Swathy and Sky

How to make natural home-made deodorants? {DIY}

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One of the most effective deodorants are made from Baking Soda. You can dab baking soda on your underarms and leave for sometime. Then, remove the excess with a tissue paper. Wear on your clothes. You would be odor free through out the day. You can mix the baking powder with some essential oils of your choice. Do the mixing in small batches and finish the batch before making other.

Another natural deodorant is Potash Alum (called ‘phitkari’ in Hindi). It is crystalline in nature and is, generally, colorless. It can be rubbed on the armpits and left. It reduces the body odor. Ammonium Alum can also be used as a natural deodorant.

Pre-poos for hair care and hair growth {DIY}

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Enough of talk about what affects how? We are all here and you are all reading this because you want to go natural and are interested in various home remedies to take care of your skin and body. Today, I am going to talk about hair care treatments (pre-poos).
What is a pre-poo?
An intensive conditioning treatment given to your hair before washing it. It consists of all the natural ingredients available in your kitchen.
First Recipe: 1 whole egg, 1 extremely ripe avocado, 1 table spoon of mayonnaise.
Second Recipe: 1 extremely ripe banana, 1 cup honey, 1 cup yogurt.
Third Recipe: 1 whole egg, 1 cup olive oil
Fourth Recipe: 1 cup honey, 1 cup olive oil
Fifth Recipe: 1 cup yogurt
Method: Blend all the ingredients to make a smooth mixture. Wet your hair slightly by spraying water. Partition your hair into sections and start applying the mixture from the roots. Massage it nicely into the roots before proceeding towards the hair body. Do not massage more than 2 minutes. When finished with the roots, start applying on the hair body and then, concentrate on the ends. Cover all your hair with a shower cap and put a hot towel on your head. Remove the towel when it gets cold and replace it with another. Repeat this step for at least 1 hour. After one and half hour, wash your hair with a mild shampoo and apply a little conditioner on the ends. Let your hair air dry.
Your hair would be smooth and glossy. The pre-poos should be done once in a week for normal or dry hair and once in a month for oily hair. They also help with the hair growth and take care of split ends.

Should we use Deodorants? {Beauty Products}

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Today, I am going to tell you about why deodorants and antiperspirants are harmful for the body. Deodorants are a chemical formulation, which when applied to the body, reduces the body odor by killing the bacteria responsible for causing odor. Antiperspirants are applied to the underarms, where as, deodorants can be applied to the whole body.
Why do we need Deodorants?
I do not want to give a science lecture, but, it is vital to understand how a body odor is caused.
Skin produces sweat which is, basically, odorless unless inhibited by bacteria. Bacteria is produced in hot and humid places and underarms is one of the warm parts of human body. Sweat glands produce moisture to lower the temperature of the body. But, when the armpits are washed by highly alkaline soaps, the pH of the skin increases and becomes alkaline, which is the right environment for bacteria to thrive. The bacteria feeds on the sweat, and dead hair and skin cells, and produces a chemical waste which is the main cause of body odor.
What are Deodorants made of?
Now, that, we have understood why we need deodorants, it is important to be aware of the ingredients or chemical composition of the Deodorants.
Deodorants are chiefly made up of alcohol as it kills bacteria. It is combined with other compounds like Tricolsan or metal compounds to slow down bacterial growth. It contains perfurm or fragrances which mask the body odor. It is also combined with antiperspirant compounds which reduce the perspiration like Aluminum Chloride or other Aluminum compounds. Parabens are used as preservatives.
Effects of the ingredients on the body
We have already discussed the harmful effects of Alcohol, Tricolsan, Toluene, Propylene Glycol and Parabens. Please read them here. They are all common ingredients used in an antiperspirant or deodorants. Here, I am mentioning about other ingredients not mentioned before.
Aluminum is highly toxic for the body in large doses, specially for the nervous system. There is supposed to be a link between Alzheimer’s disease and toxicity of Aluminum. The ingredients of antiperspirants get absorbed into the blood stream and may get deposited in some part of your body, specially, the brain and breast tissue and may affect the respiratory system.
Talc is considered to be cancer causing agent.
Silica irritates the skin and may contain crystalline quartz which causes cancer.
Steareth-n (n may be any number like say 100) is reacted with cancer causing agents.  
Word of Caution: Many people may be allergic to aluminum and its compounds. Herbs listed on the list does not mean that they are natural. They may contain Parabens.
What to do now?
You can formulate your own natural home-made deodorants.