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Primal/Paleo: Basic Dishes

Steve — Wed, 09 Feb 2011 17:37:41 +0000

Continuing the series on The Primal Blueprint and Paleo, in this post I’m putting together a few primal dishes and paleo dishes that I’ve found — all of them simple and guaranteed to be tasty. Click here to read Primal/Paleo: An Introduction in case you missed it!

I admit it: in theory, the primal and paleo lifestyle is pretty great. But what good is theory without food? In order to really entrench yourself in this lifestyle, for most people it will take a variety of solid, go-to dishes. Have no fear, the foodstuff is here…

Breakfast: Bacon and Veggie Omelette

This is a solid go-to dish for breakfast. Simply beat your eggs (be generous) and fry with vegetables of your choosing — onions, bell peppers, zucchini, banana peppers — add mushrooms, and finish off with nitrate-free bacon (on the side or within your omelette). Spice up with some salsa and/or sour cream.

Lunch: Huge Chicken Salad

For lunch, simply throw together a ton of vegetables (and I mean a lot). Lettuce, spinach, bell peppers, onions — you name it. Add a protein source like chicken (substitute with tuna for variety) or hard-boiled eggs, and top with olive oil and balsamic vinegar. Yum.

Snack: Macadamia Nuts

These nuts are treasure. Eat a handful (or more) of them — great source of fat and will satisfy that hunger between meals well.

Dinner: Roast Chicken à la Awesome

An always-delectable meal. Roasted chicken (add spices to taste), a pile of asparagus smothered in butter, served with a large spinach salad dressed in olive oil and balsamic vinegar. Bon appetit.

Dinner: Steak and Mushroom Medley

When is steak ever a bad idea? Take your favourite steak (the bigger, the better), add sauteed mushrooms and broccoli (plenty of butter, of course) and finish off with a nice glass of red wine. If you’re feeling especially adventerous, finish this dinner off with a bowl of berries and genuine whipped cream (the high-fat, zero-sugar type). Enjoy!

These are only a few staple meals. If you want a fantastic resource on primal and paleo recipes, you should definitely check out The Primal Blueprint Cookbook.

I encourage you to read the book authored by Mark Sisson called The Primal Blueprint or The Paleo Solution by Robb Wolf. Both are great sources on the subject!

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Primal/Paleo: Success Stories #3

Steve — Tue, 08 Feb 2011 20:52:49 +0000

Continuing the series on The Primal Blueprint and Paleo, this post goes over the inspiring success story of The Unconquerable Dave. Click here to read Primal/Paleo: An Introduction in case you missed it!

This is the story of The Unconquerable Dave. I couldn’t help but share this, as it really hits home how effective the primal and paleo lifestyle is. Just so I don’t spoil the story, as written by Dave himself, have a read for yourself. It’s very cool to see how the primal lifestyle has affected him in such a profound way.

In case you’re lazy and just want to see pictures, here are the before and after shots (there are several “in-between” shots if you click through to the story):

September 2009

September 2010

How cool is that? Not only the weight loss, extra energy, and general positive outlook on life…I wish I could grow a beard like that. Geez.

I HIGHLY encourage you to take a look at the book authored by Mark Sisson called The Primal Blueprint or The Paleo Solution by Robb Wolf. Both are excellent sources on the subject!

NEXT UP: Some tasty Primal/Paleo dishes to get you started!

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Primal/Paleo: Success Stories #2

Steve — Thu, 21 Oct 2010 17:58:06 +0000

Continuing the series on The Primal Blueprint and Paleo, this post goes over the inspiring success story of Steven, a primal follower and enthusiast. Click here to read Primal/Paleo: An Introduction in case you missed it!

I came across 39 year-old Steven’s post at the Mark’s Daily Apple forums, and couldn’t help but want to share it. Firstly and foremost, take a look at Steven’s before and after photos:

What a transformation! For reference, the first photo is at 223 pounds in April 2010, and the second is at 175 pounds in September 2010. That’s only five months! Here are some interesting things Steven had to say…

On eating:

I was relatively strict with my diet… and still do not consume much grains or legumes. I do have an occasional beer – so I guess that counts as grains. I also consume some dairy (cheese, greek yogurt and heavy cream)… generally every other day or so. I did not get terribly anal about my food intake either.

I also cut down on the intake of really sweet fruit like pineapples – which happens to be my favorite.

