Two Of The Best Non-Toxic Deodorants: Terressentials And Coastal Classics

I have found a super protection non-toxic deodorant that even this Queen of hourly hot flashes can recommend! My two favorites which I feature in this post are 'Terressentials Organic Fragrance-free Super Protection Deodorant,' and 'Coastal Classics Creations Wave Crest.' 

When I started learning the truth about processed food, I naturally started looking into the other industrial products in my life that could be hazardous to people. Common antiperspirants contain aluminum which is absorbed into the skin right over a very important lymph gland near the breast. Parabens which are used in deodorants and many cosmetics, have been linked to cancer because they mimic estrogen. A study done on women with breast cancer found that 99% of tissue samples contained parabens from personal care products. Many other chemical compounds and toxins that are endocrine disrupting are in everyday products, as well as in fluoridated water. 

Time to rethink our modern life as a 'big untested cocktail of chemicals' coming at you from all the situations and products you encounter, not one isolated product. When will our body reach a crisis point from all these combinations? 

Each of us have our own genetic weak points which may be compromised by any number of chemical toxins and sensitivities. Since the armpit is near the breast for women I personally feel this is another reason to eliminate any possible toxins from this susceptible area. Even if government agencies and cancer foundations 'say' that it's not harmful, I really do not put my trust in these purveyors of corporate propaganda. Adding chemicals everyday to the same spot on the body may have long term effects that I am no longer interested in being a guinea pig for, especially since I have already had a breast cancer diagnosis. Why take a chance? 

There is an overwhelming amount of green-washing in the regular marketplace, as well as with so called organic personal care products. Many well known personal care companies are claiming a product or product-line is organic, when it is not. You can go to this page on the Organic Consumers Association website and read down the left sidebar column a list of some fake organic product lines which claim to be organic. Lower down on that left column is the list of true organic product companies. Look for the green USDA seal on products, not just the word organic. Also there is a cheater label branded "Fair Trade" given out by a group called 'Trans Fair' which licenses companies who pay a fee to get the label. The company can have as little as 2% fair trade ingredients to qualify. Here you can view a copy of David Bronner's complaint against this practice which was filed in 2011. Go to this page to view a larger photo of what that deceptive sticker looks like so you can avoid any products that use this type of fake branding and trickery. I recently found a brand of chocolate with that symbol which I will not purchase.

Unfortunately like most people, in the past I was just blindly using the myriad of products found loading down shelves in the beauty and pharmacy section of stores. As we know there are entire aisles dedicated to the toxic pit products. Sad. Modern deodorants and antiperspirants contain ingredients like Aluminum chlorhydrate, cocobetaine, coconut fatty acid, cyclomethicone, dicaprylate-dicapriate, glyceryl monolaurate, glyceryl stearate, methyl/propyl paraben, octyl palmitate, PEG-100 stearate, polysorbate-20, potassium sorbate, propylene glycol, sodium stearate, stearyl alcohol, tap water, tetrasodium EDTA, xanthan gum... and other things that make you go hmmmmm????

Now I go to the Environmental Working Groups list of acceptable non-toxic products and make that my starting point for investigating what I should use, or where to make changes. Fragrance free is generally the best way to go when trying to keep your life as toxin free as possible. True organic companies may do a better job with fragrance, but it is best to check on the quality of every product line.

Checking the 'EWG's Skin Deep' list is how I found the two products that I have used this past year. I wanted products that were as mean and green as my fresh made juice! That Green 0 -2 rating by the EWG, means low or no hazard ingredients. Isn't that what we strive for now? As little toxins in our body as possible, so that our body can focus on healing us, instead of constantly being distracted by fighting toxins and chemicals everyday. At least we can try to do 'better' than we have in the past.

I have been diagnosed with severe menopause, and I have had hot flashes regularly for the past five years. Lucky me! The saving grace is that the sweaty hot flashes are only once an hour now, down from every 10-20 minutes. I wish I could say that I have found a food or herb cure for these buggers of mine, but not yet. So in the mean time I sweat, get dizzy, and as you may guess I need a fantastic deodorant!

The first product I tried last year was by Coastal Classics Creations and was called 'Wave Crest Deodorant'. This is a simple powder that comes in a small tin which is then applied to the skin with an organic cotton ball. I purchased the extra strength version which contained the Ingredients: Zea Mays (Corn) Starch; Sodium Bicarbonate (Baking Soda) and lemongrass oil.

