The Deodorants We Use All Summer Long
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As it turns out, the Strategist staff thinks a lot about sweating — and how best to deal with it. So I gathered a panel of our most diligent deodorant testers — myself, senior editor Crystal Martin, senior editor Jen Trolio, Strategist fitness expert Brenley Goertzen, and Strategist senior writer Liza Corsillo — to discuss our recent discoveries before we head into what promises to be a very hot summer. Whether you’re thinking about dipping a toe into AHA deodorants or want to soak your pits in aluminum-satuarated body wipes, we’ve got you covered.
Our favorite deodorants
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An AHA deodorant with a serumlike texture
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Anti-perspirant wipes for serious sweaters
Dominique Pariso:I am reporting live from a 90-degree New York City day, which feels appropriate for today’s discussion. So to kick us off, I’d like to know who is Team Natural Deodorant and who is Team Aluminum Anti-perspirant?
Crystal Martin:I don’t feel a strong commitment to not having aluminum. I realized that what the natural-deodorant people have been saying for years is true: that the stink is from bacteria, it’s not the sweat itself. It’s early days, but I am open to doing a full summer with just AHA deodorant.
BecauseI still sweat with anti-perspirant. And it’s not that I think aluminum is going to give me cancer. But I don’t like the goopy texture.
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Dominique:Anti-perspirant can definitely give me that pilling under the arm.
Crystal:I hate, hate, hate it.
Jen Trolio:You’re finding that the aluminum tends to have that texture?
Crystal:Yes. And, some of the ingredients in natural deodorant, like baking soda, can do that too. But the AHA deodorant is like putting water under your arm.
Jen:I love that.
Dominique:The texture is like a serum, right?
Crystal:Yes.
Dominique:Can you talk more about the theory that it’s not the sweat that makes you smell bad. And how the acids in the deodorant work.
Crystal:What creates the smell isn’t sweat, it’s the bacteria on your skin. The bacteria are metabolizing the sweat, and their by-products are what cause body odor. So one thing you can do to control that process of stink production is killing the bacteria, which is what the acids do by lowering the skin’s pH, which makes it less hospitable to the bacteria.
But what I am finding is that these AHA deodorants are working for me. And I’m still sweating, but I don’t really care, because it doesn’t stink. And you don’t get that ring of deodorant on your shirts, because these acid deodorants are like a serum.
Dominique:That’s amazing, because it’s easier to get a sweat stain out of your clothes than it is to get a deodorant stain out.
Jen:I’m on a similar track as Crystal in that I actually have been off aluminum for a long time, partly because I feel like I’m going to sweat no matter what. I don’t feel like anti-perspirant really works for me. I just don’t want to smell. And I get so much more annoyed with different textures and scents in deodorant that it’s not worth it to keep trying them. My brother is a personal trainer, and he likes to say that after you shower, you get one free sweat. Then you start to smell, because that’s when the bacteria start stinking.
I am also interested in acids. I have had good luck with the really old-school version of that in the past. I bought a cheap canister of $5 Strideex pads, which is salicylic acid, and before I went to bed at night, I’d swipe each pit and then I’d wake up not feeling gross.
Crystal:I do like a wipe. The combination I’m toying with for summer is using an aluminum wipe once or twice a week at night and then supplementing with the serum deodorant every day. Because just the serum was totally working for winter, but I know that summer is going to be a little crazy. I feel like a wipe does a little bit more bacteria murdering, and then you go in with the serum for maintenance.
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Jen:I hate the deodorant creams. I just want a really easy, convenient application that absorbs quickly and gives no white cast anywhere on your clothes. It’s like how I want my sunscreen to work. So that’s why I like the serum deodorants in a roll-on. I don’t want to be putting a cream in my hand and rubbing it into my armpits like a lotion. It’s got to have the right texture, and it’s got to have a convenient application process, and it has to not be a mess. And that’s where I’m at.
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Saltair Serum Deodorant, Driftwood
Brenley Goertzen:I was also the type of person who would put deodorant on before going to bed, so then in the morning you don’t have to put it on and stain your shirt.
Dominique:You have to apply anti-perspirant at night! That’s a huge part that people don’t know: Anti-perspirant should be applied before you go to sleep. If you’re a sweaty sleeper, like me, it’s awesome because it’ll keep you dry overnight, but it actually then gives the product time to be absorbed and will work better during the day. I’m a heavy sweater, so I’m always trying to stay dry.