On breakfast:

Eggs and some bacon is pretty high on my list for breakfast foods for sure.

Some days it might be some fruit… like an apple with almond butter; or some fresh berries with heavy cream; or I’ll cube up an apple and a banana and serve it with some Greek Yogurt. If I feel like getting really fancy, I might make an omelet with some onions, green peppers, meat (chicken / steak or bacon) and maybe a little cheese (real cheese – not the processed kind). Other days it might just be a cup of coffee (or home made iced coffee) with some cream.

In short, I eat based on how I’m feeling in the morning .

On exercise:

My “real” workouts were twice a week (at the most). They consisted generally of bodyweight exercises – different variations of push-ups, pull-ups/chin-ups, bodyweight / hindu squats, burpees, box jumps etc. Once every couple of weeks or so I would grab a kettlebell and do high repetition snatches or swings (instead of running sprints – I hate running). I did ZERO sprints.

Only other thing I did was my martial arts training, which I was doing about 2 – 3 days per week.

On his abs:

My opinion is that if you get lean enough they will show (even without doing a ton of ab work). Get below 10% bodyfat (for guys) and it’s virtually impossible not to see the definition in your abs.

For what it’s worth, I did very little focused ab work (compared to P90X), however most of my workouts involve the core and I always make sure my core is tight during an exercise (even during push ups and pull-ups).

On P90X:

I did P90X a few years back with decent results… hurt myself (through overtraining) and fell off the wagon. But I was never able to get as lean as I am now following P90X and their nutrition plan. Plus to be honest, I despised having to work out that hard 6 days per week.

There you have it! I think it’s also fairly obvious that he spent a lot of time outdoors, soaking in that crucial vitamin D. Props to you, Steven!

I HIGHLY encourage you to take a look at the book authored by Mark Sisson called The Primal Blueprint or The Paleo Solution by Robb Wolf. Both are excellent sources on the subject!

NEXT UP: Primal/Paleo Success Stories #3: The Unconquerable Dave!

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Primal/Paleo: Success Stories

Steve — Tue, 19 Oct 2010 16:00:49 +0000

Continuing the series on The Primal Blueprint and Paleo, this post offers a glimpse at the success story of Meghan, a primal follower — along with a source of many other inspiring success stories. Click here to read Primal/Paleo: An Introduction in case you missed it.

Meghan was kind enough to share her story with me, so here it is for you to enjoy! Also, see the bottom of the post for more great stories.

Meghan’s Story

“I was following the calories in/calories out approach to weight loss for a long time. In Dec 2005 I was diagnosed with a thyroid condition, after gaining 40 pounds in just over two months. At that time I started keeping a food journal, eating mostly whole foods and restricting calories. I exercised 4-6 times a week for 45-60 minutes at a time. When I first started my medication I did lose a little bit of weight, probably about 15 pounds. Then nothing. I was stuck. In Dec 2006 I was put on ‘the program’. I meet with a dietitian and exercise physiologist once a month. have my exercise logs and food journals analyzed. I workout sometimes up to 8 times a week, yes that means working out twice a day most weeks. I was lucky to lose a pound a month. In 3.5 years of the program I lost a total of 10 pounds, yes a measly 10 pounds.

Then in July of 2009 my dad introduced me to the paleo diet. I rolled my eyes. Yeah, okay, sure. I can cut out beans, grains and potatoes, lose weight and be healthy? I don’t think so. That goes against everything we have been taught about diet and weight loss. Fat is bad, whole grains are good…end of story. Then I didn’t see dad for a month. When I saw him again, he was like a new man. He had lost 7 inches from his waist and 27 pounds. I started his diet that day. I started it as a last ditch effort and only planned on doing it long enough to pass my fitness test. Then the results started and I was hooked.

