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If baking soda can subdue the odor of a cat litter box, imagine what it can do under your arms. Yep. All by itself, or if you want, you can add talc or other powder to it at a ratio or half and half. Put it in a tin and keep it in the bathroom.
After you shower, pat dry your underarms and apply the powder with a dry washcloth or piece of a dishrag. The only time this is not a good plan is when you are wearing something sleeveless.
By Susan from WV
A deodorant crystal from the health food store is another option for natural deodorant. I have one and it works pretty well, unless you sweat a lot.
Please do not use talc! If you mean baby powder, most is made by using cornstarch - check labels. Old fashioned formulas, even Johnson's, contain talc. Talc is breathed into the lungs and very harmful.
Straight baking soda will burn your underarms. You need to use a ratio of 1 part baking soda to 1 part cornstarch. The cornstarch also absorbs wetness and odor.
My recipe, which my son and I have used for days and are in total astonishment, no odor whatsoever.
Basic Deodorant Powder
1/2 cup baking soda (arm and hammer or generic are USP and great)
1/2 cup cornstarch
few drops tea tree oil (use this!)
a couple whole bay leaves
Combine in airtight shaker. I have seen some recommend applying to wet washcloth and then to underarm, which would only clump and makes no sense. Instead, I apply to a cream base (below) or you may apply to clean, moist underarms with a simple cotton ball or makeup kabuki brush. Press, don't brush on, so underarms look powdery.
That's it. You shouldn't have to reapply.
I use a cream base with the above for best results. My husband does not.
Cream Base
3 T coconut oil (I use Spectrum organic)
2 drops tea tree oil
2 T rosewater (optional)
1 Vit E capsule (broken before use, don't use capsule itself!)
Microwave the above to melt. Stir to combine. Will harden upon use. Store in jar. Body heat melts this. Smooth some on wet or dry underarms. It should feel nice. Then apply above powder by pressing on with dry kabuki or dry cotton ball.
We are astonished by results. For the first time , ever, we have no breakthrough odor 24 hours after application. Why did we not discover this deodorant that our ancestors probably used earlier?
It costs pennies to make. No odor whatsoever. May reapply if necessary (going out?) but 24 hours after applying, next morning, we can detect a whiff of any odor whatsoever--just fresh clean underarms. Try it!
I've been using baking soda as an underarm and foot deodorant for 2 years now. I do get darkening and dry skin under one armpit (weird, I know), but that's only occasionally. I can actually go for 3 days between re-using, but I usually shower every other day.
The reason the baking soda feels and looks like it's burning, is because it is. It has a PH of around 8.3, our skin is much lower, around 7. It is literally causing alkaline burns. You could try using a buffer and a lot less baking soda, but some people are just really sensitive. It's worth knowing sensitive deodorants tend to be a PH 5 to 6.
Here's my recipe:
3 Tbsp. coconut oil/vegetable fat
3 Tbsp. arrowroot (or cornstarch if your not allergic)
You basically need a lot of buffering so your skin doesn't get wrecked!
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Another deodorant can be rubbing alcohol. Just put it in a spray bottle and spritz underarms. It is a disinfectant as well as deodorant. You can also use it as a hand sanitizer. (01/23/2008)
By suzin
This is EXACTLY what I have been using as deodorant for almost 20 years now. I like to spray alcohol under my
arms (a squirt bottle works too) and when it's almost
dry I dust on some of my deodorant with the powder puff. In summer, or when I'm working outside in the heat,
I prefer to use white vinegar first. Make sure it is completely dry and then dust with the powder. It works better than anything else I've ever tried. Just be sure
the vinegar is dry or you will get that famous "volcano"
reaction as the dry baking soda comes into contact with the vinegar. Don't want a volcano under your arms! (01/23/2008)
By Patti
I have a friend (an RN) whose husband (auto mechanic) has used this for decades, not because of health or environmental reasons, but because it works. (01/24/2008)
By susan
