Two decades ago I learned that the ingredients of commercial deodorants included many chemicals suspected of causing serious health issues. Companies have long included parabens, triclosan, aluminum compounds, pthalates, and propylene glycol in their formulas. These have been linked to potential health concerns such as hormone disruption, skin irritation and worse. Other ingredients like synthetic frances and diethanolamine are also considered problematic. Incredibly, all these many years later, and despite many efforts to educate the public, nothing much has changed. Commercial deodorants STILL include these toxic ingredients.
Remember, we apply this product in a sensitive area of the body that is in close proximity to MANY lymph nodes. If you are still using commercial deodorants that include these toxic ingredients, today is the day you need to make the switch to something more natural!
When I first learned about these problematic ingredients, I made up my mind to switch to a more natural deodorant. The health food stores at that time carried several brands of natural deodorant, and I tried them ALL without success. Maybe I am just extra stinky, but I wasted a lot of money before finding a simple homemade recipe that worked fantastic for me. The recipe below initially included baking soda, but I found that many people have a bad reaction to that ingredient, and I just removed it altogether with no noticeable change in the effectiveness of the deodorant. This is a SUPER SIMPLE recipe that anyone can make in less than a minute one the ingredients are assembled!
If you are someone who prefers a melt-on formula, here is a version of the recipe that makes a solid stick… you jut need some beeswax pellets.
Some people do prefer a spray, so don’t worry there is a recipe for that as well… also super simple once you have the ingredients, and also infinitely customizable.
Here are my top choices for oils to try in DIY deodorant:
SINGLE OILS: Black Spruce, Cedarwood, Cypress, Frankincense, Geranium, Guiacwood, Jamine, Lavender (of course!), Lemon, Magnolia, Myrrh, Neroli, Sandalwood, Tea Tree, Wild Orange
BLENDS: Adaptiv, AromaTouch, Balance, Beautiful, Citrus Bloom, Forgive, Midnight Forest, Northern Escape, Pease, Serenity, Shinrin-Yoku
OILS TO AVOID: The underarms are a sensitive area of the body. I don’t recommend using any spicy essential oils for your deodorant. Bergamot, Cinnamon, Cassia, Ginger, Grapefruit, Oregano, Thyme, and even Lemongrass can cause discomfort when used topically on sensitive skin, so I would avoid using them or any blend containing them.
Changing up the oils that you use from one batch to another seems to help keep the formula working, maybe because the essential oils are not just masking odour… they are attacking the bacteria that cause the odour. Over time, your skin microbiome will adjust. Lavender and Tea Tree is my go-to favourite combo, but you may find that you need a completely different combination. Have fun experimenting! Remember, also, that you can always add more drops of essential oil to your recipe if you find that you need a stronger formula.
If you really don’t like making your own deodorant, dōTERRA does have a few natural deodorants that work well: Balance is the original version, but there is also one with Douglas Fir and Greek Orange which is my favourite. Over the years dōTERRA has also made deodorant from limited time blends like Beautiful and Citrus Bloom that I absolutely LOVE. When you see them, GRAB THEM because they are all fantastic!
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