How to Choose the Right Soap: The Benefits of Concentrated Natural Soaps for Your Skin
- Isadora Costa
- Oct 9, 2024
- 3 min read
Updated: Oct 13, 2024
From my own experience, I would say that shopping today can be overwhelming. There are so many products competing for our attention. If you make your decision based solely on price, it can be easy, but if you care about what you are actually putting into your body, you will likely spend several minutes reading the ingredients list for every potential product that claims to be the best for you. Even though we cannot always rely on what is written on the packages.
Let’s say you are looking for a nice, gentle, conditioning soap, and your eyes catch a packaging in the store featuring a huge olive or a beautiful shea tree with its fruits. Since packaging can effectively express green ideas through its visual elements [1], you buy it, and after you shower, you find that your skin is drier than before. If this sounds familiar, know that you are not alone. In this post, I will explain the potential causes of this issue and how you can make a better choice next time.
For instance, “A Gentle Skin Cleanser Shea Butter Soap” from a popular brand in the European Union contains just a small amount of shea butter - like 10% or less. In order to compensate for the lack of natural ingredients, reduce costs, and mass-produce it, synthetic ingredients like surfactants, chelating agents, artificial fragrances, and colors are chemically processed and added to enhance cleansing, conditioning, stability, and shelf life. While natural fats and oils such as shea butter and olive oil naturally provide foaming, conditioning, and cleansing properties (as well as natural scents), a pure plant based soap would also create a more natural, concentrated product.
A Gentle Skin Cleanser Shea Butter Soap ingredients list.
When your skin doesn’t get dry from your regular soap, you may not need to buy an extra body lotion, allergy cream, foot cream, hand cream, face cream, and the list goes on... It is like your body is saying: "I want more of the good staff, please" - Why is that? Because a soap concentrated with natural plant oils can affect the skin in many different ways based on its composition and the skin's condition. The natural ingredients in these oils work together to protect and repair the skin barrier, reduce inflammation, fight bacteria, support wound healing, and potentially lower skin cancer risk. They also contain antioxidants that shield the skin from environmental damage and enhance its natural defenses against microbes [2].
Now that you know concentrated soaps rich in plant based oils are potentially better for your skin, how can you make a better choice in the jungle of products vying for your attention? One way is to purchase 100% natural handmade soaps. These soaps are usually not available at supermarkets, but from small producers - like us! 🙂 If you don't have access to them, one way to gauge the amount of natural ingredients is to see where they are listed in the ingredients list. The EU Cosmetics Regulation 1223/2009 states that ingredients must be listed in descending order of weight [3].
EU Cosmetics Regulation 1223/2009, Article 19, Labelling.
Next time you're shopping, take a moment to check where the natural ingredients are listed on the label. So the further down a natural ingredient is, the less of it the product contains. A better option will be always to choose a handmade soap made with 100% natural ingredients. These concentrated, multipurpose soaps not only nourish your skin but also help reduce waste and lower your carbon footprint. By making this simple switch, you’re not just doing something good for yourself - you’re contributing to a more sustainable, resource-efficient way of living. But that’s a story for another post…
At A Little Less, we believe in promoting sustainable solutions that simplify life while protecting the environment. Our concentrated, multipurpose soaps are designed with these principles in mind - less waste and more efficiency.
Great article and eye-opening! Thank you and I love your soaps. <3
Adorei o Post! Sempre fui fã de ler rótulos e criar a maior expectativa em toda aquela propaganda. Mas saber sobre os reais ingredientes, com certeza me levaria a ter mais certeza dos benefícios do produto!!!
I usually check food but never though about soap! Very useful article to raise awareness for sustainability!
Such a good tip. Many of us forget that a good thing cannot cost a penny