Paleo Diet and Paleolithic Diet Questions & Answers

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I was watching Regency House this weekend - you remember, when PBS was doing all those recreation shows, having people live as if it was the victorian era, or pioneer era, or whatever? This one was regency era, the time of Jane Austin, Pride & Prejudice and all that.

ANYWAY, I noticed the ladies were using lemons for underarm deodorant. Has anyone ever heard of or tried this? Thought it was interesting.

Of note, they also used egg whites, rum, and rosewater to shampoo their hair.

flag	asked Apr 5 2010 at 19:36 Paleolady 1,606●7●13

Not sure what this has to do with Paleo.... – Patrik♦ Apr 5 2010 at 22:06

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Patrik, I think that finding ways to eliminate chemicals from what we ingest through our skin (lotions, shampoos and deodorants) follows a paleo milieu of of health - avoiding processed, chemically-laden foods and eating unprocessed, grass-fed, pastured foods. – gilliebean♦ Apr 6 2010 at 15:36

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In terms of washing hair, I cut out all shampoo! I have long brown hair and get tons of comments on it now about how healthy it looks ect. I stopped using shampoo and switched to a baking soda mix, but have recently nixe it altogether. Now I just use castile bar soap occasionally to do a deep clean.. I documented it all here if you are intersted fondalashay.com/mintchilli/… – Fonda Dec 19 2011 at 9:56

Louisa · Accepted Answer · 2010-04-06 08:07:43Z UTC

Lemon juice is a great deodorant, the citric acid with it's low pH breaks down the cell membranes of the bacteria and dries up excess oil - (the same goes for vinegar too) although some people can be really sensitive to it (especially after they have shaved under the arms).

It can be mixed with baking soda to make more of a 'powdery' texture which is easier to apply and dries quicker - the baking soda absorbs excess sweat or you can water down juice (with vinegar if you prefer) which has been strained through a cheesecloth and put it in a spray bottle to spray directly under arms.

Make sure the juice is completely dry before you put on your clothes as it may stain clothing or alter the color of the dye when it is subsequently washed.

Kat · Answer 2 · 2010-04-05 20:35:54Z UTC

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I use coconut oil and baking soda as a deodorant. Just rub some deodorant on then pat some baking soda on with your fingers. Doesn't stain clothing and works better than any store-bought deodorant I've tried in the past.

I also use a whole egg and vinegar (about 1 tbsp in 1 cup water) to shampoo and condition my hair.

answered Apr 5 2010 at 20:35

Kat
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	nice...I just learned a lot! This fits in well with Mark Sisson's latest post about egg whites...maybe this is something good to do with them. Lets see if I can get the gf to use egg and vinegar to wash her hair. I bet she'll take to it like a cat to water. – Rick Apr 5 2010 at 22:54
	I have been using a whole egg, but yeah egg white would be fine to try. I might do that actually, since I have leftover egg whites all the time. Tell your gf to try it! It's the first time I've been through winter without static problems and using vinegar leaves hair really soft and shiny. – Kat Apr 6 2010 at 14:48
	I really like that it doesn't stain clothing. That is one of my biggest problems with deodorant. – Paleolady Apr 6 2010 at 21:33
	I mix equal amount of coconut oil and baking soda to make deodorant paste and work wonderfully for my underarms! I have sweaty underarms that usually have some unpleasant smell and I hate how deodorant stains my clothing. – Jos Aug 19 2011 at 22:05
	That's interesting for the shampoo, I have tried a few "make your own" shampoos that involved extensive lists of ingredients, but they have all left my hair feeling oily. I have very thin, straight, grease-prone hair, do you know anyone that's tried the egg/vinegar on thin (like, crazy thin) hair? – JeJ Dec 18 2011 at 23:03

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Erin · Answer 3 · 2012-01-29 04:12:00Z UTC

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I use lemon juice as my deodorant and it works very well- much better than other natural deodorants. It even works when I work out and get all sweaty:)

answered Jan 29 2012 at 4:12

Erin
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Carlo · Answer 4 · 2011-12-18 22:07:00Z UTC

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I'm going to try adding in the baking soda because when playing sports you do become a bit sweaty, but otherwise I say lemons all the way.

edited Dec 18 2011 at 22:07

answered Dec 18 2011 at 21:56

Carlo
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coprophagous · Answer 5 · 2012-01-29 08:37:48Z UTC

i just shave my arm pits and dont use deodorant. i figure i dont want cancer causing chemical applied directly to the lymph nodes of the arm pits. i did this for 35 years long befor going paleo. sometimes i have to shower three times a day but i enjoy it. i think lemon or orange oil is a wonderful idea and will give it a go.

Ms. Jane · Answer 6 · 2013-04-16 01:15:51Z UTC

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my sister uses lemon juice as deodorant and she smells terrible. How can I tell her she stinks without hurting her feelings. She needs to go back to using deodorant and she needs men's deodorant that's how bad she smells.

answered Apr 16 at 1:15

Ms. Jane
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Lemon juice as a deodorant?

6 Answers