People often ask us how our Organic soaps are made and what Saponified oil really means so today we will be discussing a few soapy questions. Get ready for some serious yet interesting Chemistry.
What is Saponified oil? Saponified oil is basically oil that has been converted to soap by mixing/reacting with an alkaline sodium compound. Saponification is a simple chemical reaction where an acid (oil) reacts with an alkali (lye) to make salt (soap) & water. So mixing olive oil with lye gives Sodium Olivate, which is the soap of Olive oil or simply Saponified Olive oil. Glycerin is an additional byproduct of this reaction which is super nourishing and helps to absorb moisture to your skin throughout the day.
Is lye a toxic chemical? People often ask me if our soaps have lye in it since they think lye is a toxic chemical. Lye is sodium hydroxide (NaOH), which in fact is made from Sodium Chloride, or table salt . It’s environment friendly and 100% biodegradable unlike most toxins and chemicals that get absorbed by the body and disrupt our organ and systems.
Lye only got a bad name because of its high pH. The pH of lye is 14, neutral pH (where our bodies function) is 7, and the pH of hydrochloric acid is zero. So just like acidic things which have a low pH, alkaline things can also burn the skin, so extreme care is needed.
But without lye you can’t make soap. ALL soap whether organic or not is made with lye (sodium hydroxide). To convert the oils that are greasy into soap that cleanses it has to be reacted with lye.
So why don’t we mention lye in the ingredients? Good question and the answer is simple: That there’s absolutely NO LYE in Earthly soaps. Confused, right? Well, we have carefully formulated our soaps so that only that much lye is added which helps to turns the oil molecules into soap molecules.
If you still have any confusions or want to learn more please inbox us at our Facebook or Instagram or write us at support@earthlynow.com. We will be happy to address your queries.
