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I've tried their deodarant before but it burned my underarms raw after a few days of use. I couldn't continue using it any longer after that.

This is so important. I gradually transitioned my cosmetics this past spring, and am currently dabbling in deoderants. (Lavalin is by far the best so far.) The toxic holdout in my medicine chest is dandruff shampoo. Those natural tea tree shampoos make me itch like the dickens!

Their deodorant is the only one my boyfriend isn't allergic to. I had to ban the Lemongrass scented one though, as it smells too much like food in my opinion. I like their toothpaste ok, I guess.

We've changed most things - toothpaste, shampoo/conditioner, lotion - but not deodorant yet. I love Tom's toothpaste, but their deodorant just doesn't work. My boyfriend at least didn't have a terrible experience like ronzorelli (ouch!), but he said it was like wearing nothing at all. Maybe we'll try Lavalin next.

My best find so far is Home Health body lotion, which is actually oil, not a cream lotion. No parabens, no mysterious ingredients. And it works better than lotion for dry skin.

I got hooked on Tom's just after college--when I realized that the high-powered abrasive pastes I was using were contributing to my level of tooth wear and burning my mouth. Now I can't use anything but, though I mourn the discontinuation of the fennel flavor in the plain ol' flouride paste--it was my favourite and I swear the fennel left my mouth fresher longer. That's the only product of theirs I use, though I use a natural "liquid rock" deoderant from Kiss My Face (having transitioned completely away from aluminum-laden anti-perspirants that led to *more* sweaty-sweaty, not less) and Dr. Bronner's liquid soap. I stopped washing my (short, short, SHORT) hair about ten years ago and have never looked back--less flaky scalp and one less thing to do or buy.

Having done this for my body care, I'm in the midst of transitioning towards natural home cleaning stuff--just finished a dishwashingliquid-off to find the best for me, and am moving on to the basintubandtile-off.

ronzorelli - I had the same problem that you described when I tried their "long lasting" deodorant. I've used the regular ToM deodorant for a long time (shortly after I moved to Maine, in fact) but the long lasting versions weren't made for my skin so I switched back to the regular one. I see on their website that they now offer a Sensitive version of their deodorant but for those of us that were quite literally burned by the experience of changing deodorant, well I won't be trying it any time soon.
I use their toothpaste and their shave cream and I like them very much.
I recently tried a Kiss My Face deodorant that was on sale at Whole Foods and that was a mistake. It simply didn't glide on like the ToM deodorant does. God help me if ToM ever stops making the Natural Original line of deodorant.

colgate-palmolive owns tom's of maine now.. yuck.

Just last week we noticed that Tom's Toothpaste contains sodium lauryl sulfate, a no-no in our house. We are searching for a better alternative if anyone has suggestions.

Just make sure you get the ADA-approved formulas from Tom's of Maine (according to my dentist anyway)... some of them don't have fluoride, or have whitening agents. But I've used it for years, and love it - other toothpastes seem so artificial and sweet now.

Snickidy: Partner has same problem with dandruff in our house. Hairstylist said step 1 is identify what is clogging pores causing skin to flake so it can "breathe." For products one possibility is Hauschka's Neem Hair Oil. Home remedy: try a tea of either sweetgrass or rosemary, just boil these botanicals in water and use as a hair rinse, the Dene say it helps with greys, too!

colgate-palmolive may own tom's now... but i know for sure that they still operate under the same principals they always have. so rest assured that you're still supporting good practices. colgate-palmolive reaps the benefits of the business you do with tom's, but the tom's company still gives more than ever to the community, their employees, and customers. yuck... i sound like an advertisement, and really don't intend to.

the addition of the fluoride toothpastes got me on board... now it's all i buy. as far as other hygiene/body products go i've greened my deodorant, soap, shampoo, the list goes on... but it isn't necessarily all tom's.

i use jason's organics toothpaste..bf hates it but i love it.. and brommer's peppermint soap.. looove brommer's, will not go back to reg soaps at all.

I've been using Tom's for a few years and now when I used regular toothpaste it tastes sickly sweet. Probably because some brands have chemical sweeteners in them.

And Tom's recently came out with a SLS-free toothpaste. A little more expensive though.

Also, in order to recycle their toothpaste tubes, you have to peel off the plastic threading around the opening. This can kind of be a pain, but it certainly is less plastic than conventional brands.

I was just over at the cosmetics database looking for toothpaste, and Tom's came up safe. I was going to switch when my current tube ran out. I guess it's just fate that this post came out about it, now.

I also use Jason Organics toothpaste- I believe that they have flavors that do not have lauryl sulfate. They also have some with alternatives to fluoride, which my dentist agrees is not necessary in all toothpastes (especially given that it's in our water, which is another story).

I'm also a fan of Dr. Brommer's soaps.

