The Burning

In my continuing quest to use more natural and organic products (in an effort to eventually become full blown vegan), I’ve been slowing transitioning my old grooming products for those that are more natural and cruelty-free.  It isn’t easy.  Especially with how particular I am.  Because of my horrible skin (and self-esteem) as a kid, I’ve grown to only tend to use the best stuff out there.  There are two reasons for this.  First, when I’m using a high quality product, I feel like I am doing the best for myself.  Secondly, low quality products are usually filled with fillers and fragrances which are unnecessary and bad for you.  

My latest switch has been my deodorant.  I recently began swapping sticks because my trusted Axe just wasn’t doing the job anymore.  Yes, that means I did suffer through a bout of B.O. for a while.  Well, let me back up.  It’s not like I was a funk factory or anything.  Nor was it a consistent stink.  You know, it’s just that by the end of the day, there was a little something something there that I could detect.  I hoped no one else could!  But I definitely had to stop the smell before it got any worse.  

I don’t like solids because they leave white marks everywhere.  So that cut down on my choices automatically.  I tried a few other gels and they just weren’t cutting it.  So, I switched over to those clinical strength deodorants.  Most of them smelled rank but I found one that wasn’t too smelly.  So I tried it and it worked!  No more B.O. for Bran.  Good.  So I figured I would stick with that.  Until I found out it contained aluminum.  

Now, there’s been a lot of controversy over certain ingredients in certain products.  Just like petroleum in lip balms, mineral oil in facial cleansers and sulfates in shampoos, aluminum is another "red flag" ingredient in which we should be askurred.  Supposedly it could be toxic and jack up your endocrine and lymphatic systems!  Oh yeah, and it could very well give you Alzheimer’s.  And all you were trying to do is not stink.

A lot of these products are used because they are the most effective at the cheapest cost.  This can be good for the consumer as you aren’t paying out the butt for some Chapstick but at the same time, you could be causing yourself more harm than good.

But you can’t believe everything you hear!  I am aware that a lot of these claims that certain ingredients are dangerous could simply be made up by competitive companies to try to get you to buy their product that doesn’t contain that harmful ingredient that will make your genitals fall off.  I’ve done my research and pretty much every bad ingredient that has ever had the finger pointed at it has never been unanimously named as a "bad" ingredient.  Some researchers say petroleum locks in moisture while others say it keeps it locked out!  Some researchers say sulfates are mild detergents that clean your hair, face and body while others say it’s a carcinogen that causes cancer!  

I suppose it’s all up to the consumer.  You can choose to believe what others say or use what works for you.  As for me, I’m not sure if I fully believe all the bad claims.  Sure, there could be some truth to it or maybe it’s all marketing.  But I say why take that chance?  Sure, there might not be anything wrong with any of these allegedly harmful ingredients but what’s wrong with using the products that don’t contain them if the products also work for you?  And with that being said, I went in search of an aluminum free deodorant.

(Wow, I really took the long way around to tell this story…Glad to see my superfluous nature hasn’t completely died.  Good for me, unfortunate for you.)  

That’s when I found Tom’s of Maine.  They are a company that makes products naturally.  And they don’t test on animals, which is important.  As far as I know, they use little to no artificial ingredients.  And they can be found in any drugstore, which goes to show that quality products don’t always mean a high price tag.  Believe me, I would know!  I’ve run the gamut from super expensive to super cheap and sometimes the cheap stuff is the best.  

So, I decided to try it and from the first day, no smell!  I haven’t even had a slight inkling of a stinkling.  And it is aluminum free!  There is a slight problem. 

This stuff burns my pits like whoa!

Seriously, it feels like someone has set fire to my underarms.  In fact, as I sit right now, my armpits feel like the Phantom of the Opera’s face.  (Get it, ’cause he had acid thrown on his face?  Yeah, you get it!)  I don’t know what exactly is causing this painful burning sensation but it sucks.  I tried looking up some info about the deodorant, user reviews and such, to see if anyone else has had this strange side effect.  No such luck.  How ironic, the chemically laden deodorant I was using made my armpits nice and happy yet could potentially give me Necrotizing fasciitis and yet the natural deodorant makes me feel like I already have it!  The sad part is, I’m pretty sure I’m going to keep using the Tom’s of Main deodorant.  At least for the time being.  It’s a small, yet painful, price to pay to fend of pungent pits.