Why This Beekeeper Makes Soap

I've been beekeeping for quite a while now, and one of the questions I've been getting as of late is, "why do you make soap?" The answer to this question is simple yet complex, straightforward yet multifaceted.

I'm a beekeeper, but I'm also a scientist, and my current and future research endeavours reflect my goals and plan to help people and the environment in which we live. I can write more on this later. But the thing is, understanding shortcomings and simply turning ideas into solutions are near and dear to me, and the products I make are no different.

Speaking of "different," let me explain the difference between soap and detergent and why you're probably using detergent on your skin.

Soap is biodegradable. It is made of different oils and butters, known collectively as triglycerides and combining them with water and a strong base in a process known as saponification to form what we know as soap. Back then, the strong base was obtained by steeping potassium hydroxide out of wood ash, but nowadays, we use food-grade KOH or NaOH.

Mmmm, chemistry!

Detergent, however, is made relatively the same way, but the difference is the ingredients which take the place of the triglycerides are synthetic. Along with abrasives, and other chemicals, this means that part or all of the ingredients in detergent are not biodegradable.

Now, as for your skin... Go into your shower and look at your shower gel or soap box. Turn it to the back. Sodium laurel (laureth) sulfate? FD&C Yellow 5? Red 40? Tetrasodium EDTA? "Fragrance?" I can go on and on with even more chemical names, how they are used, why they are used, etc., but that would take this quite pleasant post into a rabbit hole that would be astronomically hard to get out of.

Your skin is your largest organ. Whatever you put onto your skin will eventually make it into your body. Not only are you absorbing the good smell that the soap leaves on your skin after use, but you are absorbing all types of chemicals like parabens (a preservative whose carcinogenic effects are currently being studied, and has also been linked to endocrine disruption and infertility, and, to be honest, is found in a lot of other everyday products as well), triclosan (a lipophilic substance used in antibacterial soap which is another endocrine disrupting carcinogen, and on top of that, serves no discernable benefit over washing with normal soap and water), and more. I will write another blog post about the common chemicals found in soaps. Watch out for that one.

Anyways, these chemicals can accumulate in your body, and the process of ridding them is pretty slow, which is primarily a bad thing when talking about chemicals which are known to disrupt the endocrine system, along with contributing to the worsening ( and in some cases, development) of neurological and immune disorders. These chemicals can accumulate in our waterways (which, upon being exposed to UV light like in the case of triclosan, can turn into something more toxic) and in the soil, which then ends up in the plant foods in which we and other organisms eat and in the nectar that the bees use to make honey.

Enter real soap. Natural soaps such as handmade and cold process soaps are 100% biodegradable. They are made of simple ingredients: oils and butters, additives such as honey and goat's milk, and essential oils, which are much different from fragrance oils because they are extracted from plants using steam distillation, solvent extraction, cold press extraction, etc. There are many soaps you can choose from, but why scour the stores and the internet for the best ones? You can find the best right here!

When used, these ingredients end up in our waterways (like everything that wash down the drain) with absolutely zero effect on our environment (and some microbes may even benefit from the products of these ingredients' breakdown.) It's not only environmentally friendly but also excellent for your skin. You can read up all the benefits of honey, turmeric, and more on your skin here!

Hopefully this article was as informative to you as it was fun to write it, but unfortunately, that is all i have for today. 

You have a BEE-autiful day!