I Stopped Using Deodorant + A Native Deodorant Review

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You’ve probably heard that conventional deodorant has some questionable ingredients. Even worse, I noticed that the one I was using didn’t wash off. As in, I had to soap up multiple times and really work at removing it.

At this point, I had already tried crystal deodorant. It sort of worked, but after dropping a couple of crystals and having them shatter to a million pieces, I didn’t want to go that route again.

I had also tried Tom’s deodorant, but my armpits started to peel when using it.

I work from home, and with a three-year-old I don’t get out much, so I decided to see what happened if I ditched my deodorant completely.

It took about three days for me to notice the effects of not wearing deodorant. It likely took that long for the deodorant I was using to completely wash off.

It wasn’t anything super noticeable or offensive, so I continued my experiment. I decided to wear deodorant only if I was going out and interacting directly with other people.

One day, I came across Native brand deodorant in a store. I remembered some positive reviews on social media so I decided to give it a try.

My Native Deodorant Review

I chose the Coconut & Vanilla scent – it smells sweet and warm and reminds me of cookies baking. It was $12-13 for a standard size deodorant, so it’s definitely not cheap, but the company ethos and product quality are pretty compelling.

From nativecos.com

We are committed to using only safe ingredients in Native products. We work with everyone from PhDs to former NASA rocket engineers to investigate each ingredient we use, and ensure its safety. Simply put, everyone who works here uses Native products everyday, and we would never use an ingredient that we’re uncomfortable with.

Native products are free of aluminum, parabens, sulfates, phthalates, and more, and they’re cruelty-free.

So that’s what’s not in it; here’s what is:

Cocos Nucifera (Coconut) Oil: A fancy name for Coconut Oil.

Caprylic/Capric Triglyceride): An oil derived from coconut oil that gives a smooth feel when applying.

Tapioca Starch: A naturally derived absorbent made from the cassava plant.

Ozokerite: A mineral wax that helps prevent melting.

Butyrospermum Parkii (Shea) Butter: A skin moisturizer that also gives deodorant a smooth texture.

Sodium Bicarbonate: A fancy name for baking soda that helps neutralize odor causing bacteria.

Magnesium Hydroxide: Also used in Milk of Magnesia, this Dead Sea-derived mineral helps prevent odors.

Dextrose: Made from corn, this is a carrier for L. acidophilus.

Lactobacillus Acidophilus: A non-dairy probiotic.

This is all cool and I was excited about the company and ingredients, but does the deodorant work?

I first tried Native on a low key day when I didn’t have anywhere to go.

Honestly, I wasn’t expecting much. I was hoping for the best, but wouldn’t have been surprised if I had the same musty smell at the end of the day that I’ve had with other natural deodorants.

I kept checking, waiting for the smell to appear, and it never did. Shocked, I decided to try it on a day when I had yard work to do. I did notice a faint smell starting to crop up at one point but it later went away completely. No smell at all. I’m guessing this is because of the probiotics in the product.

From manrepeller.com:

One of his team’s biggest breakthroughs was the use of a probiotic called acidophilus. “It’s a bacteria that’s found in your gut, and in yogurts like Chobani and Fage. It’s a bacteria that eats stinky odor-causing bacteria under you arm. I don’t think any deodorant company in the world uses it.”

The one day that Native couldn’t go the distance with me is when I sat outside for hours at a festival on a 100-degree day. I forgave it, reapplied, and was all good for the rest of the day.

After Native passed these tests with flying colors, I started wearing it on a regular basis.

Like other deodorants, I have noticed some whiteness under my arms when I’m a bit heavy-handed with the application. As their website says, I have been able to rub this in and have it mostly disappear. I haven’t experienced any irritation thus far.

Overall, this deodorant has definitely exceeded my expectations. As many other reviewers have said, Native is one natural deodorant that actually works.