Pit Stains

I began a crusade this evening against armpit stains on white shirts. I love white tops. I don't love armpit stains. (And I'm not alone in this.)

As I generally do when I am confronted with a dilemma I consulted my BFF Google. What did Google give me? www.getridofthings.com. This gem of a website told me that pit stains are generally caused by the salts and acid in your deoterant. I knew this already. Hmm. I switched from Lady Speed Stick, Apple Blossom Scent, to Arm & Hammer Unscented about two months ago. (Side note: this was a big change. I'd been using LSS since sophomore year in high school). Anywho, I made the change and saw decreased staining, albeit minimally. I can't read scientist lingo so I struggled to make heads or tails of the ingredients in either Lady Speed Stick or the Arm & Hammer. I think both are guilty of having salts and acid.

getridofthings.com recommended Tom's of Maine. I looked into the ingredients in the Tom's lavender deodorant. Third ingredient: Sodium stearate.

Doesn't sodium = salt??

Luckily getridofthings.com was astute enough to delve into how to get rid of stains once they are "in" as well as how to prevent them. Maybe crisis management is more suitable for this situation rather than prevention... Borax, hydrogen peroxide and an enzymatic cleaner were all said to remove stains once they are in. (Eznymaic cleaner also is good for blood, vomit and urine stains, FYI.)

I'd like to add that getridofthing.com was truly a gem of a find. It appears to be a collaborative blog-like site made up of articles on how to eliminate everything from armadillos to pleghm.