The Best and Worst Women's Deodorants

Summer's here with a sweltering vengeance, and if there's one product we all need to help get us (and those around us) through the day, it's deodorant and/or antiperspirant.

We've all probably arrived at our favorite brand through some anxious trial and error, but just because you've settled on a brand that works doesn't mean it's good for the environment or your health.

As part of its ongoing mission to help consumers find healthy, green, ethical products based on scientific ratings, our colleagues at GoodGuide reviewed and rated nearly 500 women's deodorants. Let's see how these products stacked up.According to GoodGuide, The Body Shop Aloe Anti-Perspirant Deodorant is the top-rated women's deodorant and antiperspirant, while Avon Foot Works All Day Deodorant Foot Cream was ranked dead last.

The experts at GoodGuide, an online source of product information, have rated more than 100,000 consumer goods -- including food, personal care and household products -- using three factors of increasing importance to shoppers: concern for the environment, personal health and social responsibility.

The health score measures a product's potential health effects on consumers. The environment score measures a product's environmental impact and the company's overall policies and practices. The society score evaluates a company's social impact, which can include treatment of workers, workplace diversity, community involvement and corporate ethics.

GoodGuide's ratings include a brief explanation for each category and allow users to drill down into each score for more detail.

For instance, The Body Shop Aloe Anti-Perspirant Deodorant's 8.2 rating is based on:

• A Health score of 10: "This product has no ingredients that raise a health concern."
• An Environment score of 7.4: "Compared to other companies, this company scores well on reducing climate change emissions."
• A Society score of 7.3: "Compared to other companies, the company that makes this product has an above average rating on general corporate governance."

Conversely, Avon Foot Works All Day Deodorant Foot Cream's 3.5 rating was based on:

• A Health score of 0: "This product contains one or more ingredients that raise a high level of health concern."
• An Environment score of 6.0: "The company that makes this product has an above average score in use of resources."
• A Society score of 4.7: "The company that makes this product has one of the lowest scores in ethical policies and performance."

GoodGuide rated 481 women's deodorant and antiperspirant products from more than 30 brands. The ratings also include an explanation of the methodology used to assign scores and allow consumers to filter their search based on products that are fragrance-free or not tested on animals.

Listed below are the top five best and worst women's deodorant and antiperspirant products. In order to avoid repetition of a particular brand, we've skipped ahead to the next best or worst brand in the ratings.

The Best Women's Deodorant and Antiperspirant

• The Body Shop Aloe Anti-Perspirant Deodorant (8.2)
• Secret Platinum Protection Soft Solid Anti-Perspirant Deodorant Unscented (7.1)
• Dry Idea Anti-Perspirant & Deodorant, Roll-On, Fresh Clean (7.1)
• Dove Power Roll-on (7.0)
• Suave Anti-Perspirant/Deodorant, Roll-On, Powder (7.0)

The Worst Women's Deodorant and Antiperspirant

• Avon Foot Works All Day Deodorant Foot Cream (3.5)
• Revlon Hi & Dri Deodorant, Stick For Men, Musk (3.6)
• Lady Mitchum Anti-Perspirant & Deodorant, Super Solid, Shower Fresh (3.6)
• Ban Anti-Perspirant & Deodorant, Clear Roll-On, Unscented (3.9)
• Ban Naturals Anti-Perspirant & Deodorant, Roll-On, Fresh (4.2)

You can view all the top-rated women's deodorants and antiperspirants (in descending order) here and all the bottom-ranked women's deodorant and antiperspirant (in ascending order) here.

GoodGuide also recently launched its Transparency Toolbar, which Josh Dorfman, the site's vice president of marketing, said "enables people to take GoodGuide with them when they shop online."

The transparency tool bar allows consumers to personalize their shopping experience by highlighting issues that matter to them. The toolbar, which Dorfman said works best when shopping on Amazon, displays GoodGuide scores and recommends alternative products that dovetail with the issues consumers deem most important.