Thread: Anybody ever experience irritation from glycerin based soaps?

I have been trying Mama Bear's unscented 100% natural glycerin based soap, and I am thinking it is causing irritation. Being that it could be a number of factors causing this problem I figured I would ask. Perhaps I should just lather up leave on a bit and rinse without shaving to see it is is the soap. I have tried various amounts of water in the lather even going as far as to make a very runny mix. I guess worst case scenario I can just give the soap to my dad.

I don't have a lot of input on Mama Bear's soap. I used a trail sample last year, it was good stuff. I do put glycerin in my shave cream each shave, 6 drops only. No problem with it. I switched to a glycerin based bath soap this week, no problems.

Try switching shave creams & leave all glycerin out for a few weeks.

More likely your reacting to the fragrance. Even natural oils like Lavender can be a skin irritant.

No scents involved.

Originally Posted by onimaru55

More likely your reacting to the fragrance. Even natural oils like Lavender can be a skin irritant.

A few years back a big name in glycerin based soaps had some guys getting irritation. It was the natural essential oils that were said to be the culprit. I had some of the same soaps and they didn't bother me at all. Seems some people have sensitivity to certain ingredients and others do not. Anyway, I don't know if the essential oils were the issue, or the glycerin.

Originally Posted by Ecdycis

No scents involved.

Is this the only unscented glycerin soap you react too. Any other kinds of soaps do the same to you.
Trying the soap without shaving may be a good idea, as you suggested.

From what I understand it's the scented oils that are usually the culprit. Otherwise you have an allergy to some chemical or compound in the soap. Try another soap and see what happens.

I have a skin that gets irritated easy, but usaly cause of to much fragrance. its like when showering and using a soap with to much perfume in it and i scratch my skin off. the glycerin/glyserol is sweet and is sticky and it draws moisture to the soap/skin, but dont know if there is any ppl who are allergic to the glycerin/glyserol itself. maybe its cause to much glycerin.

First, there is really no such thing as a glycerin based soap, what you have is actually a fat based soap with a lot of added glycerin. Since there are no fragrances - either essential oils or fragrance oils - involved, the usual culprits are eliminated. This means that it is something in the soap.

It may be the glycerin, it is not a common allergy, but there is nothing that someone cannot become sensitized to. If this is the case, the bad news is most soaps contain at least some glycerin. I'm not particularly familiar with the specific soap you are using. Is it transparent, or nearly transparent. If so it was probably reprocessed using high purity alcohol and sugar and it may be these that you are responding to.

Or it may be that the particular batch you have was not cured sufficinetly and contains too much residual caustic. You might try checking the pH of the lather using pH paper. Soap is typically somewhat alkaline (pH is usually around 9). If you get a very high number (say 10-12) this is probably the problem.

I had a real problem with Mama Bears Polynesian Red, burned the crap out of my face. But I have used other MB scents and had no problem, so I couldn't figure it out. got the same problem from Pirates Cove coconut. I don't think its the glycerin