Have you ever wondered why people put oatmeal in soap? You can find oatmeal in a variety of skin care products. So, what’s the deal? Oatmeal offers some really awesome benefits for your skin, and a lot of these benefits can be passed on to your skin through soap. We use something called colloidal oatmeal. This just means that the oatmeal is dispersed evenly throughout the bar of soap (or whatever the oatmeal is mixed in to). However, when most people talk about colloidal oatmeal, they are talking about oatmeal that has been ground very finely, too. We use oat flour, because it’s less abrasive and provides a much greater surface area to contact your skin. We start with rolled whole oats and grind them ourselves. This way we can ensure they haven’t gone through any additional processing (oats are often steamed to make them softer and cook more quickly) that might reduce the benefits for your skin.
Reason 1: Moisture. There have been a lot of studies that show colloidal oatmeal can be an effective moisturizer for your skin. The great thing about colloidal oatmeal is that it doesn’t interfere with the cleaning ability of soap. In fact it contains something called plant saponin which is a natural and mild cleanser!
Reason 2: Skin Barrier. Dr. Wu suggests in his study that the protein and polysaccharides in colloidal oatmeal can help improve your skin’s natural barriers, something he says is especially helpful to patients experiencing rosacea.
Reason 3: Inflammation. Colloidal oatmeal also has something in it called phenols, which provide it’s anti-inflammatory properties.
Reason 4: Exfoliation. Colloidal oatmeal also acts as a very mild exfoliating agent. The nice thing about this type of exfoliation is how mild it is. Because the particle size of colloidal oatmeal is so small and relatively soft, it can usually be used on your face and other sensitive areas that traditional exfoliating agents might irritate.
Reason 5: pH. You’re skin has a pretty complex pH system. You have an acid mantle, which sits on top of your skin and helps protect you from the environment. This has a pH of about 5. Subsequent layers of skin have differing pH levels. Sometimes products that are too alkaline can throw off the pH of your skin, causing or aggravating certain skin problems. Colloidal oatmeal acts as a pH buffer which helps correct the pH of your skin.
Reason 6: Itch. Colloidal oatmeal has been used for centuries to soothe the skin and help relieve itch. This might be a side effect of the anti-inflammatory and moisturizing properties, but it’s still a great benefit.
Here are some links if you’d like more information:
http://www.ehow.com/about_5415739_benefits-oatmeal-soap.html
http://colloidaloatmeal.com/index.htm
http://rosacea-support.org/treating-rosacea-with-herbs.html
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/17373175
Legal Mumbo-Jumbo: The information in this article is provided purely for informational purposes. None of our soaps are designed to diagnose, cure, or treat any disease or condition. Our soaps are moisturizing and amazingly mild, but please consult a doctor if you are looking to treat a skin condition.
H.M.