What Is Natural Antiperspirant? Everything You Need to Know

March 20, 2025

Everyone’s heard of natural deodorant, but what is natural antiperspirant? We know what you’re thinking, surely a natural antiperspirant can’t exist, but it does - because we created it!

Here at Make Waves, we understand that every body and every day is different so when we were formulating our award-winning products, we knew we wanted both a natural deodorant and an antiperspirant for people to choose the right product for their lifestyle. The UK’s first brand to do so!

In this blog, our experts are going to share what a natural antiperspirant is, how it works, and the benefits of choosing this product for your underarms.

What is a natural antiperspirant?

A natural antiperspirant is very similar to typical single-use antiperspirants. Unlike a deodorant, an antiperspirant uses aluminium - in our case aluminum salts - to temporarily block the pores to prevent sweating and reduce sweat marks on clothing.

However, an eco-friendly antiperspirant typically uses natural ingredients to aid in the care of the underarms at the same time as keeping you dry and fresh all day long. It’s the best of both worlds: high performance with natural, skin-caring ingredients.

That’s not the only sustainable benefit of choosing this style of antiperspirant. Did you know that the overall deodorant industry produces more than 15 million pounds of plastic waste every single year?! So opting for a refillable, 100% recycled plastic antiperspirant can help to reduce this impact on the planet.

Switching to a natural, reusable antiperspirant can be an easy way to live sustainably and do your bit for the environment.

How does natural antiperspirant compare to natural deodorant?

The question on everyone’s lips: Should I choose antiperspirant or deodorant? Well, it completely depends on your needs and lifestyle.

The main difference between a natural deodorant and an antiperspirant is the fact that an antiperspirant uses aluminum salts to temporarily stop sweating. With this in mind, if you are someone who lives an active lifestyle or suffers from excessive sweating (also known as hyperhidrosis), an antiperspirant will keep you feeling dry.

Natural deodorants are still effective in keeping you smelling fresh but you will still sweat - which isn’t a bad thing! We all sweat, after all, it’s just whether you enjoy the feeling or would rather keep dry.

Over 50% of Britons are interested in trying a natural deodorant but are unsure if it’s right for them. An antiperspirant with a natural base may just be the answer!

At Make Waves, we offer a mix-and-match bundle box that will allow you to try both options so you can find the right solution for your lifestyle.

The benefits of switching to a natural antiperspirant

There are a number of different benefits to swapping your regular antiperspirant for a natural version.

All-day freshness

The beauty of an antiperspirant is that the sweat pores are temporarily covered, leaving you feeling dry and fresh for the entire day. Especially if you choose a lovely scent!

Skin-caring ingredients

Unlike traditional counterparts, natural antiperspirant and deodorant brands tend to opt for ingredients that are kind to the skin. This way, even those with sensitive skin or eczema can use the antiperspirant without having to worry about struggling with itchy or irritated underarms. However, lots of natural deodorants use bicarbonate soda, which lots of people are sensitive to - Make Waves’ natural antiperspirant avoids using this ingredient so more people can use it.

Reduce embarrassment

Walking around with dark underarm sweat patches or worrying that you smell of B.O. can make you feel incredibly uncomfortable and anxious. By using a natural antiperspirant, you can rest assured that it will be doing its job keeping you dry.

Easy swap to make

If you are looking for sustainable swaps to make, a refillable natural antiperspirant or deodorant is a simple choice! Especially if you choose one (like us) that delivers straight to your door so you don’t even have to go to the shop to get one!

Uses less plastic

Following on from the last benefit, a reusable antiperspirant also uses less plastic. Here at Make Waves, all of our products create no waste - we also use 100% recycled plastic and everything is 100% recyclable! We even won Marie Claire’s 2024 Sustainability Awards for our products - an award we are incredibly proud of due to our commitment to sustainability.

No downtime with the switch

When you switch to a natural deodorant, you have a ‘transition period’ as your body makes the adjustment. When you swap to an antiperspirant with a natural base, you don’t experience this so you can make the switch worry-free.

All-over body use

Think about it: Do you know what ingredients are in your antiperspirant? Do you really?.. We all know that we sweat all over our body, but you wouldn’t necessarily want to pop your traditional antiperspirant everywhere. Whereas the ingredients in a natural antiperspirant are safe to be used all over your body due to their kind-to-skin nature.

What ingredients are in a natural antiperspirant?

As we’ve mentioned, when compared to traditional alternatives, natural antiperspirant - at least in our case - has been specifically formulated with skin-loving ingredients to offer you a high-performing product that also takes care of your skin.

Our ingredients include:

Sunflower seed wax - This has vitamins A, D, and E to keep skin hydrated.
Shea butter - Shea butter is known for its moisturising qualities to keep your underarms soft and smooth.
Sunflower seed oil - This has vitamins E and K which can provide relief for inflamed skin, making our antiperspirant a great choice for those with sensitive skin.