Milk Soap for toddler and adult with Eczema?

[JayJay]

Hello All,

I just started making soap and I am totally hooked. My coworker mentioned that her toddler and her husband both have eczema. Right away, I offered to make them some soap! I rushed home and started googling. I thought it would be easy to find advice on the best ingredients to use for baby soap suitable for sensitive skin. I found so much information that I don't feel like I am any closer to making my recipe.

What I read is that good soap won't necessarily heal the eczema, but it could stop drying it out and stop irritating it. So thinking along that line, I figure any mild unscented formula would work. Am I on target?

Couple more questions...

1. Has anyone had success with milk soap for babies and/or eczema? If so, does it matter whether it is goat or cow or buttermilk? I have seen recipes for buttermilk baby soap and I have also seen lots of articles on goat milk. What's the real difference in terms of what ends up in the final product?

2. I am not planning to use any scents or essential oils, but I was planning to use a combination of oils to try and produce some lather. The baby likes bubbles. I was thinking of using maybe 10% CO, and 5% castor oil, and the rest olive oil. Does this seem okay? Or, is it better to keep it simple and pure with just one oil (100% OO) with no milk?

3. How much should I superfat?

Any other suggestions or advice? :idea:

Thank you so much in advance. I will be so happy if this turns out well.

 

[Lindy]

Try a Goat Milk & Honey soap with a 5% superfat.

 

[Confused_Penguin]

I wish I can help you but I have not used milk in any of my soaps yet, but I know a lot about eczema-- been suffering from it for years.

Castor oil does a body good, along with shea butter, coconut oil, Olive oil, avocado oil as well. If you do 100% Olive oil it's going to take a long time for it to cure and if you don't mind waiting 6 months or so then you can do it without milk.

Oatmeal is also great, just don't put too much or it might make it too scratchy for the baby. I would stick with 5% superfat but please be careful with the honey-- I heard infants/babies cannot use them because they might have a severe reaction. I'm not sure if that is limited to consuming but better safe than sorry. I hope this helps

 

[Lindy]

Babies under 6 months should not use honey as their immunity system is unable to handle it. Oatmeal will be too scratchy but you can make it into a milk which would also be soothing. A soap that is high in Olive Oil, around 70%, will cure up nicely in 4 weeks and ready to use. Include other things like tallow/lard as ingredients and yes castor oil is good too. On your lye calculator you are looking for high conditioning and creamy lather.

 

[mx5inpenn]

Since you said toddler, I wouldn't worry about the honey. It's suggested not to give honey only for the first year.

If no one objects to animal fats, you might want to add lard. I'm new to making soap, but not new to buying homemade. I've bought for a long time from a friend that doesn't use animal fats. The first batch I made was 55% lard, 15% coconut, 25% olive and 5% castor with 5% superfat. It's cured for about 8 weeks now and wow! I have always loved my friend's soap, but what a huge difference the lard made!!

 

[JayJay]

Thanks everyone for the help.

I think I will combine all the advice here and see how it goes in the morning.

Question- When adding honey, do I need to subtract the weight of the honey from the water amount? Or does it matter if I add it at the end?

I'm not sure how she would feel about lard. But I can tell you that I am dying to try a batch of lard soap for myself. Thanks for the recipe. This will be my next batch.

I built a recipe that is mostly OO, with CO, avocado oil, Shea butter and castor oil. According to the soap calc, it is a 28 in hardness, 13 in cleansing and a 69 in conditioning. I hope that translates into a nice soap. I don't have enough experience to know how those numbers translate into real feel in the shower.

 

[The Efficacious Gentleman]

I would make that with lard instead of olive. Unless she is a strict vegan/veggie/Muslim/Jew then I think she might well prefer results rather than certain ingredients.

As it stands, your recipe has a lot of soft oils and will need a fairly long cure. Swap the olive to lard and that changes things considerably.

Eta - I might also lower the co to 15% and put the extra 5% in to the olive or lard, depending on your route. Put in sugar at 2% of your oil weight to make up for the lack of bubbles.

Also, you mention Shea but I don't see it in the recipe itself.

 

[cmzaha]

I would suggest you try to determine what this child is allergic to before designing a soap. If he or she has allergic flareup type eczema it can be dangerous. Ironically with my eczema I am better off with my skin being on the dry side to heal. My skin loves salt in all forms. As a child my mom was told by my doctor to give me oatmeal baths well that sent me to the hospital. Shea has some of the same properties as latex so anyone allergic to latex shea is not a recommendation. I also recently found out that papaya contains latex, now I know why I could never eat papayas. I was recently asked at my booth about a soap for a gals child with rash type eczema. After we finished talking about it she agreed it would be best to talk to his doctor about what should or should not be used. In a nut shell I would NOT rush into making a soap for someone else's child, you are taking on a big responsibility. I sell a lot of soap, but I am the first to admit it is not for everyone. To this day I cannot use handmade soap full body. Sorry for the rant, but I am very very cautious and maybe a bit paranoid when it comes to allergies. If the child likes bubbles find a nice gentle natural melt and pour. My granddaughter is not allowed to use any soap other than our m&p sls free soap. She is very allergic to all other soaps.
As for your recipe I would certainly lower the coconut oil to 15% or so and lower the castor to 5% maybe add in some lard or palm and lower the OO. Avocado oil is great as long as the user is not allergic to it.