Now, I am a cavewoman. I won’t go back to the Standard American Diet (SAD). I am happy and healthy. My cholesterol has gone down, especially my LDL cholesterol. My triglycerides are the same, still healthy. I have lost about 7.5 inches from my waist, for the first time in 10 years! Normally I lose weight from everywhere except my waist. My weight loss so far has been abut 25 pounds, yes that is 25 pounds in 5 months! I have gained muscle mass without working any harder than I normally do. My body fat percentage has gone from 30% to 26%. I am living proof that this diet works.”
-Meghan, January 2010

Fast Forward to September 2010

“I was unable/unwilling to eat right for a while when we moved, and did go back to the SAD diet for a bit. On August 18, 2010 I went back to my primal ways and have been happy again with the way I feel SO much energy and just feeling healthy. I still have a long way to go to get to where I want to be, but this way of life makes it so much easier. Feeding my body real food, fueling it with the things it needs makes it so worthwhile. The weight loss has not been as dramatic, about 3 pounds in 3 weeks, but that equates to a pound a week which is supposed to be the ‘healthy’ amount to lose per week. Plus, I am sure that I am also getting some increase in muscle, since for me following the Primal Blueprint, means exercising too. Ha, I just calculated my body fat percentage from August 18th and then again for today, September 11, and it has decreased by about 4% Can’t be disappointed with those results, can we?”

You can read more about Meghan at her blog, Primal Ponderings.

More Primal/Paleo Success Stories

If you love what you’ve read and want to read more inspiring stories, I encourage you to go to Mark’s Daily Apple and read through all the successes on that page. I’m telling you, there are some wild transformations!

Here are some interesting forum topics to read through:

I HIGHLY encourage you to take a look at the book authored by Mark Sisson called The Primal Blueprint or The Paleo Solution by Robb Wolf. Both are excellent sources on the subject!

NEXT UP: Another primal success story!

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Primal/Paleo: Why Grains Are Unhealthy and Dangerous

Steve — Mon, 13 Sep 2010 21:39:53 +0000

Continuing the series on The Primal Blueprint and Paleo, I further explain why grains are so unhealthy and how best to avoid them! Click here to read Primal/Paleo: An Introduction in case you missed it.

When speaking with people about primal/paleo, the devastation and shock that comes across that person’s face immediately after I say “grains are unhealthy” is a completely expected and reasonable way to react. I mean, how could someone say that? We’ve all been told about the so-called “health, whole grains” as an antithesis to the “heart-attack inducing saturated fats”, and these notions usually come from reputable sources. So when primal comes along and turns someone’s world upside down, I expect them to be skeptical!

So let’s get down to business. Why are grains so unhealthy for humans?

The Foundations

Way back before agriculture, humans predominately ate plants, animals, fruits, nuts and seeds. We hunted; we gathered. This went on for a very long time, until somewhere along the line (roughly 10,000 years ago, actually) agriculture came into existence and grains (wheat, pasta, rice, corn, rye, barley) became an integral part of the human diet.

Yes, grains are:

robust
inexpensive
filling

…but they are not nearly as nutritionally-dense as the primal alternatives; in fact, they cause some serious damage.

Grains = Sugar

Well, maybe not literally, but to the human body, wheat is the same as sugar. Let’s say you eat a slice of bread — whole grain or white, it doesn’t matter. What happens next?

Your body converts the bread into glucose (sugar!);
Sugar moves into the bloodstream;
Insulin is sent to transport the sugar
- Out of the bloodstream
- …and eventually to various parts of the body (liver, muscle, fat cells)

When this happens chronically (see: anyone who eats grains and sugar on a daily basis), we become insulin resistant. This leads to increased fat storage and risk of diabetes, among other things.

Chronic Grain Eating = Inflammation

What is inflammation? Think of the redness and swelling that you experience when you get cut. That’s it. It’s a great mechanism for our body to speed up healing, but when we chronically eat grains, we induce a low-level grade of inflammation that is across our entire body (chronic systemic inflammation). In short, inflammation is being exposed as the root cause of many of humanity’s disease, including heart disease, atherosclerosis, cancer, and more. To go a bit deeper with this: omega 6 fatty acids, found bountifully in grains, are pro-inflammatory. Good thing we have omega 3s!

How About the Fiber?

Other than the fact that vegetables contain enough fiber for our diets (so long as we get enough of them), fiber is also purported to be a cause of many of the problems that conventional wisdom claims it cures.

In A Nutshell

Humans aren’t meant to eat grains (wheat, pasta, rice, corn, rye, barley). Grain consumption leads to increased fat storage and systemic inflammation, which in turn leads to a host of diseases.

For more great reading on the subject, visit here and here, or better yet: read the book.

NEXT UP: Primal Fitness!

I HIGHLY encourage you to take a look at the book authored by Mark Sisson called The Primal Blueprint or The Paleo Solution by Robb Wolf. Both are excellent sources on the subject!