I have greened all of my body care regime, and am always looking for anything better. It helps that I am vegan, because a lot of animal products can be irritating. As far as toothpaste, a lot of people believe that adults do not need fluoride. If you want it though, I suggest Nature's Gate organics. There is peppermint and raspberry, and are both Sodium Laurel Sulfate free (which is also a no-no in my house). The two hardest things to green in my opinion are deodorant and make-up. I ended up with Gabriel (which is pretty much the same as ZuZu Luxe) cosmetics, and Kiss My Face Liquid Rock in Lavender—it is a roll-on liquid, and doesn't leave white streaks. The make-up is great, but the problem with the deodorant is that it stops the smelling, but not the sweating! In the summer I need to be well ventilated to not show this!

Dr. Brommer's rocks. We have both the liquid and the bar soaps. It's a little pricey, but many are organic and fair-trade, and it lasts a long time.

Toothbrushes, on the other hand...has anyone found an eco-friendly toothbrush that is as effective as the high-tech commercial brands? We've tried several and they seem to wear out fast and don't have the reach. I keep waiting for The Ultimate Toothbrush, but it just hasn't come my way up here in Canada.

EmilyCatherine - I like the preserve toothbrushes. They last me exactly 3 months which is when you're supposed to switch anyways, so I can't compain. The whole handle is made from recycled plastic, and they'll recycle the whole thing when you're done. It took me a while to get used to the angle of the handle, but I like it now.

To Dr. Bronner's commenters - I agree! I love the liquid peppermint soap and it lasts forever b/c you only need a small amount to lather up. It leaves me feeling so fresh and clean.

I'm not impressed by Tom's anymore. Crest bought them so they're owned by an unethical animal testing parent company, they won't disclose their full ingredients, and every time I use their toothpaste I get cracks in the corners of my mouth.

I love Tom's of Maine toothpaste. I have been using it for years, and regular toothpaste tastes terrible to me now. I want to learn more about sodium lauryl sulfate now, however.

I also use crystal deodorant sticks, which have always worked well for me.

I bought one Tom's toothpaste, and as I am used to peppermint, the peach/mango(?) flavor is just tooo weird. And it doesn't really create a fresh feeling in my mouth.

I'd like to like it, though, so maybe I'll buy another tube once that one's over.

Do they have something that'd be more like regular toothpaste? I gave up trad pastes because every other one cracked the corners of my mouth, especially ones with mouthwash or whitening agents (and which ones dont...)

While you may be able to justify Tom's comparatively, there are plenty of other non-corporate options out there. Whenever people talk about "natural" grooming products, everyone's first response is "Tom's!" which is obvious since they have corporate-powered ad/marketing behind them. There are plenty of other great options, some of which have already been mentioned, one other being Nature's Gate.

I don't use Tom's, not having anything to do with the politics, just because I think their products stink.

Lilli K, tom's of maine have a MILLION different flavors of toothpaste including peppermint. my local drug store carries a whole wall of them :) i wish they made a sensitive teeth version! i have to use sensodyne but i often switch back to tom's for a month or two so that my teeth don't become used to the sensodyne and it stops working altogether.

I tried Tom's toothpaste several years ago. It left a film on my teeth, and I wasn't crazy about the taste -- chalk, yuck! But I do like their deodorant. Regular deodorant doesn't work all that well for me anyway. As long as I freshen up with some extra deodorant in the middle of the day, I'm usually ok.

I've been using Tom's of Maine toothpaste all my life (26 years!) because that's what my mom uses. It's great stuff! I use the non-flouride kind.

I used to use ToM toothpaste and enjoyed it; budget cut backs forced me to stop, but soon I will be back to it.
Re: the SLS content in ToM toothpaste used to be derived from coconut products (oil I think). Not sure if that makes it any better, but it is a natural product.

I love the lemon-lime toothpaste. It's SLS-free and contains a "dry mouth soother" which is great. I usually feel like I have to drink a big glass of water after brushing my teeth but I don't get that with Tom's.

About a month ago I switched over to the lavender deodorant with hops and it's not really effective on me. Well, it is for about two hours... And I think it has messed up my body chemistry because even right after a shower my pits smell really strange, like sickly-sweet beer.

I've tried Tom's toothpaste (LOVE IT) but I wish they had some kind of enamel repair sensitivity type for that I have to use another brand so I got between those two toothpastes.

And I have used a few different Natural deodorants(tom's included)... and that didn't go very well. I used to use Dove deodorant it really helped my skin but I hated that Dove tests on animals soooo.... I use an Avon deodorant.

I LOOOOVE Toms products. My parents and grandma also use the hand salve, and my dad a steel worker uses the burn salve. I love the toothpaste and have used all the deoderants as well as their lotion and acne "meds". I adore it and feel good about using them. Every year for my birthday I get chapstick,lotion,deoderant and shampoo/conditioner. I'm lucky to have an awesome family that knows how important it is to me. Ive used everything from the health food store, kiss my face, tons of hemp products, etc but I like toms the best. It feels the closest to what you grew up on without being fake and full of negative vibes. They still are a standup company to me and keep doing things the way they do them even if they were bought.

namaste
asha