Description

Shampoo Bars: What They Don’t Tell You (And You NEED To Know)

Any reputable soapmaker researches, and researches and RESEARCHES over and over again to be sure they’re making the best and safest products for you, right??

RIGHT???

Not always!

Wait- what?!

Let me explain.

I know preventing excess waste is all the rage these days and that’s often what soapmakers market with- the great thing about handmade bars is that we’re saving a LOT of plastic and creating a products that are healthier for waterways AND our skin versus detergent-based shower gels and liquid body cleansers (that strip the skin of moisture and nutrients!!).

BUT is soap safe for hair?

What’s the difference between soap and shampoo bars??

To set the context, my Hand & Body Soap bars are a milder and gentler formula with a ph of between 8-9. This is actually pretty good. Generic handmade soaps are often 10+.

You’ll often find soapmakers who make “shampoo bars” BUT they are actually real soap and contain sodium hydroxide (lye), which has a dangerously high pH factor, too far out of the safety zone for hair and scalp.

How do I know? Because I made them and used them for over two years and suffered the consequences. I did a ton of research and experimentation. I don’t want you going through the same uncomfortable, irritating dry, flaky, chronically itchy scalp that took over a year to rebalance.

Once or twice as an emergency is fine, but ongoing usage WILL guarantee to lead you to absolutely no positive outcome or benefits.

Therefor, I strongly feel that any knowledgable and reputable soapmaker working from a place of integrity would never let you use soap on your hair for extended periods, much less try to profit from this dangerous product.

“When you know better, you do better!”

I now make up for my embarassing mistake by educating people and the dangers of hair soap and steering them towards healthy, safe options.

We encourage you to try a dedicated Shampoo Bar not made by a regular soapmaker unless it has entirely different ingredient list (NO sodium hydroxide/lye/caustic soda).

Real shamppo bars contain a synergistic blend of detergents and surfectants, like Sodium Cocoyl Isethionate, Cocamidopropyl Betaine and citric acid, which helps lower pH, creating a beautiful pH-balanced cleanser to keep your hair and scalp healthy and shiny. These are technically known as syn-det bars (synthetic detergent) but anything with “coco” in it is derived from coconut.

The skin has an acid mantle (pH-sensitive protective barrier) different from hair/scalp which is why you can use real soap on your body successfully without irritation. It’s also why you see the measured pH of professional hair products somewhere on the label.

“Couldn’t I just use a citrid acid or apple cider vinegar rinse afterwards??”

Technically, you could, to reset and lower the pH, but ACV stinks and isn’t fun, so good luck with that.

And citric acid is lab-grown on black mold. Gross!

My family sticks to true pH-balanced shampoo bars made with naturally-derived ingredients or we buy eco-friendly refillable shampoo from our favorite local refillery. <3