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Primal/Paleo: An Introduction

Steve — Thu, 09 Sep 2010 12:00:05 +0000

Primal nutrition and fitness, also known as paleo or paleolithic nutrition, is a way of eating and exercising that has completely changed how I view health. I’m 100% sold on it. In fact, you’ll find that much of the content on Wellnut hinges on the Primal philosophy! You’ll find Mark Sisson’s The Primal Blueprint outlines it really well, as well as The Paleo Solution by Robb Wolf.

So, what exactly is primal? To answer that question, I’d like to start at the foundations…

What is Primal?

Going ‘primal’ or ‘paleo’ essentially means that you are attempting to eat and exercise the way our human ancestors did long before the dawn of agriculture — as best we can, in our 21st-century world. After all, agriculture has only been around for roughly 10,000 years, which is only a small sliver of humanity’s long existence on this planet. Prior to this, your average human spent most of their time hunting for food and foraging for plants, fruits, nuts, and/or seeds. There was no bread baking in the oven, as ubiquitous as that is to us now.

Essentially, our bodies have not been designed to eat what we couldn’t hunt or forage for naturally.

Primal Food

What does a primal follower eat? In short: plants, animals, fruits, nuts, seeds, and oils. That’s in order of quantity. Here’s a list that may help you out:

Primal:

Plants: vegetables; almost any edible plant that grows on this green earth.
Animals: MEAT! This includes beef, chicken, pork (including bacon), fish, and eggs (yes, there’s more to this list).
Nuts: almonds, walnuts, macadamias, etc. No, this doesn’t include peanuts (they’re a legume).
Seeds: sunflower seeds, pumpkin seeds, etc….chew away!
Oils: Olive oil, coconut oil, fish oil, among others.

Non-primal:

Grains (bread, pasta, rice, and all their derivatives)
Sugar
Processed food
Dairy (although this one is more of a grey area, and much less important than the other points)

You will find more in-depth discussion of primal nutrition in some of my upcoming posts.

Primal Exercise

The concept behind primal exercise is exactly the same as with nutrition; we’re looking at what our ancestors (and ourselves, genetically speaking) would have been designed to do. What is that?

Plenty of walking
Heavy lifting
The occasional sprint

That’s it. No marathons, no body-destroying “chronic cardio” as Mark Sisson puts it. Again, this will be explored in more detail soon.

What are the benefits of going Primal?

The benefits of going primal/paleo are wide and deep, but here are a few:

Increased energy
Weight loss (more accurately: burning of body fat)
Slower aging
Much less risk of a host of disease and disorders (ie. heart disease)

You can infer that sticking to the conventional diet of heavy carbs, low fat and processed food will only lead to the opposite of the above.

NEXT UP: Why Grains Are Unhealthy and Downright Dangerous.

I HIGHLY encourage you to take a look at the book authored by Mark Sisson called The Primal Blueprint or The Paleo Solution by Robb Wolf. Both are excellent sources on the subject!

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What Are Trans Fats?

Steve — Wed, 01 Sep 2010 15:10:33 +0000

We’ve been conditioned to shudder at those two words. Food manufacturers have shifted (according to demand, as always) their stance in recent years from being on the defensive to virtually shouting from the rooftops, “zero trans fat!”; doctors have been relentless in telling us not to eat foods containing trans fat. It’s been a witch hunt, and a completely valid one at that, but let’s get to know the witch a bit before we light the match…

What is trans fat?

A simple way of identifying trans fat is that it is a type of fat that has been altered through partial hydrogenation. When food has been partially hydrogenated (think vegetable oil), the naturally liquid fat becomes solid at room temperature (think margarine).

A brief history…

Hydrogenation was brought to North America in the early 1900s. Crisco, an American staple food ingredient, was one of the first products to be mass-marketed that used the partial hydrogenation process; Proctor & Gamble even gave away free cookbooks in which every recipe called for a certain amount of Crisco.

Prior to this introduction of partially hydrogenated fats, society’s typical fat intake consisted of mostly animal fats, such as beef tallow, lard, or butter (remember: saturated fat is good for you). By the 1960s, animal fats were being phased out due to lower costs as well as the demonization of saturated fat.

