Have you ever experienced that dry, tight feeling in your skin shortly after you’ve stepped out of the shower? Or maybe you’ve stood in front of the bathroom mirror getting ready for bed and noticed you’ve got a smattering of spots across your chest, back, or both. What could be causing this, you wonder? After all, personal hygiene is an important part of living a healthy lifestyle, so why is your skin protesting when you wash it?
The answer: soap. While soap has been around for millennia, prized for its ability to effectively wash away oils and dirt from your skin and clothes, it does have an unintended side-effect. It has an impressive ability to clean, to the point where it’s a little too good at it. It works by coating the particles of oil and dirt on your skin in a soapy layer, which is then washed away with water. The problem is it also washes away your skin’s natural oils too.
This is because of the process through which soap is traditionally made, known as saponification: the reaction of fats or oils with an alkali, like lye. Soap, as a result, is alkaline, with a PH of 8-10 out of 14. Our skin also has a natural PH level, but it’s much lower: around 4-5. Using soap regularly, therefore, can affect our skin’s natural PH balance and cause issues like irritation and inflammation. It can also trigger an overproduction of oil in the skin as it works overtime to replenish it, which can eventually lead to spots and acne.
Luckily, these days there are many gentler, soap-free alternatives, that clean your skin without also stripping it. Soap isn’t the only substance with the ability to emulsify oil with water and allow it to be washed away. If you’re wondering how to choose a soap-free body cleanser for dry skin, this article will tell you all you need to know about which ingredients to look out for and which to steer clear of.
The Key Ingredients to Look Out for in Soap-Free Cleansers
Soaps are just one part of a larger chemical group called surfactants, which is short for surface active agents. A surfactant is a material with a polar and non-polar unit – basically a “head” and a “tail” – that acts on the surface of two different mediums. Most often (particularly in the case of soap), these mediums are oil and water, which usually don’t mix because oil repels water.
Surfactants fall into four categories: anionic, cationic, non-ionic and amphoteric. Soap and other foaming surfactants are anionic, accounting for 65% of the market, and are the ones to particularly look out for when considering soap-free body wash for acne on the back and chest. Anionic surfactants include soaps and sulphates, usually found in body washes, facial cleansers and shampoos. If you want a gentler alternative though, look for any surfactant with sodium and an -ate suffix in its name. These surfactants gently cleanse the skin without also stripping it of its natural oils, making them a good alternative to harsher soaps.
By switching to a soap-free cleanser, you can help your skin maintain its natural protective barrier, shielding itself from bad bacteria and other irritants and locking in moisture. To really nourish your skin, look for cleansers with natural ingredients like plant extracts.
The IKKARI three milk body cleanser, for example, is crafted from a combination of cow, camel and goat milk. These three milks work perfectly together, their natural fatty acids replenishing your skin’s barrier. Add to that its natural lactic acid, which actively refines your skin’s natural texture and tone, and you’ve got a cleanser that really works. It’s currently available in a pair of delicious fragrances – rose absolute, neroli and sea buckthorn; or geranium, parsley and bitter orange – and makes the perfect, gentle edition to any sensitive skincare routine.
Browse Our Full IKKARI Range of Gentle, Soap-Free Cleansers Today
While soap still has its uses today, there’s an increasing attitude that ultimately, it isn’t actually that great for our skin in the long term. Luckily, there is an abundance of soap-free cleansers available on the market today. It’s our mission, here at IKKARI, to carefully formulate all of our products with exclusively pure, natural and high-quality ingredients. We simply believe everyone deserves to feel good, inside and out.
We have a huge range of products to nourish your mind, soul and body, including a wide range of soap-free cleansers. Have a look through our selection today and find your next favourite.