The market is flooded with cleaning products that contain toxic chemicals that can potentially cause health issues for you and your family and are detrimental to the environment. Instead of going with trendy or traditional cleaning products, making your own safe, natural cleaner is simple, affordable, and safer for your home and Earth.
Along with making fire and cooking food, turning oils and fats into soap is one of the oldest and simplest chemical reactions, practiced by humans for millennia. Soap is made by saponifying a fat or oil with an alkali. A fat or oil is a triglyceride, which means that three fatty acids of various carbon lengths are attached to a glycerin backbone. The alkali is either sodium hydroxide (lye) for bars or potassium hydroxide (potash) for liquids. Alkali is made by running electricity through salt water. The saponification process is a simple no-waste, one-step reaction — the glycerin is split off from the fatty acids, and the fatty acids combine with the sodium or potassium to form soap, while the hydroxide forms water. The result is soap, glycerin and water.
Why Dr. Bronner’s?
Unlike most commercial soap makers, who distill the glycerin out of their soaps to sell separately, Dr. Bronner’s retains it for its superb moisturizing qualities. They super-fat their bar soaps for a milder, smoother lather and use natural vitamin E and citric acid (both from non-GMO sources) to protect freshness. No chelating agents, dyes, whiteners, or synthetic fragrances (only certified organic essential oils) are used.
Quality soap making means choosing the right proportions of the right oils. Coconut oil is very high lathering but can be drying. Olive oil gives a soft and luxuriant lather but in small amounts. By using both coconut and olive oils in the right ratio, Dr. Bronner’s soaps offer the best of both worlds: high lather that’s soft on the skin. Our soaps also contain hemp and jojoba oils, which mirror the natural oils in the skin’s sebum, leaving skin feeling smooth after the soaps are washed away.
These liquid soaps are three times more concentrated than most liquid soaps on the market, which means more soap per bottle and less waste in packaging materials. They’re also made with organic and certified fair trade ingredients that are sourced in the U.S. whenever possible. it’s packaged in a 100% post-consumer recycled bottle and is shown to be readily biodegradable under the stringent testing conditions utilized pursuant to OECD Guideline 310.
Why Should I Avoid Most Commercial Cleaners?
Why is using a homemade, natural cleaner better than most commercial cleaners? If you read the label of a common, store-bought cleaning product, you’re more than likely going to be overwhelmed with the amount of complex, unfamiliar chemicals and substances listed. Even products that claim to be “organic” or “natural” can still contain the following toxins that are harmful to you and the planet:
- Phthalates:
- Found in numerous cleaning products to add “fragrance”
- Causes hormone imbalances and reproductive issues
- Triclosan:
- An antibacterial and antifungal agent
- Causes dermatitis and increased allergic reactions
- Perchloroethylene (PERC):
- Usually found in heavy-duty carpet cleaners
- Causes skin and eye irritation, as well as damage the liver and respiratory system.
- Quarternary Ammonium Compounds (QUATS):
- Antibacterial agent often found in disinfectant wipes
- Disrupts important cellular pathways
- 2-Butoxyethanol:
- Found in several multi-purpose cleaners
- Harms the skin, eyes, kidneys, and blood
Uses
Dr. Bronner’s 18-in-1 Pure-Castile Soaps are multi-surface all-purpose cleaners good for just about any task including:
- Hair washing
- Face washing
- Body washing
- Hand washing
- Shaving
- Makeup removal
- Teeth brushing
- Cleaning oral appliances (such as a retainer or dentures)
- Clearing congestion
- Dishes
- Laundry
- Handwashing delicates
- Mopping
- All-purpose cleaning spray
- Windows
- Toilets
- Pet cleaning
- Produce cleaning
- Plant spray for bugs
- Indoor spray for insects
Ready to get started? Check out these handy recipes and guidelines for diluting Dr. Bronner’s Castile Soap.
Information provided by Dr. Bronner