As someone with incredibly sensitive skin, I am empathetic to the plight of people who can’t use brand name retail products on their bodies and have to purchase both their toothpaste and deodorant on Etsy instead of just picking up a few bottles at the local Target. But while many of us have had a “reaction” to a bath and/or beauty product that’s supposed to make us look/smell our very best, no one appears to be suffering more than a man named Rodney Colley, who’s suing Old Spice for burning off his armpits.
Colley, who’s hurt himself with grooming products before–he had to go to the hospital several months ago after a fight he lost with a nail clipper–is making headlines again after posting the following photo to Instagram, which he purports is the result of using Old Spice deodorant. (This is your warning that what you’re about to see is gross, if not explicitly graphic.)
https://www.instagram.com/p/BAk1qYTIU8j/?taken-by=roddypipperygg
The picture above, posted two months ago, has prompted Colley to file a lawsuit against Procter & Gamble and, according to Fox 4, he claims that there are plenty of other people who have shared his fate, being badly burned by a product that’s supposed to protect from odor and perspiration while making you feel like you’re Terry Crews riding a horse into the sunset. Fox 4 even points out that the deodorant has negative reviews suggesting that it can make all sorts of horrible things happen. But is that the fault of the product or the fact that people might be using it on broken skin or even after scabbing and rashing occurs?
Procter & Gamble released a statement saying that what Colley and others may have experienced is rare and due to individual chemistry as opposed to a faulty product:
“The safety of the men who use Old Spice is the foundation of everything we do. We go to great lengths to ensure our products are safe to use, and tens of millions of men use this product with confidence and without incident every year. A small number of men may experience irritation due to alcohol sensitivity, a common ingredient used across virtually all deodorant products. For men who have experienced a reaction to a deodorant, an antiperspirant may be a better option because they have a different formulation. If anyone using Old Spice has questions, we encourage them to call us at 1-800-677-7582.”
Colley, though, is not convinced. He’s filed a class action lawsuit and will have his day in an Ohio court at some point in the near future.
