Another deodorant thread - magnesium oil

[BattleGnome]

I mentioned in another thread that I had started to use magnesium oil as deodorant and a couple people asked for a review. I debated holding off on this because it's only been a week and I've had some interesting results.

For those of you who weren't part of the conversation, magnesium oil isn't actually an oil. It's simply magnesium dissolved in water. They say the best form of magnesium to use is magnesium chloride flakes. I'm using the much more economical and easier to get Epsom salts (magnesium sulfide) and mixing it with tea tree, lavender, and a preservative (I think I have germaben plus, I'll have to double check since I'm very new to using preservatives). I cannot find if I actually need the preservative but I figured I'd better be safe than sorry if this just turned out to be an occasional use product. So far, I've used more than I expected and probably didn't need to add the preservative for long term storage. I will note that there is a dusty residue. Best I can tell it's probably from using the magnesium sulfide vs the chloride.

Review so far: mixed.
It's been six days and the switch sent me into full detox. First day or two was ok and I felt it was working. Then I started feeling a bit off and had some changes in the bathroom. After a quick evaluation of my past week signs point to the detox not to a health issue.

Epsom salts are commonly used in detox baths so I did the researching thing and looked as deep as Google wanted to let me. I've found snake oil claims and pretty decent summaries of "de-funking de pits."

I don't think my family medical history is going to reset itself but so far I have lost a bit of weight (in a healthy range), haven't taken my b vitamin in 2 days (but that usually takes a week to fully leave my system), my kidneys hurt, and my pits are starting to stink again. Unless something drastically changes I think I'm going to continue through the detox cycle and see how far it takes me. I might try to hurry the detox a bit with some acv and bentonite but that's just an impatience thing. The idea of deodorizing is still up in the air.

 

[HappyGoNaturally]

Have you tried using an Ionic Silver spray?

 

[BattleGnome]

I have not used a silver spray (hadnt heard of it). After a quick check, would that work instead of the preservative or is there another benefit a quick search wouldn't bring up?

 

[DeeAnna]

"...After a quick evaluation of my past week signs point to the detox..."

Perhaps these troubling symptoms are telling you that what you're doing is not right nor safe for your body?

If a person starts taking antibiotics for a sinus infection and gets a major digestive upset shortly afterward, most of us would suspect this might be a sign of toxicity or allergic reaction. But when a person voluntarily uses a potent chemical and gets the same reaction, it's claimed to be "detox." I've read and heard this "detox" claim from many people, so it seems to be a trend.

Claims of "detox" from the use of magnesium salts, baking soda, or essential oils really rings my alarm bells.

 

[navigator9]

I think the word "detox" means different things to different people. I'm not sure I understand what you mean when you say..."It's been six days and the switch sent me into full detox."

 

[HappyGoNaturally]

I have not used a silver spray (hadnt heard of it). After a quick check, would that work instead of the preservative or is there another benefit a quick search wouldn't bring up?

Ionic silver is often referred to as colloidal silver, but it's not colloidal silver, as it does not contain nano particles, it only contains ions. Anyway, it kills bacteria topically, also makes a wonderful protective nasal spray during cold/flu season.

I'm not sure what you are describing about your detox either -- I haven't read much about that, but I have done a bit of reading about certain herbs (i.e., milk thistle, dandelion root) for liver health -- one thing I made note of regardless of any method is that it's very important to make sure you have been on (and continue on) a heavy fiber diet before taking anything that has to do with a detox program. There is some controversy about detox methods.

 

[snappyllama]

I'm not aware of any studies that establish Mg to increased liver function in healthy people. A quick perusal shows me hits for studies that had no statically significant difference between Mg and placebo.

The changes you mentioned do not sound healthy at all; I think you should immediately stop using the product and probably contact your GP.

 

[BattleGnome]

Thank you all for your concern.

I think I left out some info compared to the responses. The bathroom changes only lasted 3 days and aligned to my "normal bm routine." Had it lasted longer or had there been more changes, I agree, I would have stopped then. I also didn't mention my usage rates. I was using 2-3 sprays 2x daily, this is definitely too much. If I had a spritzer this may have worked but as of now I need to adjust my routine for a 1x day. Currently I plan on finding a small bottle of MOM and possibly switching each day. MOM is magnesium hydroxide, so I'm curious how the "binder" changes it.
I also feel like I should define my phrase "I felt a bit off." I don't feel sick or have any signs of anything bad. The best I can equate it to is taking a new vitamin; I don't quite know that it's working yet, but I don't know that it's not.
Detox was probably not the right word to use either but my vocabulary on the subject seems limited. When I chose to continue using the magnesium oil it wasn't because I wanted a melt the pounds/detox/cleanse for a week, I honestly started doing what research I could to figure out if I was doing this safely. I don't believe magnesium binds to anything or improves liver function. I think right now it's giving my lymph nodes a break from the overly scented, ph balanced antiperspirant that I was using which is giving my liver one less thing to flush out. (As a side note, I love not having to scrub off that antiperspirant "film" every day.) I think I meant detox in the sense that my organs have a chance to do their jobs appropriately, not that I had found my "miracle cure for everything."

I think I addressed anything that you all brought up. I thank you again for being concerned. I hope I didn't seem too flouncy, I just felt the need to define myself further as I forget that I don't post here as often as I lurk. I am going to continue to do research as I have come to feel there is something in magnesium I am missing but I do realize deodorant may not be the answer for that.

 

[DeeAnna]

It sounds like you are being mindful and careful about this experience, and that's very good to hear! Thank you for your thoughtful, reassuring reply -- I appreciate that a lot!

 

[biarine]

I never use magnesium as deodorant but me and my husband used potassium alum. Since I was young that's what we used in Philippines.