It’s not you, it’s me. I think it’s best if we take this slow. Listen, this is hard to talk about. I’ve never done anything quite like this before. Part of me has a hard time moving on, and I somehow find myself believing that my former flame may have been the one that got away. But really, it was just a toxic relationship that spoiled me with the guise of ultimate protection. You’re beautiful and have a natural flair, but I’d like to take it one day at a time. Who knows, we may grow to love each other, or we may walk away. Let’s just promise each other this one thing… we’ll always take time to stop and smell the roses.
The Bold
How’s that for dramatic? Yes, this is my relationship with Agent Nateur & Shiva Rose Holi(Rose) N°4 deodorant. In my quest for green beauty, I decided to make a bold move and experiment with an all-natural deodorant. After reading numerous reviews and raves, I was compelled to try it for myself. This was a hard move to make for my Virgo soul, one that’s obsessed with hygiene and cleanliness. I couldn’t stand the possibility of not having the strongest odor and wetness protection, and all-day freshness (i.e., “former flame”).
The Bad
Standard deodorants and antiperspirants contain toxic and harmful ingredients like aluminum, phthalates, parabens, triclosan, talc, fragrances, and many others. While these may seem like your everyday personal care ingredients, the truth is, they have the potential to wreak havoc inside your body, particularly on your hormones. Take a look at what daily use of these chemicals might be contributing to:
Aluminum – reduces the amount of sweat that is secreted, not produced. The sweat that doesn’t make it to the surface of your underarms builds up underneath your skin, and can potentially get into your lymphatic system. What’s more disturbing is that aluminum kills off the less odor-causing bacteria in our underarms, giving an opportunity for the stronger-smelling bacteria to increase rapidly. Wait, deodorant can actually make you smell worse?!
Phthalates – allows any product with fragrance to linger long after you first applied it.
Parabens – this one may sound more familiar, as many products nowadays advertise paraben-free formulas. And that’s a good thing, because this toxic preservative has been known to mimic estrogen and has been associated with breast cancer.
Triclosan – a dangerous antibacterial found in many sanitizers, soaps, and acne care products. This kills both good and bad bacteria, which is not good for your skin or gut. Not to mention, other goodies include major hormone disruption, possible drug resistance, and classification as a pesticide by the FDA (um, what?!)
Talc – yes, this includes baby powder. Talc has been linked to cancer, so it’s best to avoid it.
Fragrance (parfum) – these chemicals are loosely defined under the “fragrance/parfum” label and have the potential to cause allergic reactions and other unwanted irritations inside and outside of your body. Think of hormone disruption and carcinogenic properties.
The Beautiful
Our biggest organ, our skin, is a permeable barrier that is made up of a unique microbiome. Using toxic personal care products allows harmful ingredients to permeate through the skin barrier and enter the bloodstream. This happens because topical exposure to chemicals does not go through the proper metabolic processes of the liver and digestive system. Understanding that what you put on your skin, is just as, if not more important than what you put in your mouth. Skin is capable of absorbing so much of what we put onto it, everything from shampoo, lotion, perfume, makeup, and of course, deodorant. As the saying goes, “If you wouldn’t eat it, don’t put it on your skin”.
Enter Agent Nateur. What I like about the product is the ingredient line-up: organic coconut oil, sodium bicarbonate, beeswax, sunflower butter, avocado butter, castor oil, rose essential oil, sandalwood essential oil, and love (cute!). You can’t get any cleaner than that. Technically, you could eat this stuff…but, please don’t.
This came in beautiful rose-detailed packaging, as a solid-stick deodorant. Agent Nateur developed an extremely smooth formula that glides on like butter. The lovely rose and sandalwood aromas captivate you almost immediately. But unfortunately for me, this is all I really got out of the product after one month of consistent use.
The Shot
Here’s a snapshot of my experience with the Holi(Rose) N°4 deodorant:
- An all-natural product that is easy to use.
- No irritation.
- Has a very waxy texture that is prone to accumulation. Think chapstick for your underarms.
- Product accumulation interferes with shaving since it quickly clogs the razor blades.
- This product requires a fresh daily application to clean-shaven underarms, and at times may require twice a day application. If you skimp on the prep work, you won’t get the full benefits.
- The fresh rose and sandalwood fragrance is perfect upon application. It then takes on a more natural coconut oil fragrance once the product settles into your skin. This and the lingering sandalwood aren’t necessarily my favorite fragrance combo. Eventually, they both fade away.
- I definitely experienced some wetness here and there. And of course, the scent had completely died off and I was left with no protection whatsoever. I faced my biggest fear and lived to tell the story.
- The coconut oil base has stained some shirts of mine.
- After one month, I noticed my underarms were slightly darkened, which could be due to the sodium bicarbonate. I did read a few reviews where people have experienced a similar issue with this one ingredient.
The Cut
All in all, I am glad I experimented with this product. Agent Nateur is my first foray into the natural world of deodorants, and I would say I had a pretty pleasant experience. I do not plan to purchase this product again and am not sure how consistent I will be with continued application in order to finish my current stick. Suffice it to say I’ll continue on my journey to find my pit-mate.
Purchase Holi(Rose) N°4 Deodorant by Shiva Rose & Agent Nateur
The Shiva Rose & Agent Nateur Holi(Rose) N°4 deodorant retails at $28 USD for a 1.7-ounce product and can be purchased from The Detox Market website.