deodorant woes

It seems like alcohol based deodorants make my armpits itch badly. Some of the Old Spice deodorants are OK, as are Brut, because they are PG based, not alcohol. Unfortunately, I really like using deodorants with Triclosan or similar antibacterial ingredients. I find the ones without it just mask odor. Any suggestions on deodorants to try?

Thai Crystal Deodorant Stone. Its just Potassium Alum Sulfate. An Alum Block. Its an astringent and mild antiseptic. I've been using it for over a year now and have been quite pleased. No gunk under my arms and no staining on my clothes. There is no scent so if you want one you'll need to use an aftershave or cologne. After a shower I splash some cold water under my arm, wet the stone and rub it vigorously around under my arm for a 60 count then rinse the stone off and do the same for the other arm. I've had this keep under arm BO down for almost 3 days. I pay 8 bucks for a stone at Whole Foods Market and the stone has lasted me over a year of daily uses. I just got a new stone because the old one just got too small to handle well but if I pushed it I could have gone a few more months with it.

I used to use Brut because of the Triclosan in it also, until I read a bunch of health concerns for the ingredient. I now use a layered approach of Potassium Alum Rock when still wet from the shower, and then either Every Man Jack deodorant stick or Tom's of Maine after I'm dry. Both have better ingredients.

So far so good. I'm waiting on summer for the real test.

I don't know what the ingredients are, but I've been using Gillette clear gel deodorant for years and it totally eliminates any odor.

Potassium Alum Sulfate (Alum Block), and some days followed by Pinaud talc.

Just started with a Thai crystal deodorant stone yesterday and after a whole day of driving to Jackson WY, a few miles of exploring with my camera and mild hiking, and an evening of playing with my 9 nieces and nephews I have no discernable odor (I had my two sisters check haha). Needless to say I'm sold, I'm tired of very dry itchy scaly armpits and on the sides of the chest near my armpits.

Mitchum roll-on. The very best. Absolutely NO perspiration or odor. You can literally skip the next day.

Awesome stuff.

I have others but my 'go to' has been Mennen Speed Stick for years. There are a couple of flavors and I only buy the straight deodorant, not the anti-perspirant ones.

I guess Triclosan is on the outs? I have heard Minnesota banned its sale in cosmetics and toiletries.

I tried anti-persperants recently and they just made my arm pits itch fiercely. Not to gross anybody out, but during the winter I didn't bother with deodorant or anything, once in a while I used the remnants of an alum block. In winter months I like smoking cigars anyways and that cancels out the BO, but now that spring and summer are here I am not smoking much, if at all.

Alum + speed stick might be the way to go.

Triclosan has proven to be ineffective at reducing bacteria, but has proven to have concerning effects on health. It's hard to find mass produced hands soaps that DON'T contain triclosan, but it's beginning to be clear that this is an ingredient to avoid in soaps and deodorants. Try Sam's Naturals for manly scented deodorants without aluminum or triclosan or parabens

Z blade said:

Mitchum roll-on. The very best. Absolutely NO perspiration or odor. You can literally skip the next day.

Awesome stuff.

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I tried this stuff, because I'd read good things about it. It made my pits itch something awful - and I normally don't have a problem with deodorant reactivity. I actually threw it out. For what it's worth, my deodorant of choice these days is Arm and Hammer unscented stick. Works great, and no reactions...at least, not for me. (Honorable mention goes to Almay unscented clear gel, but since I started manscaping my pits, it's a little too goopy for my taste now.)

I don't know if this would work, but I find that spray-on type deodorants cause less irritation than roll or rub-ons. The selection isn't great, at least not where I live, but there are at least a few decent smells.

Sounds like the Thai block is the way to go. May have to try that myself. Good luck in your search.

Alum Block
I am 1/3rd of the way thru a stick and have used it daily for 2 years!

I'll second the recomendation on the Gillette clear gels. I found they are the only antiperspirant/deodorant that does not cause irritation for me. To be fair I have not tried any other brand of clear gel. The Gillette worked so I stuck with it. I went through a lot of solids an roll-ons without success.

Trader Joe's has an unscented deodorant that works very well for me. Unscented, but with cotton fibers to absorb perspiration. No triclosan.

Axe Dry is the closest thing to something that works on me. Anything else, between this time of year and mid-fall, just leaves me stinking by the end of the day.

I used to have some sweat stain issues and odor issues. I tried everything including clinical deodorants. Someone suggested using deodorant without aluminum which equates to a deodorant that's not an antiperspirant. I now use old spice figi, the translucent bar, not the solid powder bar. It works all day and I don't sweat like I used to and I smell great at the end of the day.

It's got alcohol, but I endorse Weleda Sage. I've used it for months, after much trial and error in the process of finding a deodorant without alum. It's a non-aerosol spray, and lasts for months. At ten bucks a pop, it's a bargain to me. Weleda is a very natural company, and I'm quite happy I found this product. I will always have a backup bottle on hand.

RazoRock makes a nice alum spray