Most of us find baby soap safer than adult soap. There are those who think that this is the best tool for face washing and intimate hygiene. Many people has a similar attitude to baby’s shampoos on supermarket shelves. This is not surprising, because we really expect better quality from children's products.
In children's products, we hope for the components naturality, the absence of questionable preservatives or antioxidants, suspicious dyes and fragrances. But is their composition always blameless? The way of production of baby soap, in fact, does not significantly differs from the production of soap for adults, so the mass market children's products contains, for example, sodium laureth sulfate, butylhydroxytoluene (BHT) and other compounds that can touch off a reaction in a child.
Therefore, when you deciding with what means bath baby, it does not matter whether it is soap or shampoo, do not rely on the image of beautiful tiny liitle child on the label, but carefully read the composition (INCI).
Does the child need shampoo?
Can I wash hair of my baby with baby’s soap? Yes, all the more, it’s quite convenient to use one universal tool. However, many parents still choose shampoo for the kids. What are the advantages of shampoo over soap for washing a baby’s hair?
Firstly, soap, especially natural, without additives that softens water, forms a gray blast in a lime water, and hair may look dull and not comb well. You can get rid of this disadvantage if you rinse your hair with a weak solution of vinegar, but child will not like such an extra action. Composition of the shampoo includes surfactants that does not form poorly soluble compounds with hardness salts. As a result, hair after shampoo is effervescent, silky and supple.
Secondly, even mild baby soap irritates the eyes, because natural soap is also an anionic surfactant. For baby’s liquid products, most commonly, selected softer surfactant composition. That is why shampoo for babies does not irritate eyes. Even children who don’t like to bathe can stand with tear-free baby shampoo, which provides a wash with such a light and fragrant foam.
Thirdly, in liquid products it is easier to select a pH value than in solid ones. Soaps creates an alkaline environment, and therefore dries the skin. And shampoos often have weak acid pH values close to the acidity of the skin. In addition, it is easier to introduce beneficial supplements that care for skin and hair into liquid shampoo than into solid soap.
Definitely children just like to copy adults, and the baby will be pleased to have their own shampoo.
What is the difference between babies shampoo and shampoo for adults?
Children's shampoo should be not only “without tears”, it should have a softer and more gentle detergent composition and should not contain components with a doubtful reputation that can irritate skin and mucous membranes or accumulate and lead to hypersensitivity.
For example, let's look at the composition of baby shampoo from De La Mark, because we know for sure all its components and the reasons why they were used. It does not contain SLS, SLES and other aggressive sulfate surfactants, because they dries the hair and skin, and also cause irritation to the skin and mucous membranes. Instead, they are soft “green” surfactants from herbal substances, including oat proteins.
In addition, De La Mark baby shampoo contains natural additives known for their positive effects on kids skin and hair: extracts of a beggar-ticks, chamomile, calendula and wheat germ oil. And also used a food preservative sodium benzoate.
It is important that the De La Mark shampoo for children does not consist:
- dyes,
- silicones,
- microplastics,
- strong fragrances.
Often some of these materials cause allergies, and some are completely neutral to the body. But they are not biodegradable, therefore they pollute the environment, which also indirectly affects the baby’s health.
But although De La Mark baby shampoo contains 98% components of natural origin, before, conduct a test on the inner bend of the child’s elbow, because even natural components may cause an individual reaction.
What else must be taken to account when choosing between soap and shampoo?
If parents tend to leave less trash behind them or even adhere to Zero Waste lifestyle, for them, packaging of a product will be an important factor in choosing a hair wash and bathing product - can it be recycled? Or will it become garbage and poison the environment in which their kids will live when they grows up?
If we are talking about natural soap, then it is often packed in paper or cardboard, which will go to paper waste. And shampoos are usually sold in plastic containers. Pay attention to the marking, can this plastic be recycled?
It is important to know that all De La Mark cosmetics are sold in packaging labeled 2 (HDPE) and are recyclable. But if you do not have the opportunity to take plastic bottles to the sorting or receiving point of secondary raw materials, you can return it through our online store. And even get a small reward for it in the form of a discount on your next purchase. Since 2017, we have been running the “Return Empty Packing” program, according to which we guaranteed transfer empty packing from our liquid products to the converter so that they get a second life. And in the future we plan to give an opportunity to our customers to buy liquid products in their packing.
So, both baby soaps and shampoos are different: in some cases, labels with smiling children are just a marketing vehicle, and a really worthy remedy can come across. Think about the future of your baby right now and choose the best!