7 Tips to Help You Avoid Buying a Destructive Soap or Cleanser if You Have a Skin Problem

Psoriasis, dermatitis, eczema, and any other skin problems are irritated very easily by most soaps. As a former psoriasis sufferer I would estimate I tried at least 30 different soaps hoping that would cure my psoriasis. I later discovered I was wrong and my psoriasis was only irritated from soap, but soap was not the cause of it.

If you have any form of a skin problem you may have feared taking a shower or bathing because of the dry, painful itch, and film left by using a commercially produced bar soap. Why is that? What causes the itch left by a bar soap and is there any way to cope?

Here are some tips to buying a better soap or cleanser that may not irritate your skin:

1. Glycerin is a good moisturizer. Glycerin is known to moisturize from the inside out, pulling in moisture from the outside environment. It's typically found in better quality, more expensive soaps like a hand made soap or good cleanser. Lower grade, commercially produced soaps usually remove the glycerin and use more cost effective chemicals which are much more destructive to the skin.

2. Avoid any soaps that are granular. Granular soaps are terribly too abrasive for the skin of acne, psoriasis, eczema, and dermatitis sufferers. This abrasive soap may be okay to wash motor oil off your hands but not to scrub the acne-prone skin on your face.

I had acne as a teen and believed I could scrub long enough to remove dead skin cells to let my pores "breathe". It took little time to discover this was only irritating my skin. If you have beautiful, blemish-free skin a granular soap may not be harmful. However, gentle is the key for anyone who has any form of blemish or sensitive condition like psoriasis, eczema, or dermatitis.

3. Tea Tree Oil and Eucalyptus are terrific for cleansing. Tea tree oil is considered to have some of the best natural antiseptic / antifungal properties in the world. Eucalyptus oil has been shown to fight infection-causing bacteria, fungi, and viruses very effectively.

The reason I have found tea tree oil and eucalyptus to be so powerful in helping my psoriasis was because both were natural and complemented my skin. Far too many chemicals are added into many commercial soaps today that do their job of cleaning but strip away the skins natural moisturizers as well.

Although I no longer have psoriasis, I still use a specific blend of aloe, eucalyptus, and tea tree oil in a concentrated cleanser. Email me and I will tell you what it is and where to purchase it. (I don't personally sell it but can tell you where to find it)

4. pH balance of you skin is critical. Normal skin is naturally acidic with a pH in the range of 4.2 to 5.6. Most traditional soaps considered "mild" have a pH of around 9.5 - 11 which is too alkaline and may cause excessive dryness and irritation. These soaps traditionally remove the natural acid protection and extract the fats from the skin as well.

If you have eczema, psoriasis, or dermatitis your skin may be even more alkaline than normal in those affected areas. Using a low-grade commercially produced bar soap, which may be more alkaline, could lead to infection. If you prefer a bar soap try a hand made soap. It will be more expensive but it would be worth it if you saw results, wouldn't it?

Most cleansers may be more gentle because they are made not to disturb your skin's pH level. The skin is designed to protect itself by maintaining a more acidic pH level. Many commercially made soaps may rob the skin of it's natural acidic state, leaving it unprotected.

5. Frequency of washing - don't overdue it. If you have acne you may have a difficult time with this one. If your skins excessively oily in your facial area it's could be because you are using a poor quality soap that's highly alkaline. By washing too much you may be stripping away the skins natural oil, forcing it to produce more.

I wash my skin once a day. I often see others recommending washing the skin up to three times daily. Washing this much is incredibly excessive for those of us with sensitive skin.

6. Pure Aloe Vera - the absolute best moisturizer. If you've ever had a severe sunburn you would know not to take a very hot shower. Don't consider your psoriasis, eczema, or dermatitis to be any less severe than sunburn.

If you find yourself in a situation where you're in terrible pain from skin lesions this may help. Before I found my psoriasis cure I used Fruit Of The Earth® Aloe Vera 100% Gel. This is the closest thing to a pure moisturizer that you will find. While I don't need this anymore because my psoriasis is gone, it helped tremendously when my psoriasis was very painful.

