Making Homemade Deodorant

There are several ways to make homemade deodorant and even more reasons to consider this DIY approach. Many homemade deodorant recipes are cheaper than buying it in the store, and some are even organic and eco-friendly.

When making homemade deodorant, you need to understand what ingredients perform what functions so you can be sure to create a deodorant that performs as expected. Most commercial deodorants also function as antiperspirants. Deodorants reduce the smell of body odor by killing off the bacteria that grows on sweat and smells bad. Antiperspirants reduce the smell of body odor by stopping your body from sweating as much, leaving less sweat for the bacteria to grow on. When making homemade deodorant products, you will need to make sure you use ingredients that produce either the deodorant or the antiperspirant effects-or better yet, both effects simultaneously.

When making homemade deodorant products, you will want to use some of the following ingredients to create a powder, paste, stick, dab-on or spray formula:

• Sage essential oil. Sage essential oil will inhibit sweat production up to 50%.
• Witch hazel. This dries up the skin and inhibits sweat production.
• Zinc oxide. This can be bought as a powder and then mixed with other ingredients. The zinc oxide will kill bacteria, reducing body odor smells.
• Certain essential oils. Tea tree oil kills bacteria and also is an anti-fungal.  Rose, calendula, lavender and geranium essential oils also kill bacteria.
• Baking soda. Baking soda is a deodorizer that will kill bacteria as well as act as a filler and will absorb sweat. Bonus ingredient!
• Alum. Do not confuse alum with the metal aluminum. Alum is a compound found in alum salts and used in crystal salt deodorants. This compound kills bacteria and eliminates odors, but it does not inhibit sweat glands.
• Rubbing alcohol. Rubbing alcohol kills bacteria and is used in deodorant sprays.

Ingredients That Act as a Filler
Homemade deodorant will contain more than merely ingredients to reduce sweat or smell. Filler ingredients are also key to any homemade deodorant recipe you make. Among some of the more common ingredients are:

• Corn starch. Corn starch has the advantage of also soaking up any sweat that does appear, plus it adds a nice texture to the homemade deodorant.
• Solid coconut oil. Coconut oil is perfect for making homemade stick deodorants. It is smooth, pleasant to the touch and non-irritating.
• Shea butter. Shea butter will moisturize and heal your underarms while delivering the deodorant product nicely.

How you combine these ingredients and what proportions you use will determine the effectiveness, aesthetics, texture and usability of the end-product. You can find recipes for several different homemade deodorant products on the internet. You will need to experiment to find out what recipes work best for you.