One question that we seem to get asked a lot is, “What does soap feel like?”
We know that this may seem like somewhat of an odd question. We all know what soap is meant to feel like, right?
Well, maybe.
Different soaps can feel slightly different depending on the manufacturer, as well as the age of the soap.
This is why we have put together this page. We want to tell you what soaps should and shouldn’t feel like.
What Soaps Should NOT Feel Like
Let’s start with the simple stuff because there are still a few people that are unable to grasp what a soap shouldn’t be feeling like.
If a soap feels like it is burning you when you put it on, this is bad. We know that there are some people out there that seem to believe that the burning means that you are getting clean, this isn’t the case. As a side note, the same thing happens when you have mouthwash too. The mouth burning is not actually a good thing.
Soap that is burning you is drying out your skin. In fact, the chemicals may be so harsh that it is actually causing an allergic reaction. In some cases, it may be stripping off small flakes of your skin, which is going to create some rather nasty wounds.
If soap is burning you, then you need to avoid it. Stop using it immediately and wash it off of your skin. It is going to be doing nothing but damage. We can assure you of that.
Your skin also shouldn’t feel too tight, and it shouldn’t feel dry after you have used it. If it does, then you are going to be using the wrong soap for your skin and you will have to shake things up a little bit.
What Should Soap Feel Like?
When you are done with using your soap, you shouldn’t actually feel anything on your skin. There are some people that believe that their skin should feel nice and ‘squeaky’ when they are done (i.e. squeaky clean).
However, your skin should feel normal, yet fresh.
If your skin feels as if there is a layer of soap on it, then this is a bad thing. It means that the soap is not washing away correctly [1]. This means that all of that dirt and grime is still there, but you are going to be covered in the dirt, it is just sealed in place.
Don’t worry. This generally isn’t going to be anything to do with you and your cleaning habits. Instead, it is likely because you have hard water (i.e. water that is filled with mineral deposits).
This isn’t really going to be a huge problem, but it means that you will have to spend a little bit of extra time trying to ensure that the skin is kept nice and clean. So, a few minutes extra in the shower is going to be enough to keep all of that at bay.
If you have the right mild bar of soap, you will notice that it is nice and smooth on your skin when you use it. It will start to foam up at the same time.
This is exactly the type of skin soap that you want. You want something that washes away easily while, at the same time, is taking the oils and grime away. You do not want there to be any pain or anything like that, as we said before.
There will likely be a small amount of skin tightening when you are using the soap. This is fine. This happens when the dirt and grime is pulled away from the skin. However, as we said before, it should never be too tight.
You just want enough to feel as if your skin has been refreshed when you climb out of that shower.
Conclusion
Remember, it may take a small while for you to find a soap that is going to be right for you.
However, we are sure that if you do your research and stick to the best soap manufacturers out there.
You shouldn’t have that many issues trying to find a soap that is going to be fantastic for your skin!
References
- https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/9407174/