7. Natural. Most commercial "soaps" today are really detergents loaded with chemicals that irritate the skin and upset it's natural balances. I only use and recommend hand-made soaps or very mild cleansers. The best place to find these hand-made soaps and cleansers are alternative medicine retailers, health food stores and the internet.

The skin is no different than life in that you need balance to be at peace with yourself. You need effective solutions that will not cause extreme side effects. If you want to see an example of extreme un-balance examine chemo therapy. Many patient's undergoing chemo loose their hair, many get brutally sick, etc., because the body is not meant to go thru this type of intense therapy.

More on that next issue...

-- This information is not a substitute for medical advice or treatment for any medical conditions. You should seek prompt medical care for any specific health issues and consult your physician or health practitioner before starting a new supplement regiment, herbal therapy, or other self-directed treatment. --

Michael Hrenko is the founder of ePsoriasis, LLC. The company specializes in teaching how he and others have overcome psoriasis and eczema without a doctor, prescriptions, expensive treatments, and difficult fasting diets. Claim your free copy of The Lazy Person's Guide to Beating Psoriasis at http://www.epsoriasis.net/promotion.htm as a one-time-only promotion.

(c) Copyright 2005, ePsoriasis, LLC

In The News:

Yahoo! News: Top Stories

President-elect Barack Obama makes remarks on the nations economy, Thursday, Jan. 8, 2009, at George Mason University in Fairfax, Va. (AP Photo/Lawrence Jackson)AP - President-elect Barack Obama's proposed tax cuts ran into opposition Thursday from senators in his own party who said they wouldn't do much to stimulate the economy or create jobs. Senators from both parties agreed that Congress should do something to stimulate the economy. But Democratic senators emerging from a private meeting of the Senate Finance Committee criticized business and individual tax cuts in Obama's stimulus plan.



Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak, right, hugs his French counterpart Nicolas Sarkozy at the end of a press conference on Tuesday Jan. 6, 2009 in Sharm el-Sheik, Egypt. Sarkozy said Wednesday Jan. 7, 2009 that Israel and the Palestinian Authority have accepted an Egyptian-French plan for Gaza.   (AP Photo/Eric Feferberg/Pool)AP - In a surprise move, the United States abstained from a U.N. Security Council vote Thursday night urging an immediate cease-fire in Gaza, saying it wanted to see the results of Egyptian-mediated talks with Hamas and Israel before calling for a halt to military action.



Palestinian demonstrators use sling-shots to hurl stones at Israeli soldiers during a demonstration against Israel's military operation in Gaza, in the West Bank village of Bilin, near Ramallah,Thursday, Jan. 8, 2009. Israel resumed its Gaza offensive Wednesday after a three-hour lull to allow delivery of humanitarian aid, bombing heavily around suspected smuggling tunnels near the border with Egypt. Despite the heavy fighting, strides appeared to be being made on the diplomatic front with the U.S. throwing its weight behind a deal being brokered by France and Egypt. (AP Photo/Muhammed Muheisen)AP - The U.N. Security Council called for an "immediate" and "durable" cease-fire in Gaza in a resolution Thursday night even as fighting between Israel and Hamas raged — with early morning airstrikes killing seven Palestinians and pushing the death toll to about 760 in the near two-week conflict.



Florida's Tim Tebow (15) tackles Oklahoma's Gerald McCoy (93) after McCoy intercepted a Tebow pass during the second quarter of the BCS Championship NCAA college football game in Miami, Thursday, Jan. 8, 2009. (AP Photo/J. Pat Carter)AP - The game defied expectations. Tim Tebow fulfilled them.



