Because there is so much misinformation on this topic, we wrote this post. As regulars at sanafela.com have come to expect, this article is based on what science has to say about the topic.

Let’s first find out a bit more about what soap actually is.

What is soap anyway?

Soap is made in a process called saponification. Animal or plant fats are treated with hydroxide (lye) which hydrolyzes the fatty acids. The main animal fat comes from rendered body fat obtained from the meat industry. In the United States the main plant fat for soap comes from coconut and palm oil [1]. You can find a summary of the chemistry of saponification and general structural formula on about.com.

The properties of the soap being manufactured depend in part on the chain length of the fatty acids that are used. The shorter the chain length (less than 12 amino acids), the more irritating the soap will be [1]. The longer the chain length, the harder the soap is and the smaller the bubbles in the soap lather will be. Shorter chains create softer soap and lather with larger bubbles. Small bubbles last longer than large bubbles, so the longer fatty acid chains produce dense and longer lasting lather.

Animal fats mostly yield long chain fatty acids whereas the short chain fatty acids are mostly derived from plant fats. By mixing animal and plant fats the hardness and type of lather of the soap bar can be set to whatever is intended. The hardness of the soap is also determined by the type of lye that is used. Sodium hydroxide will produce a harder soap as compared to potasium hydroxide. The solvents that are used to dissolve the fragrances that are used in soaps tend to make the soap softer.

Soap Additives

A whole host of substances can be added to the soap base to change its properties, give it a longer shelf life, or make it smell good. Some of the more important ones to keep in mind when looking for soap are mentioned here.

Unsaturated plant fatty acids easily oxidize in air, so it is necessary to add preservatives such as EDTA (EthyleneDiamineTetraAcetic Acid), citric acid or butylated hydroxy toluene.

Glycerin is a byproduct of saponification and is thus found naturally in soap. Glycerin absorbs water and is commonly used as a moisturizer. The amount of glycerin in soap determines how easy it is to rinse the soap away. Examples of other skin conditioners that are often added to soaps are aloe, lanolin and vitamin E.

Other additives that can be used in soaps are things like exfoliants (e.g. pumice), anti-acne additives, as well as fillers such as resins and talcum. The color and transparency of soap can be changed by the addition of pigments, dyes, and metal oxides, most often zinc oxide and titanium oxide.

The topic of soap ingredients and additives is extensive. Stay tuned for future posts and an ebook that will go into the details and pros and cons of the various constituents of soaps and creams with an eye on oily skin and acne. You can also sign up for our email list to get advance notice of new posts and special discounts on our product and ebooks.

How does soap clean?

Soap cleans by changing the surface tension of water and by solubilizing and suspending dirt which then can be rinsed away. Soap molecules have an apolar hydrophobic and a polar hydrophilic end. The hydrophobic (fat loving) parts of the molecules bind to oily or greasy dirt, causing the hydrophilic (water loving) parts of the soap molecules to orient themselves toward water. The soap thus acts as a bridge between the water and the dirt, allowing the dirt to be held in suspension and to be washed away.

Regular soap is bad for your oily skin

Your skin protects itself from the environment by the acidic mantle [2]. The acidic mantle consists of a mixture of oil from the sebaceous glands and secretions from your sweat glands. Among other things, it contains fatty acids that have antibacterial properties. As a result, the pH of your skin normally is acidic. While the skin of a newborn baby is just about neutral (pH 7), the pH of the skin becomes more acid as you get older. The skin of adults is usually slightly to moderately acidic (pH 4.5 to 6.5).

When your skin is too oily, your sebaceous glands are overdoing it and secreting too much oil. However, you can’t just remove all the oil in any old way, since any kind of irritation to the sebaceous glands can cause them to secrete even more oil. To prevent irritation as much as possible, you need to use a soap that does not change the pH of the skin, or at least does not flip it from the natural acidic into the alkaline range.

