Coloidal oats question
- Thread starter lesavonvert
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Yes, many folks do. 
lesavonvert
Active Member
Thanks it will be cheaper for me to but this at the drug store instead of my soap supplies storeYes, many folks do.
Good for you for comparing prices carefully and figuring that out!
Zany_in_CO
Saponifier
Just an FYI: "Colloidal" Oats are processed to stay suspended in bath water and they tend to be more expensive than regular ole Quaker Oats (ground up), baby cereal or oat flour (my fave) that is readily available at your local grocery store. 
I love regular ole oats or oat flour in my scrubby soaps. If I don't want scrubby, but do want the soothing effect, then true colloidal oats are the ticket for me.
Zany_in_CO
Saponifier
That reminds me of a story about @Bunny who shared her Honey Oatmeal Castile HP soap recipe with the group. She made it for her 3-year old grandson who had eczema. That was before the arrival of colloidal oatmeal. At bath time, she added a couple of cups of oatmeal to the bath water! Very soothing.
I use these and get them at Big Lots. They are quite inexpensive there.
ivylorraine
Member
I bought some colloidal oats on eBay to incorporate into a lotion and to use in some tub teas. When I opened the package it sure looked like oat flour to me, not the super silky fine powder I was expecting and paid a premium for. I used it anyway and there are definitely tiny discrete bits of oats in my otherwise smooth lotion. Haven't tried the tub tea yet but I expect this stuff will settle and leave a gloopy mess. I can and will use these oats in soap, but I definitely got ripped off. I'll stick with Aveeno for leave-on products.
Haven't tried the tub tea yet but I expect this stuff will settle and leave a gloopy mess. I can and will use these oats in soap, but I definitely got ripped off. I'll stick with Aveeno for leave-on products.
True colloidal oats are processed from oats to obtain the colloids:
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/17373175/
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/17373175/
What works just as well is oat flour and much less expensive.
Oatmeal is soothing when you are not allergic to it. I recommend anyone with eczema test before bathing in oatmeal. When I was a baby a doctor prescribe oat baths for me. According to my mother I almost died from the allergic reaction and to this day I can eat oatmeal but cannot bathe with it. It is a wonderful product if not allergic but I always added a caution label on my oatmeal products.That reminds me of a story about @Bunny who shared her Honey Oatmeal Castile HP soap recipe with the group. She made it for her 3-year old grandson who had eczema. That was before the arrival of colloidal oatmeal. At bath time, she added a couple of cups of oatmeal to the bath water! Very soothing.
@ivylorraine I strongly advise adding organics including oats to lotions since they are quite impossible for the home artesian to properly preserve them. If you want to add in oatmeal use liquid Oatmeal extract. Oatmeal Extract - Essentials by Catalina
Zany_in_CO
Saponifier
I can't get my oat flour ground down finely enough - it always feel scratchy to me. The colloidal oats never do.
I enjoy ground oats in my soap, but just purchased the Aveeno bath treatment colloidal oat packets to make a soothing soap without the scrub. 
I use Colloidal oatmeal in numerous products. It is NOT the same as finely ground oats or oat flour and does not feel the same in bath & body products.
YW, they have all kinds of extracts these days!!
It is true that it is not as fine, but my customers like the scrubbiness better than when I did use colloidal oats, which is why I changed.I can't get my oat flour ground down finely enough - it always feel scratchy to me. The colloidal oats never do.
Makes sense. I do like them in my scrubby gardener bars!
ivylorraine
Member
Thank you. I am not one to add organics to my lotions or creams on a whim at all, I am pro-preservation for sure. This was a good reminder to throw out the batch I inadvertently made with not-colloidal oats.
The recipe I used is from humblebeeandme.com, who I think is generally well-respected as a formulator. I will investigate general colloidal oat safety so I can know for future recipes. Thanks again for the advice.
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