A Soap is Not a Soap, Unless it's a Soap

Last week I revisited the origins of Makes 3 Organics Wellness with you. I shared how in our effort to cultivate a clean and healthy household and to minimize the toxins in our environment we were shocked to find our personal care products are full of harmful chemicals. The quest to find natural products for our skin is where the light bulb went off. It was our “Aha” moment. We realized that if we couldn’t find what we wanted on retailer’s shelves, that we could create it ourselves. 

And so we started with soap, the first product everyone uses in the morning. Believe it or not, your morning bath or shower is the activity that can set the tone for your day! So, we decided to create the most natural and effective soap for ourselves and then to share that soap with you. 

Our “three” of "you and me and baby makes three" inspires us every day to create the best products for your skin based on organic principles because we believe that soaps and skincare products that are free from agricultural, industrial and cosmetic chemicals are better for people and better for our planet. 

We can’t think of a better way to wake up in the morning than with an invigorating shower full of Makes 3 Organics® natural, soft suds. Our soaps leave your skin silky smooth and our essential oils will arouse your senses for an intentional start to your day.  We believe that the little choices we make throughout the day can create a life full of health and well-being for the body, mind and spirit and we want to help you along the way.

It was our “Aha” moment. We realized that if we couldn’t find what we wanted on retailer’s shelves, that we could create it ourselves. 

How is Makes 3 Organics® Soap Different?  

You hear me talk a lot about the importance of making organic choices to make sure your household is free from agricultural chemicals.  But did you also know that not all soap is soap? Most soaps that you find at your favorite retailer are actually synthetic detergents. Most body cleansers, both liquid and solid, are actually synthetic detergent products. These detergent products became popular in the 1940s because of soap shortages caused by World War II. 

Synthetic Detergents are Mostly Made of Petrochemicals  

Petrochemicals are made from waste in the oil refinement process.  For example, propylene, a petroleum byproduct which used to be burned off in the oil refinement process, is combined with benzene and sulphuric acid to create sulfonic acid. Sodium hydroxide is then added to the sulfonic acid to create a solid substance that behaves like soap and under FDA regulations can be called soap.

People like products made with synthetic detergents because they create a lot of lather which consumers associate with cleaning power. Sodium Lauryl Sulfate (SLS) is an example of a synthetic detergent which is made when coconut oil is processed with petrochemicals. 

So What’s Wrong with Putting Petrochemicals on Your Skin?  

These chemicals can be irritants at best and neurotoxins or carcinogens at worst.  SLS itself has been shown to be a corrosive irritant to skin, stripping it of natural oils and to increase the persistence of oral canker sores. It and other petrochemicals can be contaminated with ethylene oxide and 1,4 dioxane which are both “probably carcinogenic to humans,” toxic to the brain and central nervous system, kidneys, and liver, according to the CDC.  It is also a leading groundwater contaminant. 

We choose to create products that are made without synthetic detergents because we don’t want to add to the chemical load in our bodies and our environment. 

Our Soap is Different Because it is Actually Soap

Soap is made by combining fats or oils and an alkalai, such as sodium hydroxide. The main ingredients in our soaps are safflower and/or sunflower oils (depending on availability) and after the saponification process (turning the liquid into solid) no sodium hydroxide remains. The cleaning action of our soaps comes only from the alkali salts of the fatty acids in the oils which are all naturally derived and are also organic.

We choose organic oils because we want our soaps to be free of agricultural herbicides, pesticides and insecticides.  There is nothing artificial or synthetic in our products and even our beautiful aromas and scents come directly from nature in the form of essential oils.  For us it’s an easy choice, live in harmony with nature as best we can and help others do the same. 

We are so excited to be on this journey with you and are even more excited to bring you more products made in harmony with nature and to bring you more information about finding the safest products for your family and living a life filled with organic happiness.

For us it’s an easy choice, live in harmony with nature as best we can and help others do the same. 

Join us and enjoy the pure, clean feeling of Makes 3 Organics® organic soaps!

Fondly,

Thank you for being with us on this journey,

Kristine Sperling and the Makes 3 Organics Wellness Team

Kristine Sperling is a wellness enthusiast and co-founder of Makes 3 Organics, an organic brand dedicated to providing consumers organic alternatives to conventional personal care products. She lives in Santa Barbara, California, with her co-founder husband, Dan, their teenager, Alice, and their blue Shih Tzu, King.