My Top 3 Criteria for Selecting Soaps for Irritated Skin

Finding a good soap for sensitive and irritated skin can be a gauntlet of testing different products and often finding many of them to not be good for our skin. I can’t count how many products I have had high hopes for only to be disappointed because it did not meet my expectations. I have invested and wasted so much money on cosmetics in the decades that I’ve had eczema. But not all hope is lost! With time and testing comes wisdom. Now, after all those trials, I have learned what works for me and what doesn’t. Now I’m at a point where I can confidently select and purchase soaps that I know will either be good for me or at the very least, harmless and still usable. Below are my top 3 criteria for choosing the best ones for me.

(Disclaimer: These recommendations are based on my personal life experience and are anecdotal, not scientific or medical in origin or intention. Use these tips at your own discretion)

Criteria #1

Use eco-friendly products. I love using soaps that are from eco-friendly brands because I find that those sorts of products usually tend to be more gentle on the skin. Even if they are not always one hundred percent pure or organic (though, that is the goal!), they seem to contain ingredients that my skin seems to respond to better. They also tend to avoid the main culprits when it comes to harsh, irritating ingredients for me like alcohol and sodium lauryl sulfate.

Though be cautious with eco-friendly products because if you are allergic to a food ingredient item and that food ingredient item is in the product’s formula, then it could potentially cause a reaction in your skin.

Criteria #2

Use what suits my skin type/state. My skin is naturally on the drier side, so usually I opt to purchase buttery bar soaps from clean, ethical brands like Dr. Bronner’s.

But, sometimes I need to change my soap selection to adapt to the state my skin is in. so, for example, if I am covered in oozey, weeping rashes that are very wet or I’m in a hot, humid climate/season where I’m sweating a lot and my skin is very moist, I prefer to use a water-based soap that is lighter and comes in a liquid form like a castile soap or body wash.

Criteria #3

Use therapeutic, gentle ingredients.

For me, if any soap meets the above two criteria, they get bonus points if it comes naturally scented with the following essential oils: mint, eucalyptus, and tea tree, which are all cooling, soothing, and refreshing. All these ingredients are also good for treating wounds, especially oozing, swollen, and hot rashes. They also have the therapeutic superpowers of being antibacterial, antimicrobial, and antifungal which is good for warding off potential secondary infections from scratching and exposing the skin to outside pathogens.

I hope that you find these tips useful! I would be curious to see if you end up using any of them with any success or not. What do you use to cleanse your sensitive skin? Let us know in the comments down below!