Natural Remedies for Body Odor

Baking Soda (use as a deodorant)

I read somewhere online that Bicarbonate of Soda absorbs odours and I always put a bowl of it in the fridge to keep it fresh, so I thought I would give it a go as a deodorant. I was amazed to find that it really works. I just ran some tap water over my fingers, dipped them into the Bicarb and patted it under my arms after a shower. I couldn't believe that there was no odour all day, at all, and even the next morning before my shower. It stung a tiny bit because I had just shaved my armpits so the next day I tried the Bicarb again but this time I put a couple of drops of Grapeseed oil in the palm of my hand, added a couple of pinches of the Bicarb and made a small amount of paste which I then rubbed under my arms. It worked even better as the oil was soothing. You do have to use a really tiny amount. You could always dust more on later dry if you thought you needed it but I didn't need to. You could also add one drop of your favourite essential oil if you wanted to smell of something. I will be using Bicarb as deodorant from now on as it is so cheap and natural.

Baking Soda for BO- what to do when you shave

If Baking Soda is used after shaving your armpits will become extremely sensitive even irritated. I use VCO [VIRGIN COCONUT OIL] after shaving for a few days until any small wounds (invisible to the eyes but there nonetheless) heals. VCO's effect is not as long lasting as Baking Soda - so on a very hot day a few application might be needed. However, VCO expedites the healing then one can return to the Baking Soda. Hope this helps!

Anyone has a better interim solution than VCO - please share.Thank you.

Thank you so much for this website!! I have finally found a solution to my BO. I used to have really bad BO and I tried all the deodorants and antiperspirants but nothing worked as quick, as good and as long as pure baking soda.

Antiperspirants worked but they have aluminium and they left a layer of gunk on my underarms which I wasn't comfortable with. I used deodorants which would work OK for a few hours but eventually by the end of the day, even in an air conditioned office with temperature control the stink would get mixed up with the deodorant smell to make up for a really horrible smell.

Baking Soda worked perfectly the first day I tried it!! It does both things the way it's supposed to:
1. It lets me sweat as it's naturally supposed to happen and
2. No bad smell all day!!

For me it has been a miracle cure.

I am happy that someone else is excited about using Baking Soda as a deodorant. I have posted that I have been using it successfully for the past months. I also mentioned that I use VCO when I have to shave because I do not believe it would be wise to use it after shaving. I am a believer and have been spreading the word slowly - can be a sensitive topic!!!

I am a believer! I have been using Baking Soda as a deodorant for the past couple days and I am tickled pink with the results!

I can't believe I've suffered with boils (from my foliciles being packed with deodorant residue) and stinky pits for the past couple years and this was all I had to do. All the scrubbing and shaving in the world didn't get me these result. I tried numerous deodorants and antiperspirants to no avail, then gave the crystal a whirl. That worked for a while much to my delight. But I think that something in my chemistry changed which then stripped me of the progress I'd made.

Not knowing what else to do, I typed in "perspiration and natural remedy" and found this site! I am eternally gateful! I won't even get into the savings I'll have now from not buying the expensive ineffective stuff.

I will spread the word!

I read about using Baking Soda as a deodorant and have been using it for the last 3 months. I had tried everything - crystals and a product with lemon juice and its essence - all very good but it did not always protect the entire day. I am very happy to say that Baking Soda has been the best I have ever used - 100% effective - lasting the whole day and longer. When I shave my underarm I use Virgin Coconut Oil (VCO) for at least 2 to 3 days in order to allow healing before resuming with Baking Soda. (Please do this to avoid burns). VCO is also very good but has not consistently protected all day long. I have been spreading the word to health conscious friends.

Like others, I think this site is a god-send. Thank you. I have started using Baking soda as a facial and all over body scrub; then I apply ACV and finally VCO to my face. I have been quite consistent for the last 3 months including Ted's advise regarding large facial pores. I cannot believe that my skin looks so beautiful and smooth at the age of 41. I always had beautiful skin now I look even younger - it simply is amazing!!

I have now starting being more consistent with drinking ACV 3 times a day because I need to loose at least 16 llbs. Since the birth of my third child 11 months ago - it has been a very slow process. I am hoping that in a few months I can be write a post like many others - saying that I am loosing weight. I also plan to ingest VCO and also start using it for all cooking as well. I began eating 1 tablespoon of Black Strap Molasses every morning. I try to eat a very healthy diet. So I guess soon I will not only look good but feel great as well.

Thanks again for this wonderful site!!

Just wanted to thank the site and contributors for helping me. i had laser hair removal on my underarms about 3 years ago. the smell from the hair follicles being clogged, was horrible. nothing helped. tried the baking soda and i can't believe it but the odor is gone. you don't know what this has done for me. tried every deodorant on the market, but to no avail. i am also going to tell my daughters who have had laser treatments as well. who would have thought for only 34 cents, i could have peace of mind again. thank you, thank you, thank you, p.s. i bought one of those little puffs used for face powder and sprinkle the soda in my palm and just pat onto my underarms. it worked after the second application and all odor was gone. amazing!!!