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Brenley:I’m not really Team Aluminum. On a daily basis, I have been using the Cyklar deodorant. It has mandalic acid in it. But it’s scenario based. If I’m going to a wedding or somewhere where it’s going to be really hot, I will go back to my OG Secret.
Crystal:That’s a good point. I’ll switch to an anti-perspirant then, too. I just went to a gala last week and I definitely wore regular anti-perspirant under my arms and under my boobs, too, because of the dress.
Brenley:The Cyklar has worked really well for me. The other thing I’ll say is Megababe makes a mask that helps your armpits. So over the years, I’ve gone back and done that mask every once in a while when I feel like my armpits just need a refresh.
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Dominique:Do you think it works?
Brenley:Yes, definitely.
Jen Trolio:I feel like deodorant residue builds up in your pits the same way products can build up on your scalp. You need to exfoliate and clarify occasionally.
Brenley:Totally. I honestly considered getting Botox in my armpits at one point to stop sweating.
Dominique:I’m a face sweater, and I thought about getting Botox for that. And not for wrinkles. My understanding is that it doesn’t even have a cosmetic effect, because it isn’t injected deep enough. So it would just be for sweating.
Crystal:I had Botox in my armpits just to try it out. It totally works.
Dominique:Did you find that you had compensatory sweating elsewhere on the body, or no? That’s my fear.
Jen:Like it just travels and comes out somewhere else?
Dominique:Yes. Your body wants to sweat to keep you alive. Like, you have to sweat so you don’t pass out and die. And I’ve read that if you turn it off, essentially, in one part of the body, like with Botox, then it’s going to find a new place to sweat. What did you find, Crystal?
Crystal:I did not notice anything like that.
Dominique:Does anyone do full-body deodorant?
Crystal:I use them. I put them under my boobs or on my groin.
Dominique:Do you use the wipes or the spray or the stick?
Crystal:I use all of it. I’ll do SweatBlock under my arms. But everywhere else is non-aluminum body deodorants.
Dominique:I love SweatBlock. It’s hardcore and for serious sweaters. But it has been around forever. I’ve used it forever. We’ve written about it a million times. What about you, Liza?
Liza Corsillo:I wear Tom’s of Maine lavender. My husband and I share it. I like it a lot. I don’t actually think I sweat all that much. So that’s not an issue necessarily. Although the last couple of days, I have to say I was thinking about Megababe a lot. I know that’s not technically a deodorant, but my thighs were needing some help.
Liza:I’m kind of curious about perfume-deodorant hybrids. I don’t really like to wear perfume, as I’m very sensitive to scents, but I do like expensive, fancy deodorant. Salt & Stone smells so nice and kind of does the same thing as a perfume.
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Dominique:Jumping off of that, do we want our deodorants to be scented? Any particular scents we love or hate?
Jen:Most of the time, I hate them. Partly because I feel like those scents build up over time. They might smell fine when you first put them on, but then they start to turn because you’re heating them up and mixing them with bacteria, and I feel like they make you smell worse. Then, a few hours later, it’s all I can notice. So I try go for unscented almost all the time. I also feel like it builds up on my clothes.
Crystal:You have got to treat the clothes.
Liza:Wait, say more about that. You pretreat your clothes to protect them from your deodorant?
Crystal:No, but if I’m sweating in something profusely, like hot yoga, then the fabric holds on to the smell. I soak all my exercise clothes. It’s actually incredible. I guess it’s some kind of enzyme. I don’t really even know what’s in it. But a capful of this stuff and there’s no more stinky clothes, like period, never.
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Jen:We need to talk about the laundry aspect of all of this.
Dominique:Every Strat conversation, we eventually end up talking about laundry. All roads lead to laundry.
Jen:I use a laundry rinse. It’s like a pH product. You put it in the fabric-softener slot in your washing machine. I feel strongly that it has helped with that residual deodorant buildup. Before, I would wash my husband’s T-shirts and I could still smell his deodorant on the clothes. This has really helped get that stuff out of the fabric.
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Dominique:Brenley, talk to me about your laundry system since you and your fiancé obviously work out all the time.
Brenley:I usually use Tide Pods plus Lysol’s laundry sanitizer. This works very well. I’ve gotten my friends and my parents onto it too. I make a separate pile of all of our workout clothes.
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Dominique:I didn’t know about washing workout clothes separate from the regular laundry.
Brenley:Yes, it helps with the longevity of your workout clothes, too, because it’s like similar fabrics. But it’s easier to treat them all together.
Dominique:Any final thoughts?
Crystal:Everybody’s body is different. Figure out what controls your stink best.
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