Rep. Jack Franks (D-Woodstock) votes to recommend the impeachment of Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich to the House during an Illinois House Impeachment Committee hearing Thursday, Jan. 8, 2009, in Springfield, Ill. The committee voted unanimously to recommend impeachment putting the matter before the full house.  (AP Photo/Seth Perlman)AP - A key panel unanimously recommended impeachment for Gov. Rod Blagojevich on Thursday, setting up a vote that could make him the first governor to face such fate in Illinois' sordid political history. Blagojevich should lose his job for abusing power, mismanaging government and committing possible criminal acts, including federal allegations he tried to sell off a U.S. Senate seat, the special committee concluded.



A sign instructs job seekers at the California Employment Development Department in Sunnyvale, Calif., Tuesday, Jan. 6, 2009. The country lost nearly 2 million jobs through November and more bad news is expected this week when the government releases data on weekly jobless claims and December unemployment. No matter how bad those numbers are, and economists expect at least another 500,000 jobs were lost last month, the pain is stretching into 2009.  (AP Photo/Marcio Jose Sanchez)AP - Trying to survive a deepening recession, employers are cutting their work forces to the bone, leaving more Americans unemployed and with dim prospects of finding a new job any time soon.



Neel Kashkari, the assistant treasury secretary in charge of the bailout program, speaks at the Brookings Institution in Washington, Thursday, Jan. 8, 2009. (AP Photo/Haraz N. Ghanbari)AP - Less than a month after its first report, a congressional panel overseeing the Treasury Department's $700 billion financial bailout is demanding more answers.



Freida Pinto backstage with the best picture award for 'Slumdog Millionaire' at the 14th Annual Critics' Choice Awards on Thursday Jan. 8, 2009 in Santa Monica, Calif. (AP Photo/Dan Steinberg)AP - The critics have spoken, and "Slumdog Millionaire" is their final answer.



Vice President Dick Cheney pauses during an interview with the Associated Press at the White House in Washington Thursday, Jan. 8, 2009. (AP Photo/Ron Edmonds)AP - Vice President Dick Cheney said Thursday that he sees no reason for President George W. Bush to pre-emptively pardon anyone at the CIA involved in harsh interrogations of suspected terrorists. "I don't have any reason to believe that anybody in the agency did anything illegal," he said.



The east side apartment building where Bernard Madoff remains under house arrest is seen Thursday, Jan. 8, 2009, in New York. Prosecutors said Thursday that investigators found 100 signed checks worth $173 million in Bernard Madoff's office desk that he was ready to send out to his closest family and friends at the time of his arrest last month. (AP Photo/ Louis Lanzano)AP - Prosecutors said Thursday that investigators found 100 signed checks worth $173 million in Bernard Madoff's office desk that he was ready to send out to his closest family and friends at the time of his arrest last month in what is alleged to be largest financial fraud in history.



Palestinian women mourn as they watch the funeral of Palestinians killed at a U.N. school, in Jabalya in the northern Gaza Strip January 7, 2009. (Mohammed Salem/Reuters)Reuters - Israel pushed ahead with its offensive in the Gaza Strip on Friday, ignoring a U.N. Security Council resolution calling for an immediate ceasefire to the 14-day-old conflict.



Jaclyn Holt (R) fills out an application form at a job fair organized by the New Hampshire Employment Security agency in Salem, New Hampshire December 17, 2008. (Brian Snyder/Reuters)Reuters - U.S. employers probably cut the most jobs in at least 34 years last month as the global economic crisis gathered pace and moves by policy makers took time to filter through to struggling companies.



People taking the Long Island Foreclosure Tour arrive at a foreclosed home for sale in New Hyde Park, New York in this May 17, 2008 file photo. Citigroup could soon agree to principles that would let troubled borrowers save their homes through bankruptcy, sources familiar with the talks said on Thursday, while industry groups are easing their opposition to the plan. (Shannon Stapleton/Reuters)Reuters - Financial giant Citigroup Inc will support a proposal in Congress to rewrite U.S. bankruptcy law to help troubled mortgage borrowers avoid foreclosure, Chief Executive Vikram Pandit said on Thursday.



