Sweat the Small Stuff

The Aphrodisiac in Your Armpit

Our sweat-scent is as original as our fingerprint, revealing our gender, fertility, health and diet and diffusing our personal pheromone calling-card. In the 16th century, long before the Age of Deodorant, people were intoxicated by the scent of a loved one moist with fresh sweat. Victorian women would hold peeled apples in their armpits until saturated with sweat, and then wrap ribbons around the apples and present them to their sweethearts to savor. Young gentlemen also learned to use their scent to attract young ladies by tucking kerchiefs in their armpits and waving these cloth scent-holders in the air near the ladies, releasing their pheromones to excite female interest.

While Napoleon Bonaparte begged his beloved Josephine not to bathe for three days so he could revel in her natural aroma, the lovers’ noses of today are led astray by “aromatic paranoia,”(2) conditioned by the cosmetics industry to prefer a sterilized and artificial scent over a natural scent.

“Smell is a potent wizard that transports us across thousands of miles
and all the years we have lived… Even as I think of smells, my nose is full of scents
that start awake sweet memories of summers gone and ripening fields far away”.
~ Helen Keller

The Small Stuff

The armpit is an organ, cradling life-essential lymph nodes and glands. Unbefitting for an organ, the ingredients in deodorants and antiperspirants are largely formulated for corporate profit over consumer health. In an article entitled, “Underarm cosmetics and breast cancer,” The Journal of Applied Toxicology reported that there are “…unexplained clinical observations showing a disproportionately high incidence of breast cancer in the upper outer quadrant of the breast, just the local area to which these cosmetics [deodorants/antiperspirants] are applied.“(3)

Before we spray, roll and rub lotions and potions under our arms, perhaps we should sweat the small stuff by first considering the chemical substances that comprise antiperspirant deodorants.

Here is the ingredient list of a well-known deodorant-antiperspirant: (4)

• Cyclomethicone and dimethicone: Silicone oil. While the molecules are too big to absorb into the skin, silicone oil’s “staying power” holds undesirable chemicals next to the skin longer.
• Aluminium zirconium tetrachlorohydrex GLY: Plugs the pores preventing sweat from escaping. Aluminum has been associated with disease and cancer for many years. A study conducted by Penn State University on dermal absorption of aluminum concluded that 0.12% (4 micrograms) of aluminum applied to the armpit is absorbed into the body.(5) Aluminum is a metalloestrogen, a substance that mimics estrogen and is linked to increased breast cancer risk. Dr. Chris Exley, of Keele University in the United Kingdom, has charted a correlation between the occurrence and location of breast cancer tumors with the rise of aluminum- based antiperspirants.(6) Women who shave under their arms may absorb more of the metal through micro-abrasions in the skin. Aluminum accumulates in body tissue over time, so if you multiply 4 micrograms of daily deodorant application by a lifetime of use, you have a serious toxic exposure.

  Dr. Exley advises people to avoid aluminum in food and cosmetics, and to drink silica-rich water to leach aluminum that has accumulated in the body.

