I just came across this article: http://blog.seanbonner.com/2010/02/01/ive-given-up-using-soap/
Apparently, you can bathe with only water and, after your body adjusts, you won't stink or anything.
Anyone have any experience with this? Seems a bit weird, but possible true.
I'd be surprised if I spent more than $5 annually to use Bronners as a body wash... Money well spent IMO.
I've washed my hands without soap and the results can be quite unsatisfactory.
I recently made the move to stop using chemical hygiene products (except sunscreen which I haven't figured out yet). Basically, I'm using baking soda for hair, teeth, and armpits with some other things like coconut oil mixed in. I do use castille soap to wash my skin. I've been shocked how much cleaner I feel for longer after switching. Perhaps I'll try switching to nothing eventually, but what I'm doing now is working well.
NSFW (Not Safe For Work)
http://www.fastseduction.com/cgi-bin/search.cgi?action=retrieve&grp=12&mn=1190906744428196
Everything you want to know about bathing with vinegar instead of soap.
I do it regularly. Still use shampoo, but no longer use soap and if I wash with vinegar at least every other day then I don't need deodorant.
Interesting stuff! Especially the vinegar post.. may try that. :O
Yeah, soap is NOT expensive.
I am, however, looking for a good all-in-one. Something preferably liquid that I can keep in the shower for body, hair, face, etc. So far I've been doing OK with this giant costco bottle of shampoo a roommate left behind, but I have no idea what it cost.
My motivation is simply to keep things simple. I find it very hard to believe that your body will adjust to no soap by somehow killing smelly bacteria on the skin surface. More likely your nose adjusts and you stop being able to smell your own stench.
S - Sunblock is something I really want to avoid. I have dreams for extended outdoor activities, but am worried about the skin damage. Since style's not that important, I think I could do it with the right kind of SPF fabrics covering my whole body (like people in the dessert, but hopefully with more breathability, lighter weight, and more effective.)
@dragoncar: Try this stuff... I'm been using it for showers, hands, dishes AND laundry for almost a year and I've still got over half left. Just be sure to dilute before you use. I normally do about 75% water.
dragoncar,
I have white skin and when I was travelling by bike all day long, sunblock was of no use at all. The only thing that I've found is a good light hat and breathable clothes covering the body, including the arms. I also needed sunglasses. In the hands I used gloves not only to avoid hurting the palms, but also because of the sun. I could do without pants, but my shorts need to cover at least below my knees (that was because of the angle of the sun while riding the bike). I didn't find pants made up of some fabric confortable enough to be wearable in the hot sun.
Dragoncar,
I don't claim to be anything close to an expert on the subject, but I believe the jury is still out on the whole skin cancer thing. Read the following study for statistics showing that farmers and outdoor laborers show significantly lower levels of melanoma and other skin cancers than blue collar and white collar workers.
http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/ijc.11150/pdf
I don't know where all the links are, but a couple years ago I looked into the cancer/tanning thing and it seemed to me that there was some fairly compelling evidence showing that sun BURNS were the primary cause of skin cancers, and not necessarily just sun exposure.
In a more generic anthropological sense, it makes sense. Why would the sun be harmful to us? We've lived outside for millennia, we should be adapted to NOT have our bodies destroyed by the sun. It's only when we fight nature and take ourselves out of the sun for 23.5 hours a day, and then go to the beach every other weekend and burn to a crisp that we begin to see unnatural skin ailments.
If anyone has any more significant findings on the subject, preferably something not published or funded by Coppertone ;) I would love it if you would share.
I spent a month or two in college without using shampoo. The first week or two is nasty, and then you mostly adjust. But I never felt entirely clean.
I currently don't use much soap. Basically just shampoo and then I hit the armpits with leftovers. Occasionally I use some Dr Bronner's. I feel about as clean with or without soap. I can't recall ever using bar soap, which always seems to form a nasty sort of soft 'melted' skin that I don't want to rub across my body.
Dr Bronner's is probably the most popular brand of castile soap. Recently I've been using Dr Woods which is cheaper but doesn't have as much of a granola feel-good vibe.
FYI.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Acacia_concinna
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Albizia_species
Albizia Amara
http://www.worldbotanical.com/images/ARS%20NCI%20Active%20Plants/Albizia_amara.pdf
Both are used as Shampoo and for body use.
Gram flour http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gram_flour
I use all of them regularly. I use Gram flour occasionally and use ayurvedic soaps made of vegetable oil more often. You might find them in Indian stores in the States: Chandrika or Hamam or Neem soaps.
End FYI.
@KevinW: I tried Woods, which was about 65% as expensive at the time, and found I could dilute it no more than 50%... I can dilute Bronners to 80% water and it works better than 50% water Woods. Also, Woods doesn't come in a gallon size. So if you buy by the gallon they are pretty competitive in price.
Not to hijack, I'll start another thread re sunblock
Warning. TMI.
I have eczema so I try to avoid soap as much as possible. Pretty much I shampoo my hair and sparsely bar soap my pits, groin, and butt. Other than that I haven't washed anything else in years (except hades of course). When its really dry out in the winter my skin still gets a little itchy, but I don't get the open rashes/sores and scales anymore. I probably go through about 6 bars of soap a year.
I don't use soap regularly on my skin because I have an allergic reaction. I even have a reaction to hot water sometimes - but it is pretty short-lived - and I enjoy very hot baths. I clean my face with water and use vitamin e oil - that is it.
I do shampoo my hair using bodyshop ginger shampoo which I can tolerate.
I bathe regularly and don't have body odour issues - never really have though.
I haven't used shampoo or bodywash for almost six months now. For the first two weeks my hair looked greasy. After that my body adjusted and started producing less grease. In addition, I got rid of the mild case of dandruff that I had.
I still use soap for washing hands but I'm never going to use shampoo again.
You must log in to post.
