How Safe Is Your Deodorant?

The Environmental Working Group has a website called Skin Deep. This site is an excellent resource for consumers in that it lists thousands of personal care products in an organized way and rates them on how safe their ingredients are. At Skin Deep, you can find hundreds of specific items for hair, skin, eyes, nails, baby, oral care, fragrance, and makeup rated from 0-10, zero being the safest. Each item’s score is explained in detail and safer options are given.

“Skin Deep pairs ingredients in more than 25,000 products against 50 definitive toxicity and regulatory databases, making it the largest integrated data resource of its kind.Why did a small nonprofit take on such a big project? Because the FDA doesn’t require companies to test their own products for safety.”

In today’s post I’m listing safer deodorant choices from Skin Deep’s site that can easily be found at your local drugstore. I’ve also listed some common items with high (not safe) scores as comparisons. It should be noted that although Skin Deep gives products a “low hazard” score, some of them contain the chemicals below with cautions from testing results of these chemicals:

Aluminum Chloride: Organ system toxicity, in vitro tests on mammalian cells show positive mutation results, reproductive effects at moderate and high doses, and animal studies show brain and nervous system effects at high doses
Aluminum Chlorohydrate: Developmental/reproductive toxicity, Neurotoxicity
Aluminum Zirconium Tetrachlorohydrex Glycine: Strong evidence of human neurotoxicity when product is airborn
Gylcerin: One or more animal studies show kidney or renal system effects at very low doses, mammalian cells show positive mutation results, animal studies show reproductive effects at moderate doses
Diproplyene Glycol: One or more animal studies show brain and nervous system effects at high doses
1 PEG-14 Dimethicone, PEG/PPG – 18/18 Dimethicone, PEG-8 Distearate, and Triclosan: Also known as 1,4-Dioxane: Endocrine disruption, identified as a probable human carcinogen by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)
Propylene Glycol, which the FDA says is safe for general use but can cause cancer and contains toxins that affect reproduction
Alcohol Denatured: Cancer, Developmental/reproductive toxicity, Organ system toxicity (non-reproductive)
Butane and Propane: Allergies and immunotoxicity
Fragrance: often means Diethyl Phthalate or DEP: endocrine disruptor that has been linked to reproductive and abnormalities PEG/PPG – 18/18 Dimethicone - Organ system toxicity (non-reproductive)
Benzyl Alcohol: Neurotoxicity
Silica: Cancer, Allergies/immunotoxicity

Deodorant with a score of 0 having a “low hazard”:
Crystal deodorant stick, roll-on, and spray

Deodorant with a score of 1 having a “low hazard”:
CVS Ultra Dry Anti-Perspirant Roll-On Unscented – Aluminum Chloride,
Ban Antiperspirant & Deodorant Original Roll-On Unscented – Aluminum Chlorohydrate
Ban Classic Original Antiperspirant & Deodorant Original Roll-On Unscented – Aluminum Chlorohydrate:
Almay Antiperspirant & Deodorant, Clear Gel; Fragrance Free – Aluminum Zirconium Tetrachlorohydrex Glycine, Gylcerin, Diproplyene Glycol
Almay Antiperspirant & Deodorant, Clear Gel – Aluminum Zirconium Tetrachlorohydrex Glycine, Gylcerin, Diproplyene Glycol
Almay Antiperspirant & Deodorant Fragrance Free (Powder Fresh and Soothing Aloe) – Aluminum Zirconium Tetrachlorohydrex Glycine, Gylcerin, Diproplyene Glycol
Lady Mitchum Clear Gel Antiperspirant & Deodorant Unscented – Aluminum Zirconium Tetrachlorohydrex Glycine, Diproplyene Glycol,
Mitchum Antiperspirant & Deodorant Clear Gel – Aluminum Zirconium Tetrachlorohydrex Glycine, Diproplyene Glycol
Almay Stay Dry Hydro Solid Antiperspirant & Deodorant, Fragrance Free – 1 PEG-14 Dimethicone, Aluminum Zirconium Tetrachlorohydrex Glycine, Diproplyene Glycol

Deodorant with a score of 7 having a “high hazard”:
Right Guard Sport Deodorant – fragrance, Triclosan, Propylene Glycol, Alcohol Denatured
Right Guard Sport Deodorant Aerosole, Original – fragrance, Triclosan, Propylene Glycol, Butane and Propane
Dry Idea Antiperspirant Clear Gel Powder Fresh – fragrance, Aluminum Zirconium Tetrachlorohydrex Glycine, Propylene Glycol, Alcohol Denatured
Dry Idea Antiperspirant & Deodorant Clear Gel Powder Fresh – fragrance, PEG/PPG – 18/18 Dimethicone, Aluminum Zirconium Tetrachlorohydrex Glycine, Propylene Glycol, Alcohol Denatured
FDS Feminine Deodorant Spray White Blossom and Baby Powder – fragrance, Benzyl Alcohol, Propylene Glycol

Deodorant with a score of 8 having a “high hazard”:
Secret Platinum Antiperspirant & Deodorant Invisible Gel Powder Fresh Scent – fragrance, Aluminum Zirconium Tetrachlorohydrex Glycine, Propylene Glycol, Alcohol Denatured
Dove Invisible Solid Antiperspirant & Deodorant, Powder Fresh – fragrance, Silica, PEG-8 Distearate, Aluminum Zirconium Tetrachlorohydrex Glycine, Propylene Glycol

Last week, it was time for me to buy new deodorant (this post is research I did in anticipation of this). I had always heard of “crystal deodorant” but it I just couldn’t understand how it could possibly work. Well, I’m very pleased to say that it does. I’ll be honest, though, it wasn’t perfect but I don’t know of a deodorant that is. It’s nice to know that a deodorant with one of the safest scores works as well as others. By the way, according to the packaging, the crystal stick can last up to a year!

Source: tryingtobegreener.wordpress.com