I read where someone wanted to know what the smell came from under her arms? My response is what is smells like....cornchips!.....very stinky when you use a washcloth to clean your pits and it leaves a smell so strong it almost knocks you down!!! yuuuuuuuuck! I have begun to use baking soda for the first time today, and so far (it's noon) no smell! I'm going to keep using the baking soda and maybe try a few other remedies suggested on your site....MANY THANKS!

Hi, I'm from Singapore but am currently residing in London. Been here for only two and a half months and about two weeks ago i noticed that my left armpit (and only my left!) would smell nearly all the time, except maybe the first ten mins after showering. Thought maybe it's the climate change but still, it was very distressing becos i don't normally have BO unless i'm sweating profusely (like i did back home on the equator) or after working out, and definitely not coming from just one armpit which is so odd! Also, it was a different BO from the working out BO (anyone know what the cause of this one-armpit smell is??), and my regular deo was not having any positive effects. But i found this site trying to figure out what was wrong with me and next morning i tried patting on a thin layer of bicarb after showering. Strode off to the supermarket and back, worked up a sweat, and ta-daaa no smell!! yayyyy! who knew something so simple would work so well. i'm so totally pleased, thank you EC. Will try ACV and oil pulling next to help with my sinuses..

RE:1/17/2008: Patti from Albany, USA writes: "I wanted to find out from Erin (Fremont, MI) what type/brand of Natural Deodorant she uses (hope it's okay to ask for the brand).

Please tell her that the best thing that I have found is Baking soda. I have gone organic and was trying every organic deordorant on the market and I would still stink!! It was making me crazy, then I came here and read about everyone using BS with great results and IT IS TRUE! After my shower, I pat some in each armpit (I'm pretty liberal). And I have absolutley no underarm odor. Even in my wool sweaters which can really trap the smell...So, I put BS in a pretty bowl in the bathroom and use that. IT WORKS!

For years I have been using baking soda; because In my 20's I use to get cyst or boils under my arms from deodorants So at first I stop using products with aluminum, but even that made my underarms irritated, and eventually I needed surgery under my arm from the boil, and after that I did know what to do so! because I mention it to my grandmothers friend, and she said use baking soda! and I tried and have been using this for many years, maybe twenty; however be forewarned! that if you are gonna shave, you need to wait a hour or two before applying, and I use the best baking soda on the market, that well known brand because the others don't work as well, and added benefit of using baking soda, you might find you don't need to use it everyday.

OK guys, you have to try the baking soda remedy! It's awesome!! I have been wetting and then patting some baking soda under my arms after a shower and then going to the office. No b.o. all day -- amazing! One thing I suggest -- if you do wet the baking soda down before application, just make sure it dries before you put on a shirt. I didn't wait one day, put on a tee-shirt and hit the town. Later I looked in the mirror and discovered HUGE whitish stain rings around my pits. It looked terrible! I had a good laugh and then got mortified that I'd been out all day with pit rings. Ha ha.

The baking soda remedy for body odor was the lucky charm! I tried the zinc oxide remedy after reading it on your site. I think it worked but my armpits were way too greasy! It was very uncomfortable. After that I tried baking soda on my armpits and let me tell you -- it's a winner. Lasts all day and is much better than any natural or chemical deordorant I have ever tried. I now wet the baking soda down before applying it.. otherwise it is gritty. I think baking soda is probably one of the safest remedies to put near your lymph nodes. No way aluminum! I wonder if some day they will attribute some cases of breast cancer to the aluminum in deodorant and location of the sentinel lymph node. Just a theory of mine

baking soda, wonderful cure for body odor!!! i had been suffering for years with stinky pits. just dust some baking soda under your arms a couple of times a day, and like magic, the smell completly disappears!!! it helps to know that i also have an allergy to the aluminum in reg. deoderants. however, it didn't stop me from trying everything on the market to try to stop the smell! it's a wonderful cure!!! thank you earth clinic for your help!!

For some reason, a persistent rash flared up in one arm pit, and over the course of 12 months or more, it did appeared in the other. It got so bad that the skin broke from excessive itching. Everything and anything I used to wash with caused a flare up, except Pinetarsol. I really wasn't happy with having to use this long-term, but it was all that could keep it to a minimum. Nothing reduced it completely. Not even a cortisol cream. Luckily, I was recommended a honey-based cream which now stops the rash, but the sensitivity to deodorants, whether they be chemically laden or not, still exists. I just resigned to the fact that being a little smelly was an option I could live with when compared to the horrible rash. A friend suggested patting on some bicarb soda - how obvious! Absorbs moisture and eliminates odour's. It's fantastic that something so simple is so effective. I pat on a little in the mornings, and I an odour free for the whole day. I believe it works better than conventional deodorant. And it does not create a rash flare up. So at last, I am rash free and odour free!