After you have read above how hydroxides are used to make soap, it is not surprising that a standard bar of soap is quite alkaline. If you use regular soap, the pH of the washed skin will turn alkaline. This irritates the skin which then responds by producing more oil as it tries to protect itself.

Soap formulations for oily skin

As explained above, the pH changes of your skin that are caused by regular alkaline soap, while doing a great job cleaning, cause irritation which stimulates the skin to keep on over-producing oil. When you have oily skin, you should look for soaps that are specifically formulated to have a neutral or acidic pH. The pH of traditional bar soap is around pH 10. This pH can be lowered and neutralized by adding an excess of free fatty acids that are not saponified. This is referred to as “superfatting” of soap [1].

The best soap for oily skin is not really soap at all

The best soaps for oily skin are not soaps at all. This refers to a group of products called the Syndets. Syndet is an acronym for Synthetic Detergent [3]. These are really detergents that can be in the form of a bar of soap, but also may be thick liquids.

Because no hydroxides are involved in the production of Syndets, they can be made at a wide variety of pH. Syndets contain synthetic surfactants that cause less irritation and have better “skin feel” and conditioning and moisturizing properties as compared to traditional soaps. Such synthetic soaps generally are much milder for the skin and have superior lather properties. They also typically have more conditioners and moisturizers. A well known example is Dove.

There are also mixtures of traditional soap and Syndets. Such mixtures are usually referred to as Combars. Well known examples are Zest and Ever 2000

Recommendations for oily skin

If you have oily skin, it is important to wash your face with a soap that has a mildly acidic pH and is non-irritating to the skin. As explained above, some of the best choices are superfatted acidic soaps as well as acidic Syndet based formulations. Also, keep in mind that longer amino acid chains tend to be less irritating. As always, having a little knowledge and reading product labels goes a long way to make the right choices for your skin care.

Suggested Reading

If you enjoyed his article, you also might like to read our other articles on oily skin. Regardless of how you wash your face, if you are looking for an effective, long-lasting way to reduce the amount of oil that is being produced by your skin, have a look at our nobiletin-based Tangerine Anti-Shine Cream.

References

[1] Handbook of Cosmetic Science and Technology

[2] Schmid MH and Korting HC (1995) The concept of the acid mantle of the skin: its relevance for the choice of skin cleaners. Dermatology 191: 276-280

[3] Kirsners RS and Froelich CW (1998) Soaps and detergents: understanding their composition and effect. Ostomy Wound Manage 44: 62S-69S

OK, so may be that  is a bit of an exaggeration.

An apple a day doesn’t REALLY keep acne away.

… Or does it?

Let me not mince words here and give it to you straight.

The fact of the matter is that eating right is a large part of being acne free. I know you don’t necessarily want to hear this, but eating fast food a couple times a week and eating pizza every other day is not going to help to get you acne free.

We all know that eating healthy is important for all kinds of reasons. Staying acne free is just one of them.

In some ways, acne is a creation of the modern food industry. Processed foods wreak all kinds of havoc on our health. The food industry puts a ton of sugar and fat in all kinds of things. Why? Because it is cheap and because it is what people want. Why? Because people have been conditioned to believe that it tastes good.

There didn’t use to be as much sugar in, for example, bread. But over time it has become sweeter and sweeter. Used to be that sugar was rare and expensive. So people didn’t use it much. Now you can find it everywhere. And it is not even real sugar. It is high fructose corn syrup which is cheaper and easier to use. No wonder it is used so much by the food industry.

So, to get back to the apple:  If you really would be eating an apple a day, chances are that your other food choices also would be healthier. If you eat an apple a day, maybe you also eat more veggies and salad. Maybe, just for today,  you let the pizza pass you by. Maybe the sum total of all the better choices you make, will in fact make you heatlhier over time. And so, starting with an apple a day, you will indeed keep your acne away !