Reuters - A report being released on Friday alleges that the U.S. Treasury has failed to reveal its strategy for stabilizing the financial system, not answered questions asked by a government watchdog, and has done nothing to help struggling homeowners, the Wall Street Journal said.

Illinois Governor Rod Blagojevich gestures as he announces former Illinois Attorney General Roland Burris as his choice to fill the vacant U.S. Senate seat of President-elect Barack Obama during a news conference in Chicago, Illinois December 30, 2008. (Frank Polich/Reuters)Reuters - A legislative committee on Thursday recommended the impeachment of Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich, citing widespread abuse of power including allegations he tried to sell the U.S. Senate seat vacated by President-elect Barack Obama.



Timothy Geithner (R), pictured in Chicago, November 24, 2008. (Jeff Haynes/Reuters)Reuters - President-elect Barack Obama's economic team is urgently overhauling the $700 billion financial rescue package to broaden its scope beyond Wall Street, The Washington Post reported on Friday.



Usama al-Kini, Al Qaeda's operations chief in Pakistan, is pictured in this undated FBI Most Wanted photograph. Al-Kini, also known as Fahid Mohammed Ally Msalam, and a top aide are believed to be dead, a U.S. counterterrorism official said on January 8, 2009, in what appeared to be the latest results of a campaign targeting the militant group's leadership. Operations chief al-Kini was thought responsible for attacks, including the bombing of a Marriott hotel in Islamabad that killed 55 people in September, and an unsuccessful attempt to kill former Pakistani Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto, who was later assassinated in a separate attack, the official said. (FBI/Handout/Reuters)Reuters - Al Qaeda's operations chief in Pakistan and a top aide are believed to be dead, a U.S. counterterrorism official said on Thursday, in what appeared to be the latest results of a campaign targeting the militant group's leadership.



Reuters - Some friends of accused swindler Bernard Madoff considered him a "warm and charming" man, and one of his alleged victims praised him just before his death in 2005, Fox Business Network reported on Thursday.

Three rockets were fired into northern Israel from Lebanon, sparking Israeli artillery retaliation and the UN peacekeeping force in southern Lebanon sending reinforcements to the region(AFPTV)AFP - Israel carried out new deadly air raids on the Gaza Strip on Friday as the UN Security Council called for an immediate ceasefire to end the two-week-old conflict in the Palestinian territory.



A man carries firewood in the suburbs of Sofia, Bulgaria. Hopes for a quick resumption of Russian gas supplies to Europe were rising Friday after Russia agreed on the terms for the deployment of monitors in Ukraine.(AFP/Dimitar Dilkoff)AFP - Hopes for a quick resumption of Russian gas supplies to Europe were rising Friday after Russia agreed on the terms for the deployment of monitors in Ukraine.




Fuller Lips Without Injections or Surgery?

Once again, very full lips are one of the most sought after... Read More

Wrinkle Buster In Your Kitchen

Many cosmetic companies are capitalizing on on our need to fight the... Read More

Removing Unwanted Body Hair Permanently & Safely?

Both males and females have unwanted hairs in their body. Everybody wishes... Read More

Orange County Plastic Surgeon Search

The main problem is that of abundance. Finding an Orange County plastic... Read More

More Care Hair Myths - the Truth and the Lies

We all have a favourite myth about hair care ? some of... Read More

The Threadlift Facelift is Here

Many people in their middle years become depressed about their 'jowly' appearance.... Read More

Anti-Wrinkle Lifestyle Tips

Experts say that, when it comes to getting wrinkles, 10% is genetics... Read More

How To Give A Manicure

This guide will give you the basic directions for nail care, however,... Read More

5 Cheap Tanning Lotion Tips For Summer

With summer approaching, it's time to pull out the tanning lotion yet... Read More

Aging is All About Self Esteem

Many of you probably think that aging is something that is just... Read More

Makeup Tip: Beautiful Eyes

Eyes have been called the windows of the soul because of how... Read More

A Crazy Life and Pimples

The factors contributing to acne breakouts are many. Hormonal influences, environmental conditions,... Read More

Discover Why Tanning Beds Wed Technology With Cosmetics

Since a sun tan tan is in vogue, it has created high... Read More

Cancer in Your Shampoo?

