Deodorant Soap ~ part 1

I recently heard the comment that the reason perfume and cologne doesn't last on some people and does on others has everything to do with the use of deodorant soap.  If you bathe with deodorant soap and the deodorizing chemicals stay on your skin, why would your fragrance (odor) stick around. It is being attacked and erased by the deodorant!  That's good information.  However, in my investigation I learn a great deal more about deodorant soaps that are on the market.  I have never used them, so had no need to investigate before.  With my findings, I now feel we all need to spread the word to those that do use them.  This post is going to have to be 

in several sections, as it is very long! If you don't want to read all of the "why" info, just skip ahead to the summary.

Let's look at the ingredients of the top selling commercial brands.

According to this soap's manufacturer's website,  the deodorant soap was born after chemists discovered that bacteria on the skin caused perspiration odor. They developed an antibacterial ingredient and combined it with a blend of 14 different oils to launch a new soap with a light clover fragrance. The soap claimed  it provided "'Round The Clock" protection.

Triclocarban

Triclocarban is the first ingredient listed on this soap and the only ingredient termed "active." This is the ingredient that gives this soap it's deodorant quality. Triclocarban, or TCC, is an anti-bacterial agent. CosmeticsInfo.org reports it's widely used in bath products, cleansing products and powders and is approved by the Food and Drug Administration for use on the skin. Since TCC prevents or slows the growth of bacteria, it's used in some cosmetics and personal care products to prevent spoilage.

Researchers at UC Davis have reported that Triclocarban can act as an endocrine disruptor. While TCC shows little or no endocrine activity by itself, it was found to enhance the biological activity of the endogenous hormone testosterone by in vitro cell-based bioassay as well as in vivo in a male rat model. Testosterone normally mediates transcriptional activity in sexual reproductive organs, but TCC appears to significantly amplify this activity. Ten day oral exposure to TCC caused a substantial increase in the weight of accessory sexual organs such as the prostate This raises some concerns due to the 45 years it has been used in personal care products and the current surge in popularity of its use in anti-bacterial products. The authors commented in a UC Davis press release (Information found on Wikipedia)

Covenant Creek Farm does NOT use Triclocarban in any product!  Why would we?

Phylates

Chemical Found in Cosmetics, Soaps and Lubricants is Hazardous for Men

Scientists have been aware of the fact that exposure to phthalates is linked to reproductive issues. Recently they have discovered that this chemical, found in nearly everything including plastics, shampoos, cosmetics, lubricants, paint and soaps, is strongly connected to abdominal obesity and insulin resistance in adult males. This scientific discovery was made by the University of Rochester Medical Center.

Scientists think that even in low doses the exposures to phthalates and several other common chemicals might reduce the levels of testosterone in men. Richard Stahlhut, A Preventive Medicine resident at the University of Rochester said that the exposure to such chemicals leads to the increase of obesity rates and an epidemic of such related disorders like Type 2 diabetes. He outlined that some significant declines in both testosterone levels and quality of sperm have been spotted during the last several decades in the United States and some other countries. Stahlhut stated that phthalates should definitely be in the list of chemicals that require a careful study.

It is worth mentioning that phthalates have been actively used for more than half a century. However, only now did scientist start thinking about the possible health problems to which the chemical might lead. Studies made on animals showed that phthalates consistently depress the levels of testosterone. Recently, while performing their studies on humans, scientists have found that the hazardous chemicals are linked to poor quality of semen in men. This also refers to reproductive organs in boy babies.

Covenant Creek Farm uses only fragrances that are certified phthalate free!

What is Saponification?

Saponification in Soap Making

Definition: Saponification is an exothermic (gives off heat) chemical reaction that occurs when fats or oils (fatty acids) come into contact with lye (a base.) Saponification literally means "turning into soap" from the root word, "sapo", which is Latin for soap. The by-products of the saponification reaction are glycerin and soap.

Oils + lye (dispersed into water) = soap + glycerin

Oils and fats each have what is called a “saponification value”, which is the amount of lye needed to completely neutralize them into soap with no lye left over. Each oil has a different value, which is why it’s important to always run your recipes through a lye calculator. We recommend the one on the Majestic Mountain Sage website.
Once oils have been saponified with lye (sodium hydroxide) the lye is no longer available. This means that it is basically "gone"! So, if you are worried about it, don't be. The saponification process has altered the composition of the lye.

Antibacterial Soap

Antibacterial Soap, what's the buzz? I will tell what you need to know:

A friend's daughter did research for a school science fair project (of course she won!). She compared bacteria from her hands after washing with a leading name brand antibacterial soap and all natural goat milk soap with no detergents. After washing daily for a week with each soap and placing scrapings in Petri dishes, guess which ones grew bacteria???? Not the handmade natural soap, Yes, the name brand commercial soap. Most contain Triclosan. What about Triclosan? :

Triclosan Can Transform Into Something Even More Dangerous

The antibacterial agent added to many liquid hand soaps to help kill germs. Triclosan is suspected of contributing to the growing problem of antibiotic resistance.

Here's something else you may not know about that innocent-looking bottle of liquid hand soap sitting next to your sink.

When triclosan mixes with the chlorine in your tap water, chloroform is formed, which the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has classified as a probable human carcinogen.

And when combined with other disinfection byproducts (DBPs) in your tap water, this chloroform can raise the concentration of dangerous trihalomethanes (THMs) above the EPA's maximum allowable amount.

Trihalomethanes (THMs) are Cancer Group B carcinogens, meaning they've been shown to cause cancer in laboratory animals. Disinfection byproducts (DPBs) have also been linked to reproductive problems in both animals and humans.

Not only do you absorb them into your skin, these antimicrobial chemicals flow down your drain, contaminating the environment and food chain.

So, let me ask you… do you really want to use this on your skin or your children's skin?

In my opinion, you're better off switching to skin care products made of natural plant names you recognize, can pronounce, and could even eat (if you had to).