Unfortunately, it wasn’t until the 1990s that the deadliness of trans fat came to public attention. Now, by 2010, we’re at a point where trans fats still exist in many foods, but are steadily declining in their use (my hope is for an outright ban eventually).

Why is trans fat unhealthy?

Trans fat has no health benefits, and can cause the following:

heart disease
comparatively increased fat storage
inflammation
atherosclerosis

That’s some bad news.

What food contains trans fat?

You can generally find trans fat in the following foods:

Most fried foods
French fries
Baking shortenings
Margarine
Anything considered “junk food”

Do yourself a favour and eat natural, whole foods — butter instead of margarine, fatty meats instead of french fries or processed junk food. You get the idea!

In a nutshell

Trans fat is the result of processing or partially hydrogenating certain types of fat. It is awful for us, causing heart disease, inflammation, artherosclerosis, and weight gain. You can find it in processed junk food and fried food, including margarine. To avoid it, stick to natural, whole food.

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Amazing Omega 3s and Their Many Health Benefits

Steve — Fri, 27 Aug 2010 21:27:03 +0000

Walk anywhere in a grocery store these days, and you’ll see plenty of food packaging with the words “OMEGA 3 FORTIFIED!” (or some variation) plastered all over the place. It’s hard to miss. So what exactly are Omega 3s and why are they so important to our health?

Omega 3s Explained

What are omega 3s? In short, they are a fatty acid that are found, naturally, in a variety of foods. While they are typically associated with fish oil (which can be found in the form of packets, liquids, and softgels — all are good), omega 3s can also be found in animal products, seeds and their oils, as well as dark green vegetables like broccoli, spinach, or kale. However, you will find it difficult to obtain animal products rich in omega 3s unless they are grass fed — not grain fed, as is the norm in commercial food production. This is just one example of why we should be feeding ourselves and our livestock exactly what we’re meant to eat.

You may have also heard about omega 6s, which balance out the equation…

Omega 6s – The Good and the Bad

Opposite to omega 3s are omega 6s — a sort of yin and yang. What’s the difference, you ask? What it boils down to is inflammation. Inflammation is what happens when, after being on the wrong end of a scrape or cut, your surrounding skin starts to swell up and turn red. It’s not necessarily a bad thing — it’s all part of the human design. Omega 6s are pro-inflammatory and omega 3s are anti-inflammatory.

In terms of ideal ratios, there’s no unanimous consensus, but most experts agree that a 1-2:1 ratio of omega 6s to omega 3s is optimal. However, the average North American diet is hardly close to that — we are closer to a 20:1 ratio, which is way off the mark! This is largely a consequence of our high grain diet, feeding our livestock grains, and eating less omega-3-rich foods.

What are the benefits?

Omega 3s offer a host of health benefits. They include, but aren’t limited to:

increased brain function, including memory;
increased heart health;
healthier skin (seriously, I noticed breakouts on my skin when I stopped taking fish oil supplements for two weeks in 2007);
fight off diseases caused by chronic inflammation, such as heart disease;
slowing down aging;
…and many more!

Clearly everyone needs to get more omega 3 goodness in them. I mean, anti-aging…come on. That’s just awesome.

How to get ‘em

So now you want to get your omega 3s, right? Here are some essential ways to increase your omega 3 intake and lower your omega 6 intake (thus restoring the natural balance):

eat more fish;
eat grass-fed meats;
eat dark green vegetables;
take fish oil supplements, like this or this;
eat less foods rich in omega 6: grains, vegetable oils, and grain-fed animals, mostly.

In a Nutshell

Omega 3s are a type of anti-inflammatory fat; the opposite of the pro-inflammatory omega 6s. We should have around a 1:1 balance between them, but with our diets we typically are 20:1 in favour of omega 6s. This causes disease, poor brain and heart function, and aging, among other things. In order to avoid these nasty problems and improve your health, consume more omega 3s (grass fed animal products, fish, fish oil supplements, dark green vegetables) and less omega 6s (grains, vegetable oils, grain-fed animal products).

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The Demonization of Saturated Fat

Steve — Wed, 25 Aug 2010 15:56:04 +0000

We’ve heard the story a thousand times before. Our doctors tell us to avoid saturated fat, citing the “fact” that it causes high cholesterol and, subsequently, heart disease. With heart disease being the leading cause of death in America (as of 2007), the supposed cause of it is obviously an important issue. Unfortunately, the world — and I’m not exaggerating here — has been led astray.

