Aluminum Deodorant - What’s Your Poison?
Ever felt like an old SURE deodorant commercial, stealing a sniff of your underarm?
Going au naturale isn’t as simple as it sounds. Deodorant choices can feel like an
either-or situation.
EITHER use natural deodorant and have no friends because you smell.
OR stay fresh with a chemical, aluminum-packed deodorant that might cause cancer.
It’s frustrating. We use deodorant/antiperspirant daily and need something that
works, why are these crazy hippies trying to take away the good stuff?
Unfortunately, there’s more to it than that. Let’s have a real conversation about
aluminum deodorant. P.S. If you’re reading this, you are officially an adult.
Will natural deodorant make me stink?
Maybe.
The natural deodorant business is booming (finally!) but most brands just don’t
work. They can be sticky, messy, and a poor attempt at mixing essential oils to mask
odor - and we all know how that turns out…
Truly’s Natural Deodorant is not a Band-Aid, it prevents the cut. The sugar in our
deodorant combines with your perspiration to create a hyper osmotic solution.
English translation: it creates an environment that prevents odor causing bacterial growth. That mixed with nature’s odor fighter, baking soda, karate chops your bacteria and offers a soothing coconut oil finish (details here).
Is aluminum bad for me?
Yes. There’s no proof that it causes cancer but there’s a lot of eyebrow-raising
studies. It’s also alarming to see on Wikipedia that the Food and Drug
Administration classifies antiperspirants as an over-the- counter drug in the U.S.
Wikipedia also had this to say:
“The FDA has "acknowledge[d] that small amounts of aluminum can be absorbed
from the gastrointestinal tract and through the skin.", leading to a warning "that
people with kidney disease may not be aware that the daily use of antiperspirant
drug products containing aluminum may put them at a higher risk because of
exposure to aluminum in the product."; The agency warns people with kidney
dysfunction to consult a doctor before using antiperspirants containing aluminum.”
The American Cancer Society’s website still claims, “No clear link has been made
between antiperspirants containing aluminum and breast cancer.”
HOWEVER…
“This metal can cause ‘gene instability’ in breast tissue.”
TIME Health
“Researchers determined that the mean level of aluminum in nipple aspirate fluid was
significantly higher in breast cancer-affected women compared to healthy women,
which may suggest a role for raised levels of aluminum as a biomarker for
identification of women at higher risk of developing breast cancer.”
Dr. Mercola
“Scientists from the University of Geneva tested aluminum salts - an ingredient in
antiperspirants previously linked with cancer - on mice. They found that prolonged
exposure to the substance increased tumour growth in mouse breast tissue, which
could then cause cancer to spread to other parts of the body.”
Huff Post
If aluminum were potentially dangerous, wouldn’t companies take it out?
[Cue laugh track] Honey child, this is a 70 billion dollar industry with a steady
incline. Change will only happen when buyers demand it. Remember the whole GMO
thing? It’s naive to believe companies didn’t consider their food was genetically
modified. And what did most businesses do about it? Nothing. The public not only
had to ask for safer food, they put their money where their mouth was and spent
their dollar on safer products. Now check out all the Non-GMO foods available.
To wrap things up
We must continue to think for ourselves, the cigarette industry proved that decades
ago. Research and make choices from an educated place – we can’t rely on someone
else to do it for us. And you thought this was just about deodorant…
Now that you’re in the know on aluminum deodorant, learn about the ingredients in
your deodorant’s ingredient: fragrance. You Don’t Want Artificial Friends, Why Use
Artificial Fragrances?