This summer is on track to be hotter than normal, according to a recent National Weather Service outlook. While you’re beating the heat, make sure to choose a safe and effective deodorant or antiperspirant.
The wrong product can lead to embarrassing sweat stains or body odor– and some might even have toxic ingredients.
You have the choice of many products, and your body’s reaction to each of them is different from the next person’s. To find the one that best suits you, learn about antiperspirants versus deodorants and which chemicals to avoid in both.
How do they work?
The biggest difference between the two types of products is that while deodorants mask body odor, antiperspirants reduce how much you sweat.
Your skin has tiny glands that produce sweat – an odorless and colorless liquid designed to hydrate your skin and cool your body. Once sweat leaves these glands, it mixes with the natural bacteria that live on your skin. These bacteria break down the sweat, producing the byproduct that is the primary source of body odor.
Variations in body odor depend on factors like genetics, lifestyle, weather and even stress level. In the U.S. most people try to avoid strong body odor, typically using deodorants, antiperspirants or a combination of the two.
Deodorant uses a fragrance to cover up the smell of body odor, and some include ingredients with antimicrobial properties to cut down the number of odor-producing bacteria.
Antiperspirant clogs your sweat glands, usually with an aluminum-based ingredient. That way you sweat less, leaving less sweat on your skin for the bacteria to break down. Because antiperspirants affect the body’s functions, the Food and Drug Administration regulates them as a drug.
Are aluminum-based products safe?
In the past few years, researchers and others have questioned possible links between aluminum-based antiperspirants and increased breast cancer risk and kidney damage. A 2017 study found frequent antiperspirant use is associated with aluminum buildup in breast tissue. In 2023, another study reported inconsistent results between the use of deodorants and antiperspirants and breast cancer, and suggested more research is needed on the role of metals, not only aluminum.
The National Cancer Institute has concluded there is no direct evidence that aluminum in antiperspirants causes cancer to develop. And the National Kidney Foundation has confirmed there is almost no way to absorb enough aluminum through your skin to harm your kidneys.
EWG scientists have also confirmed the safety of antiperspirants made with aluminum, and ingredient that is allowed in the EWG Verified® program. Those containing aluminum zirconium complex are not, since they can pose a lung hazard and lead to skin hypersensitivity.
If you prefer an aluminum-based antiperspirant, you should feel confident that doing so will not likely lead to health harms. If not, plenty of alternative products are available.
Worrying ingredients
When you shop for deodorant or antiperspirant, make sure to check the ingredients label and try to avoid these potentially harmful chemicals:
- Phthalates. These additives are common in many cosmetic products. Some are associated with health harms such as increased risk of cancer, asthma and allergies, and learning attention and behavioral difficulties in children.
- Undisclosed “fragrance.” Fragrance can be made up of a mix of any of more than 3,500 chemicals and gives personal care, cleaning and other products their unique smell. But companies aren’t required to disclose the ingredients that make up a fragrance, and they can sometimes contain toxic chemicals.
- Benzene and butadiene. These are common impurities found in aerosol spray deodorants and antiperspirants. In a 2021 study, cancer-causing benzene was found to have tainted over 40 deodorant and antiperspirant spray products, likely due to contamination with butane or isobutane.
An easier fix: Shop EWG Verified
Worrying about all the toxic additives to avoid can be tiring. For a simple way to get some peace of mind, look for products with the EWG Verified mark, awarded only to products that have been reviewed by our scientists and meet the highest standards of ingredient safety, transparency and efficacy.
When you’re on the go, scan products with our Healthy Living app to see EWG’s ratings for them and find their hazard ratings in our Skin Deep® database.