What is Saturated Fat?

Essentially, saturated fat is the fatty acid that occurs naturally in animals and animal products, such as beef, chicken, bacon (tasty, tasty bacon), eggs, and milk. A good indicator that what you’re eating is fat of the saturated variety is its state at room temperature; saturated fat is solid, whereas other fats (like mono- and polyunsaturated) are liquid.

So what’s the purpose of fat? Well, besides making food DELICIOUS, it has served as humanity’s main source of energy for the vast majority of our existence.

Saturated fat is good for you. Period.

Ancel Keys and His Deception

In the 1950s, a researcher by the name of Ancel Keys conducted a study called the “Seven Countries Study”. Basically, it looked at the saturated fat intake across seven countries and found that those same countries experienced high death rates due to heart disease. So, he took this “correlation” and ran with it.

What about the other countries? Well, despite having access to another 15 countries’ data, he chose to leave them out because they contradicted the conclusion he had made BEFORE conducting the study. That’s a classic case of bad science.

In any case, despite heaps of research going against his hypothesis, including whole societies that thrived (nearly disease-free) on high fat, low carb diets, his hypothesis still won out. Even to this day, there is still no established link between saturated fat and heart disease. From 1988 to 1999, the U.S. Surgeon General’s office undertook a project to finally prove this myth, but it collapsed after 11 years of sheer and utter failure.

So What?

What can we take from this? Well, for one, be a skeptic to what the medical establishment tells you. Unfortunately, the people who are in a position to give you “professional” medical advice can be just as misinformed as anyone else.

More importantly, eat meat! Eat eggs! Eat milk, heavy cream — it’s all good. What you should be avoiding is pro-inflammatory food, mainly grains, processed food (including margarine), and vegetable oils rich in Omega-6.

In A Nutshell

We’ve been duped — saturated fat is good for us. Eat it.

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Antiperspirants: Why Should They Be Avoided?

Steve — Sun, 22 Aug 2010 23:45:11 +0000

I’m not going to dance around the subject — people stink. I stink. Exercise, stress, heat; whatever the cause, we all sweat on a daily basis, which means that most of us use deodorant or antiperspirant every day of our post-adolescent life. So what’s the deal with antiperspirant? Is antiperspirant safe?

Understanding Deodorant vs. Antiperspirant

Most of us use one of two types of products to fight the effects of sweat and its subsequent odor. The first is deodorant — classified as a cosmetic by the FDA, it is simply used to mask the smell caused by the bacteria in sweat. The other product is antiperspirant — typically containing the active ingredients aluminium zirconium tetrachlorohydrex gly or aluminium zirconium trichlorohydrex gly. Through a variety of chemical reactions, the aluminum compounds plug the pores in your underarms (or wherever it’s been applied). Voila! You sweat less…usually. The effectiveness of antiperspirants varies from person to person.

Deodorant gets rid of the smell, antiperspirant gets rid of the sweat. Got it?

So what’s wrong with antiperspirant?

Well, several things. There has been some controversy about whether or not the aluminum compounds in antiperspirants are a cause of Alzheimer’s; some parties say yes, others say no. No one can say for certain (yet), as research has not yet indicated precisely what causes Alzheimer’s.

This one shocked me: antiperspirant also causes those all-too-common yellow pit stains on your shirts. Yes, you read that right; the best method of avoiding those yellow stains is to simply stop using antiperspirant (or at least those with aluminium zirconium tetrachlorohydrex gly in it, which appears to be most). The chemical reaction between our sweat and this aluminum compound also stiffens the cloth in the armpits of your shirts.

Consider me a new convert to deodorant.

Natural Alternatives

There are several natural (healthier) alternatives to using commercial deodorant or antiperspirant. First, try to supplement your diet with zinc, which has shown anti-odor properties in its ability to help balance the body’s metabolism. Another makeshift natural deodorant is baking soda, possibly mixed with coconut oil. I haven’t tried this myself, but I intend to (keep an eye out for a review).

In a Nutshell

Deodorant masks odor from sweat, antiperspirant stops sweat. Antiperspirant may or may not cause Alzheimer’s, but most certainly causes yellow armpit stains and stiff armpit cloth.

Action plan: stop using antiperspirant and switch to a deodorant — preferably a natural one (see above for details).

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