• Stearyl alcohol: Emulsifier. It is a non-irritating, fatty alcohol derived from animal or vegetable fats.
• C12-15 alkyl benzoate: This is a paraben, a hormone disrupter. A 2004 study found paraben in over 90% of human breast cancer tumors.
• PPG-14 butyl ether (polypropylene glycol): Penetration enhancer. PPG is the polymer of propylene glycol – essentially, it is bonded chains of propylene glycol. Propylene is produced from fossil fuels during the oil refining process. It can irritate the skin and mucous membranes. PPG is yet to be concluded as safe by the Cosmetic Ingredient Review Panel.
• Hydrogenated castor oil: A hard wax made from the castor plant seeds. It is heat and water resistant. Castor oil has a long tradition as a home-remedy. Issues arise from how the plant is grown and how the seeds are handled. Today, it is planted in depleted soil, covered with pesticides, extracted by a chemical solvent, bleached and then heavily processed stripping the beneficial elements from the oil. Then the oil is hydrogenated, and this process may introduce even more impurities. Hydrogenation involves a chemical reaction between hydrogen and the oil with the help of a chemical catalyst, overall modifying the castor oil’s molecular structure.
• Polyethylene glycol (PEG) and Steareth 100: Both are processed with ethylene oxide derived from petroleum. One of the byproducts of ethoxylation is 1.4 dioxane, a known carcinogen, which remains in the PEG and Steareth 100 unless it is intentionally removed. Though inexpensive to remove, most companies avoid that step. 1.4 dioxane is considered a secondary-ingredient and will be absent from ingredient lists.
• Helianthus annuus seed oil: Sunflower oil. It is used for its smoothing properties. The oil is heavily refined for cosmetic use; it is solvent-extracted with hexane, degummed, neutralized and bleached. The resulting oil is tainted by a variety of chemical toxins in the refining process, and the color and scent resembles very little the freshly expelled sunflower oil.
• BHT: A preservative. A hotly contested food and cosmetic additive, the metabolites of BHT are suspected to cause tumors and malignancies. Multiple studies have concluded that BHT accumulates in the tissue, may cause liver enlargement and damage cell development. Since the 1970’s, there have been reports of BHT causing hyperactivity in children.
• Citric acid: A preservative that also balances the pH in cosmetic products.
• Benzyl benzoate: Preservative and fixative. Like many ingredients, benzyl benzoate was initially derived naturally and used as a whole-source from cinnamon essential oil. Those days are past. It is now made in a laboratory and associated with itchy skin, blistering and nervous system problems.
• Benzyl alcohol: Acts as an antibacterial and antifungal agent. Alcohols are very drying and irritating solvents made from propylene, a petroleum derivative. They strip the skin’s natural acid mantle which dehydrates the cells and makes the body more vulnerable to bacteria and viruses.

Moreover, the people responsible for harvesting the castor seed are exposed to a serious health risk; castor contains highly toxic ricin that can cause permanent nerve damage.

Frequently, PEG is added to hydrogenated castor oil, and is listed as PEG#

Hydrogenated Castor Oil. PEG introduces a whole new set of concerns…

Some studies have linked PEG to leukemia as well as uterine, breast and brain cancers.

• These are all fake fragrances in the antiperspirant: Alpha isomethyl ionone, Benzyl salicylate, Butylphenyl methylpropional, Citronellol, Geraniol, Hexyl cinnamal, Hydroxycitronellal, Isoeugenol, Limonene and Linalool.

Touted as a safe alternative to antiperspirants, crystal deodorant stones have gained popularity over the last few years and are readily available in health food stores. Unbeknownst to consumers, these crystal deodorants are made from alum, and the alum most widely used in the cosmetics industry is potassium aluminum sulfate. Aluminum, again!

Combine in a lidded glass jar:

• 2 ounces baking soda
• 1 ounce melted virgin coconut oil
• 25 drops of one, or a combination of these essential oils: sandalwood, frankincense, lavender, palo santo, cape chamomile, rosemary, cardamom, or white fir
• Shake and pop in the fridge to solidify and store at room temperature.

1. Handwerk, Brian. “Armpits Are “Rain Forests” for Bacteria, Skin Map Shows.”National Geographic News. May 28, 2009. news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2009/05/090528-armpits-bacteria-rainforests.html
2. Ackerman, Diane. A Natural History of the Senses. Random House. 1990. pg. 24

3. Darbre, PD. Journal of Applied Toxicology. 2003 Mar-Apr; 23(2):89-95.

4. www.wired.co.uk/magazine/archive/2010/07/start/whats-inside-dove-original-deodorant

5. Flarend R, Bin T, Elmore D, Hem SL. Division of Mathematics and Natural Sciences, Pennsylvania State University Altoona. “A preliminary study of the dermal absorption of aluminium from antiperspirants using aluminium-26.” Food Chemistry Toxicology. 2001 Feb; 39 (2):163-8.

6. www.keele.ac.uk/lifesci/people/cexley/