Just as with the food you eat, so as with the personal care products that you put on your body. Less ingredients the better! This product received a Green 0 rating, which is the best. I love the smell of lemons, so this particular scent was great for me. The product worked good, and would be completely fine and do the deodorant job for a normal person. Since I endure severe sweating every hour, sometimes I needed to reapply the powder. The downside is that a powder as such can be slightly messy, but not so much that I would not use the product. The little metal deodorant tin lasted me about six months which is a good value for such a small product. A little powder goes a long way in this case. It is a good product if you wanted to use a delicate powder form of deodorant.

Six months ago I thought I would try a different brand of nontoxic deodorant. When researching on the EWG site I came across the 'Terressentials' company. To my surprise and delight I found that they were a local company making products as pure and as safe as possible. As a matter of fact they are making organic food grade personal care products that are certified organic by the USDA, and they care about environmental impact of all that they do. What was even more amazing is they had a store in Frederick Maryland, that I had already visited! In their brick and mortar stores they also sell fair trade items, along with their Terressentials personal care product line, and some ultra cool lamps made of leaves that I adore. At the time I was shopping in their store I did not pay attention to the shelves of personal care products, because I had become wary of everyone's products and claims. 

After checking 'Terressentials' on the EWG website, I was thrilled to find that this company was a 'Green 0' in most everything! It does not get any better than that folks! The owner and founder of this company was also a cancer patient and she is totally dedicated to creating the least toxic organic products available. Since they could not find good non-toxic products that they could trust, Jim and Diana started this company to make the best organic products themselves. They are both thoughtful about their reasons behind their chosen ingredients, as well as outspoken in the movement to get personal care products to have standardized organic labeling that really means something. As it is now, anyone, or any company, can call their product 'organic,' but it really means nothing. A personal care product must have the green USDA seal to be truly organic, and you can learn more about that subject on this Terressentials page. 

We set out to visit the store in person, and happily got a parking space out front. The young lady working at the Terressentials Store was quite knowledgeable, and gave me a rundown of a number of their available personal care products. We decided to go home with the deodorant, a lip balm, hair oil, and a fair trade Boho style purse. Isn't it gorgeous! A gift from my hubby! Definitely need more of that chocolate mint lip balm that you see in the photo below. So yummy and soft! My favorite lip balm ever! Since lip balm gets in your mouth I'd say that was an important product to buy organic.

Terressentials deodorant is the best! Seriously... it works all day and evening for me. I am one tough customer to be sure! I no longer suffer from the super pits of Hell problem! Yes I still sweat every hour, but with 'Terressentials Super Protection Fragrance Free Aloe Vera Deodorant' I can also feel secure being around other people. I know I sound like a TV commercial (no I am not an affiliate for their company). It's just flat out true! This fantastic deodorant is applied with an old fashion roller ball design with 4 swipes. It is not sticky or messy, although it is wet, so I just wait a minute or so before putting on clothing over the area. I am then ready for my day. It is gentle and does not burn or cause discomfort after shaving either. The ingredient list is as follows: Organic aloe vera juice, mineral blend, baking soda, organic extract of wildcrafted usnea, organic extracts of organic yucca, and organic white willow. I have been using this roll on for 6 months and it is still going strong! I should probably plan on getting a new one soon. I quite enjoyed their Frederick store that is filled with fair trade treasures from around the world! So many beautiful scarves, purses, and items for the home that are truly unique.

Therefore I proclaim that I highly recommend Terressentials organic deodorant which anyone can order online here. By the way as an artist, I love the label design of some of the other products which feature lovely Pre-Raphaelite paintings. Check out this small company's website since they sell a variety of hand made personal care products that you can be sure are organic, and have been researched thoroughly as to what would be the safest of ingredients for most people. Diane and Jim have their own herb farm in Middletown Maryland, which is utilized for many ingredients too. Terressentials website is overflowing with information about the ingredients found in most personal care products. Poke around the website and read some of the handy information. Start with this article from the Washington Post about Diana and Jim. Then here is a short page on those nasty 'Parabens.' In addition Terressentials has put together a detailed page of information called: "The Healthy Persons Guide To Personal Care Ingredients." 

If you are ever in the Frederick or Middletown area of Maryland, check out one of their enchanting stores which also sell fair trade artisan goods from around the world. One of these days we are going to order one of those awesome leaf lamps! I think upon doing your own research, you will also conclude that Terressentials is the ultimate in organic personal care products! Thank you Diana and Jim for your personal commitment to excellence and dedication in creating thoughtful products we can trust.

The next deodorant I am going to try is a homemade recipe my daughter gave to me recently. I will let you know how that experiment works out too! Till then...Don't be stinky! Be happy. Be healthy. Be peace. 

UPDATE: It's now October and Kris Carr talks about deodorants and antiperspirants here. Plus there's Unicorns!


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