For further reading:

Acne and Diet

]]> http://www.sanafela.com/2009/11/can-an-apple-a-day-keep-your-acne-away/feed/ 0 http://www.sanafela.com/2009/09/do-like-woody-and-stay-acne-free/ http://www.sanafela.com/2009/09/do-like-woody-and-stay-acne-free/#comments Thu, 24 Sep 2009 08:03:12 +0000 admin http://www.sanafela.com/?p=379 We all know Woody Harrelson from his appearances in unforgettable movies such as “White Men Can’t Jump”, “Kingpin” and “Natural Born Killers”.
And who could forget his splendid role as the hilarious bartender in the sitcom “Cheers” ?

Woody had tons of acne

Turns out that in his early twenties Woody had a terrible complexion and tons of acne.
Woody explains that his acne disappeared after he became a vegan. He has remained a vegan for the last 25 years and his acne never came back.

Says Woody: “It’s been at least 20 years. I used to eat burgers and steak, and I would just be knocked out afterward. I had to give it up. The first thing was dairy. I was about 24 years old and I had tons of acne and mucus. I met some random girl on a bus who told me to quit dairy and all those symptoms would go away three days later. By God she was right.”

If you are a regular here at Sana Fela, you know that we have discussed the role of diet in the development of acne before.

Looks like Woody is a good example of somebody that took that advise to heart and reaped the benefits.

Becoming a vegan helped Woody to stay acne free

Drinking milk can raise the levels of several hormones that play a key role in the development of acne. See this post for more details.
Likewise, consumption of lots of sugar can cause an increase in the production of oil by the sebaceous glands, which in turn leads to an increase in acne. The mechanism behind this is explained in this post. It is thus no wonder that a low carb diet can help prevent acne. By becoming a vegan, Woody stacked the cards to his advantage.

It is one thing to clear up an active acne out break. It is another to keep the acne from coming back.
Several solutions are available that can bring an acne outbreak under control. As you know, here at Sana Fela we are partial to using a natural Tea Tree Oil treatment, because it is simple and effective without being harsh on your skin like some of the other treatments.

How to keep acne at bay

Once you have a handle on your existing acne, how about taking steps to prevent it from returning? Have a critical look at your diet and see if there is something you can change to keep the acne away. Sounds simple? It can be if you consider changing your diet as something that is simple to do and worth it. But many of us would rather have there wisdom teeth pulled without anesthesia than to radically change our diet. Then again, maybe at least reducing things like milk, dairy and sugar in our daily diet would be worth it if it would help our skin.

Think about it. But don’t take our word for it. Ask Woody!

For further reading:

Role of diet in the development of acne

How to treat acne and prevent it from re-occuring

Since the vast majority of adolescents will suffer from Acne, an environmental factor may be the cause. One of the pillars of the Western diet is the consumption of cow’s milk. The paper points out that a study of over 10,000 teenagers has shown a strong correlation between milk consumption (particularly reduced fat milk) and Acne in teen agers. In contrast, a study of inhabitants of Papua New Guinea and of hunters and gatherers in Paraguay that do not drink or eat dairy products, shows that not a single case of Acne is found. Obviously, such results suggest that milk consumption contributes to Acne in Western society.

The milk hypothesis says that the level of growth hormone (GH, somatotropin) and Insulin-like-Growth-Factor -1 (IGF-1), which already are increased at the onset of puberty, are further increased as a result of milk consumption. These hormones are powerful mitogens and play a central role in growth and homeostasis of the skin and various other tissues. It turns out that the levels of these hormones also correlate strongly with the occurrence of Acne.

IGF-1 (as well as insulin) stimulates sebocogenesis (2) and the production of oil by the sebaceous glands (3). It is this stimulation of the sebaceous glands that results in Acne when this coincides with infection.

Now, the problem in comparing different population groups is that it is just too much of an over-simplification to pretend that two groups only differ in the aspect that you are trying to study. There are a million other things that are different between them. And a number of these could be easily also be involved in whatever the reasons are that one group has acne and the other doesn’t. So, one always has to keep this in mind when comparing population groups. Never-the-less, this data points in the direction of a potential role of milk consumption in the development of Acne.

