Everything you need to know about natural deodorants, and 7 to try

Living in hot and humid Singapore means we’re no strangers to perspiration, which is your body’s way of staying cool and preventing you from getting a heatstroke.

However, sweating also leads to stanky body odour. But this isn’t something a few quick swipes or spritzes of deodorant can’t resolve.

How deodorants work

To understand how deodorants work, you first have to understand how body odour is developed: our underarms are warm and moist locations that bacteria thrive in and certain bacteria feed off our sweat and produce smelly compounds that cause the dreaded body odour.

Deodorants contain alcohol to eliminate these nasty sweat-feeding, odour-causing microbes and fragrance imparts a pleasant scent. 

Antiperspirants, on the other hand, can be thought of as an upgraded deodorant. They contain aluminium salts that travel down the sweat ducts, effectively plugging them.

Besides being a physical barrier for sweat to reach the surface of the skin, it also signals the sweat glands to stop producing so much sweat.

No or less sweat equals less food for the bad bacteria, which in turn results in reduced odour. Easy right? 

The cons of deodorants

Unfortunately, deodorants and antiperspirants are not without their downsides. For one, alcohol is indiscriminate when targeting microbes. This could result in a disrupted skin microbiome and lead to bigger problems in the future.

Another issue is in the aluminium salts. Those in the clean beauty camp assert that these compounds can lead to complications such as breast cancer and Alzheimer’s disease. Scientific research, however, has not found a causational relationship to prove these claims.

Finally, the presence of other potentially toxic and “non-natural” ingredients like parabens sways people around from these widely-available fresheners.  

The upside of natural deodorants

If you wish to mitigate even the slightest risk, switching to natural deodorants might be the way forward. Natural deodorants tend to contain three main ingredients: 1) antibacterial ingredients like coconut and tea tree oil, 2) essential oils to provide a pleasant, masking scent and 3) a desiccant such as baking soda, arrowroot and cornstarch to soak up the sweat.

While you technically can make your own natural deodorant at home, it might be way easier to just purchase one if you don’t want to deal with all the fuss and muss. 

It’s important to keep in mind that those starting on the natural deodorant journey, will have an initial “detox” phase. Purging can happen, resulting in a stronger body odour as the skin and microbiome acclimatise to the new product. 

1. Jomingo Grapefruit Aluminium Free Natural Deodorant Stick With Drawstring Bag, $21

If you want to #supportlocal, try Jomingo. They have three options — unscented, grapefruit and litsea cubeba (which has a lemongrass-like aroma) — and are made with ingredients sourced in Asia. 

2. Kopari Coconut Oil Deodorant, $25

Coconut is the star ingredient in this formulation as coconut water, fruit juice and oil are used in conjunction. Kopari also has an unscented version and another containing activated charcoal.

3. Briogeo B. Well Tea Tree + Eucalyptus Clean Natural Deodorant, $25

Briogeo employs tea tree and eucalyptus oils for their anti-bacterial properties while coconut water and aloe leaf juice calm and hydrate.

4. Agent Nateur Uni(Sex) No.5 Deodorant, US$23.08 (S$32)

This lightweight formula contains moisturising ingredients such as coconut oil, beeswax and avocado butter and has scent notes of vetiver, cedar and sandalwood. Agent Nateur has another iteration scented with honey, lavender and eucalyptus.

5. Dr Natural Deodorant Stick, $16.95

Made with 100 per cent natural ingredients, Dr Natural deodorant has three scent options to choose from: natural powder, bergamot lime and wild lavender. 

6. Bulldog Natural Deodorant - Lemon & Bergamot, $16

Touting 24-hour protection against odour, the Bulldog formula contains a prebiotic derived from chicory root that works with the all-natural fragrance. There are other scents including peppermint and eucalyptus and vetiver and black pepper. 

7. Drunk Elephant Sweet Pitti™ Deodorant Cream, $23

This deodorant cream is part of Drunk Elephant’s recent expansion outside of skincare into both body and hair care. Shea butter, marula, baobab and mongongo seed oils nourish the skin while mandelic acid and arrowroot absorb moisture and eliminate odour-causing pathogens.