY Armpit Detox Bentonite Clay Mask

This bentonite clay mask will be your best friend during the detox period. Apply it daily (we recommend applying before getting into the shower) until your stink is gone. Don’t give in and go back to using regular deodorant during this crucial time! Give your body the time it needs to adjust, and you’ll be happy you did.

Mask Ingredients:

1 tablespoon healing bentonite clay

1 teaspoonapple cider vinegar

1-2 teaspoons of water

Directions:

Mix all of the ingredients in a small bowl , but make sure to use a non-metal spoon. Keeping mixing until the mixture is nice and creamy.

Apply in an even layer over your armpits and let it sit for 5-20 minutes. If you feel a burning sensation, wash off the mask. You my experience some redness with an increases of blood flow to the area, but that will quickly go away.

Take a shower and wash off, or use a damp, warm cloth.

Repeat until you see results!

What makes bentonite clay so cool is the fact that it’s made of aged volcanic ash. Its unique composition literally absorbs toxins. Don’t ask us how – it just does.

Apple cider vinegar, otherwise known as ACV, is a very productive component of the mask. ACV contains tons of enzymes, protein, and probiotic bacteria that gives ACV anti-fungal and antibacterial properties.

As a team, ACV and bentonite clay kill bacteria while also removing impurities from your pores!

Keep using this mask every day until you see an improvement in your scent. Aim for a week for the best results.