You may be amazed to discover that some of the common ingredients... Read More

Home Spas: Theyre Not Just For The Rich & Famous Anymore!

Aaah, a spa. It used to be that you needed a Hollywood... Read More

Combat Frizzy Hair With These Essential Tips

Frizzy hair doesn't discriminate. It plagues both the thin and thick haired... Read More

Fragrance and Fun Fight Dry Skin

If you are a baby boomer, you might be experiencing dry skin... Read More

Mineral Makeup: A Natural Sunscreen

Mineral makeup is the thing to wear this summer if you're looking... Read More

The Cost of Hair Extensions

Hair extensions can be added to your own natural hair to add... Read More

When Clear Skin becomes an Obsession

Billions of people around the world experience acne over their lifetimes. In... Read More

Dont Let Your Kanji Tattoo Get Lost In Translation

Thinking of getting a kanji tattoo or kanji jewelry? Then arm yourself... Read More

Should You Get Hair Extensions?

Are you sick and tired of your current hair style and want... Read More

The Best Self Tanning Lotion

Jeremy was the kind of guy who always wanted the best of... Read More

Sunless Sun Tanning

With more and more of us understanding the serious consequences of sun... Read More

Discover The Make-Up Artist in You

As a licensed cosmetologist, I would like to share how to develop... Read More

Where to Find Wholesale Hair Extensions

Many people turn to hair extensions to change their looks and, in... Read More

Blinded by the White?

Washington DC-By J. S. Ronnette-Patients traveling the road toward whiter teeth have... Read More

How To Recognize an Essential Oil?

A selection of essential oils is now available from health food shops,... Read More

7 Tips for Great Skin At Any Age

1. Cleanse your face twice a day - Did you know that... Read More

The Art Of Perfume Notes - What Are They?

When people hear the word 'notes' they often say "yeah those are... Read More

Skin Care Home Remedies

Natural homemade recipes for your skin are simple to make and cost-effective.... Read More

History of Plastic Surgery

When most people use the term Plastic Surgery, they more often than... Read More

Beauty Doesn?t Have To Be Expensive

Where do you buy your beauty supplies? If you buy them from... Read More

Its A Shame For You Not To Reduce The Appearance of Existing Signs Of Aging And Help Prevent ...

Countless people are now using an anti-aging complex that works to help... Read More

How To Prevent Eye Damages From Tanning Beds

While most people think tanning beds are completely safe, the truth is... Read More

Beautiful Eyes

Beautiful skin care starts with what people notice first. Eyes are what... Read More

Learn How To Tan Safely

Finally summer has arrived, the sun is warm and inviting and we... Read More

What Diet Your Skin Needs: Find Out!

There is no denying the fact that appropriate diet not only benefits... Read More

Eczema: Getting the Facts

People from all walks of life and all ages live with eczema;... Read More

Dry Skin - Causes and Solutions For Great Looking and Feeling Skin

Dry skin, also referred to as xerosis or eczema or asteatosis, and... Read More

New York Laser Hair Removal Clinics Are All The Rage

Laser hair removal: New Yorkers are in love with it. With no... Read More

Toss It? or Keep It?

If you are a product junkie like me then you probably have... Read More

Differences Between Perfume And Perfume Oils

The history of perfume oils dates back to ancient Egypt when these... Read More

For All Those Beginners: How Do I Put On Make-Up?

It is very important to start with a clean slate. Use a... Read More

Handmade Soap Facts

How many people know what soap really is? Several of... Read More

Real Beauty Fitness

Fitness and beauty can be one and the same. Being fit and... Read More

Effective Make-up and Beauty Tips and Products: Dos and Donts, Avoid These Most Common Mistakes!

With the amount of importance given to make-up these days, many women... Read More