Green Daily

Every morning as I applied my antiperspirant, a little voice in my head kept shouting out all of the horrors I heard about aluminum and Alzheimer's as well as possible cancer links to deodorant ingredients. After finishing my last stick of aluminum laden antiperspirant and deodorant, I vowed to try a more natural brand.

I chose to go natural for a few reasons. First of all was that deodorant is something that I use every day; sometimes twice a day. My armpits are home to a pair of lymph nodes that are common sites for breast cancer and I'd like to avoid anything that might encourage the disease. Lastly, if there is a connection between aluminum and Alzheimer's, why risk it?

The last time that I tried natural deodorant was about 16 years ago (good God, I feel old) and it was from Tom's of Maine. I remember it not working well at all and I lived in New England at the time; an area not know for extreme heat. I now live about as deep into the South as you can get so it was with some hesitation that picked up another stick from Tom's. However, the label promised me new, improved ingredients not to mention it was the only "natural" deodorant available in this particular grocery store. Last but not least, Tom's is very committed to being environmentally friendly.

Tom's of Maine Natural Long-Lasting Deodorant Stick has added botanical hops into the formula to inhibit bacterial growth and it must be working because my highly scientific armpit sniff technique reveals little odor at the end of the day. I also don't get that sticky feeling that I remember from forgoing antiperspirants in the past. In fact my only complaint is that I was only able to find the unscented variety since I am accustomed to my underarms smelling like flowers and sunshine. Hopefully I'll be able to locate the lavender, apricot or lemongrass versions during my next shopping trip.