With increasing concerns about the harmful effects of commercial, chemical-laden deodorants, we (skeptically) decided to try out one of the natural substitutes available in the market. We tried the ‘happy’ deodorising underarm salve by Raw Beauty Wellness.

This creamy deodorant contains organic coconut oil, arrowroot powder, naturally occurring baking soda, unrefined beeswax and a blend of essential oils. It has surpassed all expectations! It’s 100% natural and organic and has a great zesty aroma- with noticeable hints of lemon and cedar wood. We assumed it would be effective for a couple of hours at the most. But the fragrance lasts through most of the day, even on really hot and sweaty summer days.

Don’t expect this underarm salve to work as an antiperspirant - antiperspirants have aluminium based compounds that block the sweat glands to prevent you from sweating - there is nothing natural about that, and you can’t expect an all-natural deodoriser to do that for you. Antiperspirant deodorants have in any event gained a bad reputation over the years with concerns being raised about the the impact on ones health with prolonged use of antiperspirants- studies don’t appear to be conclusive yet, but it’s enough to create some amount of hesitation in using them everyday. This deodorant, on the other hand, will not prevent you from sweating but works exceptionally well at keeping you smelling and feeling fresh -almost like any other regular commercial deodorant. You just need to scoop some out and rub a little bit on your underarms after a shower, and you’re good to go for the rest of the day. This one is a keeper!

They’ve expanded on their range of natural deodorants since the time we used this - they now have one without baking soda (for those with sensitive skin) and one gel based deodorant.

You can explore these and other products by Raw Beauty Wellness from the Raw Beauty Website