Fresh Pits - Fresh Environment
The use of mainstream commercial deodorants and antiperspirants is probably something many of us have never given a second thought. It is just part of growing up, hitting puberty and recognising that we tend to smell a bit more after certain activities! So, naturally, we introduce a spray or roll on to our daily routine, and if the boys are anything like I remember at school, it’s used more than once in their daily routine and they use far too much of it in any one hit!
Forgive me, I digress, we are a nation that fortunately is becoming more aware of its impact on our beautiful planet. As most of you know all of our bathroom products contribute to our non-biodegradable waste problems. In fact the Uk’s bathroom waste weighs 33 million tonnes - the same weight as 300 blue whales! Whilst we Brits now recycle almost 90% of our kitchen packaging, only half of our bathroom waste can be, therefore accounting for 30-40 per cent of our total landfill waste. Some items taking up to 500 years to decompose! Becoming ever more mindful of this situation the team at Blowout are here to help, and we are looking into environmentally friendly options to help you all slowly replace your standard products. Not only from a packaging point of view, but looking at what you’re actually applying to your precious skin as well. It’s certainly worth considering, don’t you think?
Lets talk about sweat baby…
What is sweat?
Sweat has three purposes – to help cool the body, expel waste and some believe that in males, components of sweat (pheremones) can act as an attractant to females. Each to their own!
There are two types of glands involved with perspiration. Eccrine glands excrete only water and salt – nothing too offensive there, believe it or not, it’s actually odourless! But the apocrine glands carry the sweat along with other secretions to the surface of your skin. Diet can effect what types of secretions are generated (think garlic, onions, cabbage, red meat) and whether the smell is offensive.
Additionally, bacteria can react with sweat and create an even more noxious odor.
Deodorant and antiperspirant – the difference
Did you know there is a difference between the two?… Although many products combine the features, which just means additional ingredients. Antiperspirants reduce or eliminate sweating while deodorants mask or mitigate odors generated when we sweat.
Common misconception: Armpits are not the sweatiest part of your body
Armpits get a bad rap but in fact your feet produce more sweat than your pits. They have way more sweat glands. I’m sure most of you know someone who has a tendency to have cheesy feet.
Different scents for different peeps
Armpits are like an arena for billions of bacteria, however, we each harbour different bacteria, resulting in different BO scents. This is why no single deodorant suits everyone - you need to find the formula that suits your unique bacteria composition.
When all is said and done, sweat may not be the most attractive of things but it is good and thankfully there are more and more products being released on the UK market that will truly look after your BO, your skin as well as the environment. We have taken a look at 3 to give you a kick start with your research.
AKT - Effective and Life Changing, good for you and the planet, 100% recyclable
Starting with ‘AKT’, voted ‘Best Deodorant 2020’ by BAZAAR. This deodorant balm has been tried, tested and approved by London’s West End performers, and myself! AKT is a natural deodorant that is truly… BORN TO PERFORM.
The product has been developed by Ed Currie and Andy Coxon who met whilst performing in a show in London’s West End themselves. Anybody in this industry will know just how gruelling the schedule is, eight intensely physical shows a week, dancing and singing under hot lights, shared dressing rooms often many flights away from the stage with no lift. Not to mention the rehearsals, classes and training during the day. It’s not difficult to see why they found mainstream deodorants just weren’t up to the task!
Their ethos is ‘Plastic Free, All Natural, All Genders’ and they warn us that it may change your life!
All you require is a pea-sized amount on your finger and then massage the balm into your underarms like a moisturiser. It absorbs instantly and smells really quite nice, lasting all day as well, no matter how intense! It is currently available in 3 different scents. I tried the SC.01 EXT. Orange Grove; Petitgrain, Mandarin, Neroli and Juniper Berry scent. You can also buy a handy assistant, which is your key to zero waste, ensuring you squeeze every last bit of the balm out of the recyclable, aluminium tube. And you can get a, gua sha inspired, applicator!
But don’t just stop with the application to your pits, this balm can be applied to any part of the body you feel that you need protection! Feet, or your under-boob maybe, I tried it on my forehead and upper lip for my visit to the gym and exited still smelling as fresh as orange blossom!
3 years researching, developing and formulating. Designed with efficacy, strong environmental ethics, and premium fragrances at its forefront. All formulations are made in the UK, hand poured, and packed into their signature, vibrant, plastic-free packaging.
www.aktlondon.com
Next up is Wild:
Go Green, Go Wild! Arms Up, Waste Down!
Ok lets talk branding for a second, because Wild have got this in the bag! Not only do their refills fit inside a gorgeous sustainable case that I can use again and again (minimising waste), I can also select the colour I want it in! Their case comes in 6 different shades, each one nicer than the one before, and as if that wasn’t enough, I also get to personalise it. That’s not all by the way, I also get to choose from a wide range of fragrances before selecting the one I want.
I may have confused things a little so let me explain the model behind this super cool brand:
You go online and select your stylish case in any colour you want.
You then select if and how you’d like to personalise it - please note this is highly addictive as they show you a mock up of your final product so obviously I spent an hour here testing out different options.
You then go on to select which plan suits you best. The subscription plan where you get 1 case and refills based on when you need them. Or if you have commitment issues you can just go for the one off purchase plan of 3 or 5 refills. The world is your oyster!
Finally, you get to select your scent from 5 different fragrances. What’s great about this is that you can even mix and match. Again, I spent a while here as they give you a little insight into every scent and after much deliberation I decided they all sounded amazing.
Thats it, fun and simple!
Switching the refills is also really easy and effortless. You squeeze the sides and the old one just comes right out. Then to apply the deodorant you simply twist the bottom of the case and apply as you would any other roll on.
Now I know what you’re all thinking, “ok this is all great but does it work???” YES!!
Absolutely it works. In fact I was so surprised at how well it worked. I, for one, always worried about natural deodorants not being as effective, however, wild really really was everything they promised and more.
Fun, Simple and it works! Keep your cool naturally.
www.wearewild.com
Nuud, highly effective, totally innocent…
Last, but by no means least, is Netherlands Nuud:
Nuud, like the other two is a vegan anti-oderant. As they themselves state, they live for fresh armpits; fresh as a polar bear garden party, no less! This means no aluminium, paragons, petrochemicals or any other vague chemicals. No salts and no cheap perfume. They don’t do propellants or canisters but put Nuud in a bioplastic tube made from biodegradable sugarcane.
So what makes Nuud so unique?… Well apparently it can be effective for 3-7 days with just one pea-sized application to each pit! Sports, being active or showering have no effect on Nuud’s effectiveness. Gross, I hear you all say, how is that even possible? I know right, so I took one for the team and bravely gave this a go. I went a whole 3 days, including a daily gruelling session at the gym (well, ok, not that gruelling, but it was tough!), without re-applying it… and you know what, it really did work, I even got my poor Mum to sniff my pits on day 3 after my gym session! Still fresh!
What’s more it doesn’t clog, or put any of those annoying chalky marks on your clothes. Nuud prevents odor by neutralising bacteria with micro silver. It is super concentrated meaning you can get a good 10 weeks out of just one small 20ml tube.
Nuud have made over 750,000 armpits happy. So what's stopping you?…
Nuud - Fresh Armpits Worldwide…
www.nuudcare.co.uk
The balls in your court, the planet is crying out for your help and you’ve now read our reviews. This is not an exhaustive list of all the environmentally, skin safe and eco packaged anti-oderants out there, but it is a good way for you to get started on improving your impact on our environment, by reducing its toxic waste.
Article by Dawn Collins with reviews by Dawn Collins and Noha Ben Ismail