Should we counsel our kids to drink less milk? Maybe not. There are many reasons why milk consumption is a good thing. But a link between milk and acne is an intriguing concept that is worth thinking about.

References

(1) Melnik B. Milk consumption: aggravating factor of acne and promoter of chronic diseases of Western societies. J Dtsch Dermatol Ges. 2009 Feb 19.
(http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/19243483)

(2) Deplewski D, Rosenfield RL. Role of hormones in pilosebaceous unit development. Endocr Rev 2000; 21: 363-392
(http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/10950157)

(3) Smith TM, Cong Z, Gilliland KL, Clawson GA, Thiboutot DM. Insulin- like growth factor-1 induces lipid production in human SEB-1 sebocytes via sterol response element-binding protein-1. J Invest Dermatol 2006; 126: 1226–1232.
(http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/16575389)

They reported on studies that show the negative interaction between glycemic load, insulin sensitivity, hormone mediators, and acne. It goes something like this (see the schematic):

How does sugar cause acne?

The regular consumption of foods with a high glycemic index causes an elevation of insulin levels in the blood. Chocolate and candy, but also foods that contain white flour, and soda with sugar are just a few examples of high glycemic foods. Apart from insulin resistance (which may result in diabetes), elevated insulin reduces the concentration of SHBG (Sex Hormone Binding Globulin) in the blood. This is a glycoprotein that binds sex hormones, in particular androgen (male) hormones, and keeps their levels in check. Consequently, if there is less SHBG, the levels of sex hormones go up. This, in turn, causes a stimulation of the growth of sebocytes. These are cells that secrete sebum (oil) in the hair follicles. Increased sebum secretion increases the chance for blockage and infection of the follicles which can ultimately lead to acne.

Conclusion: Chocolate and Acne don’t mix

There is more and more evidence that suggests that your diet is an important factor in how much acne you will develop. It is important to treat acne breakouts using a good tea tree oil based product before they have a chance to become more severe and result in acne scars. At the same time, scientific evidence such as presented in this post, suggests that you might want to reduce snacking on chocolate, candy, and other high sugar and high glycemic foods. Chances are that this will help reduce the number of future outbreaks.

References

(1) Spencer EH, Ferdowsian HR and Barnard ND (2009) Diet and acne: a review of the evidence. Int J Dermatol 48: 339 – 347
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/19335417

Robyn Smith and co-workers reported in 2007 on a clinical trial performed at RMIT University (Melbourne, Australia). They compared the amount and severity of acne in people that were on a low-carb diet with a control group. Participants attended a baseline appointment in which extent and severity of acne were evaluated and then randomly assigned to either the low-carb or the control group. The participants in the low-carb group were put on a diet that was achieved by modifying the amount and type of carbohydrates. They were instructed to substitute high-carb foods with foods higher in protein ((e.g. lean meat, poultry and fish) or with lower glycemic index foods (e.g whole grain breads, pastas and low sugar fruits). Every month the participants were scored for changes in inflammatory lesion counts (papules, pustules and nodules) and total lesion counts. The graph above shows some of the results. After three moths, the LGL group had a much larger reduction in amount and severity of acne lesions as compared to the control group that did not control its sugar intake.

The take-home message is clear: If you eat a lot of candy or otherwise consume a lot of sugar, you increase the occurrence and severity of your acne. We all know that there are many other reasons why it is bad idea to eat a lot of sugar, but if you are plagued by acne, you better think twice before indulging in high sugar foods!

References

(1) Smith RN, Mann NJ, Braue A, et al. (2007) A low-glycemic-load diet improves symptoms in acne vulgaris patients: a randomized controlled trial. Am J Clin Nutr 86: 107–115.
Abtract at http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/17616769
The full text of this article is available for free at http://www.ajcn.org/cgi/reprint/86/1/107