 

[Susie]

If you just started making soap, you are not ready to give your soap away to co-workers for their family. Especially if there are allergies involved. You need to understand your oils better, and get your process down before taking this on.

You need to ask your co-worker if they have a list of allergies from the doctor. If so, get a copy and go start looking up all cross allergies to every one listed. Then avoid using any of those. The list may be quite extensive. If there is no list from the doctor, I would not make soap for them. Period. You are asking for problems.

Then ask if they have tried something like Dr. Bronner's. It is nothing special, but it is at least true soap, not syndet.

 

[JayJay]

Wow, thanks everyone for the good information.

I am sufficiently scared out of doing this for her. But since I am all geared up to make soap, I will make this batch for me and my husband instead.

I'm going to swap out the OO for Lard, lower the CO to 15%, add sugar, and see how it turns out. I also have sensitive skin (not eczema) and I think I would enjoy the batch myself! I will hold off on scenting it just in case it comes out well and I end up giving her some to try. I asked about allergies for her husband and her son. One of them has an allergy to penicillin.

The Efficacious Gentleman -- When do I add the sugar?

cmzaha -- What makes melt and pour soap safer than homemade (or store brands)?

 

[Susie]

You take one ounce of water out of the total, heat it up and melt the sugar in there, then dump that into your oils.

Try something like this, I think you will love it.

Coconut Oil 15%
Olive Oil 20-25%
Castor Oil 5%(got to have my lather)
The remainder in lard.
Superfat 5-8%(I do not like higher superfat, I think it decreases my lather)
Sugar 1 tsp/PPO

Cure minimum 4-6 weeks. Then please let us know what you think, so we can help you tweak it to your preferences.(Might be wise to start a new thread then with the recipe and what you think of it.)

 

[JayJay]

Thanks! Can't wait!

 

[lionprincess00]

I wanted to mention, milk is an irritant. Many have dairy allergies, and most young infants are sensitive to it. It can take a toddler until 2 or 3 to stop being "irritated " to dairy. My baby seemed to have a dairy problem as I nursed, and cut out dairy, and she didn't seem to be nearly as colicy as before.

It is considered an inflammatory food as well. I have rheumatoid arthritis, and I've read numerous things on inflammatory foods, dairy being a huge one. I would not do any milk for eczema. It's an inflammation of the skin and milk may in fact irritate it more than help it.

 

[pamielynn]

***slightly off topic***

As always, I'm confused about the warnings about food allergies when it relates to soap. I have several customers and friends with real, diagnosed food allergies (nuts, Celiac's) who use my soap exclusively and have never worried about a reaction since they are not eating the soap. My soaps contain almond oil and milks. They know what's in the soap and still use it without a problem.

Can someone really explain to me why they warn off about possible food allergens in soaps (honey, milks, nuts, etc). Thanks!

 

[lionprincess00]

After a short Google, milk is one of the most inflammatory foods.

Wait, just read you're scared outta doing it lol! Well, Carolyn had great advice, and Susie has a great starter recipe. I'd stick to 20% or less coconut, personally, then see if you like it and adjust from there.

 

[lillybella]

I would suggest you try to determine what this child is allergic to before designing a soap. If he or she has allergic flareup type eczema it can be dangerous. Ironically with my eczema I am better off with my skin being on the dry side to heal. My skin loves salt in all forms. As a child my mom was told by my doctor to give me oatmeal baths well that sent me to the hospital. Shea has some of the same properties as latex so anyone allergic to latex shea is not a recommendation. I also recently found out that papaya contains latex, now I know why I could never eat papayas. I was recently asked at my booth about a soap for a gals child with rash type eczema. After we finished talking about it she agreed it would be best to talk to his doctor about what should or should not be used. In a nut shell I would NOT rush into making a soap for someone else's child, you are taking on a big responsibility. I sell a lot of soap, but I am the first to admit it is not for everyone. To this day I cannot use handmade soap full body. Sorry for the rant, but I am very very cautious and maybe a bit paranoid when it comes to allergies. If the child likes bubbles find a nice gentle natural melt and pour. My granddaughter is not allowed to use any soap other than our m&p sls free soap. She is very allergic to all other soaps.
As for your recipe I would certainly lower the coconut oil to 15% or so and lower the castor to 5% maybe add in some lard or palm and lower the OO. Avocado oil is great as long as the user is not allergic to it.

I am allergic to dairy which triggers my eczema. I would never use milk in my soap. I use a castile soap - 100% olive oil. Avocado Oil in a body butter has been my answer. When dealing with allergies, it can be very tricky, because even if you use something that the person is not allergic to at the time a cross allergy can develop to something you are using.

I really try to not get involved with customers who have allergies but advise that they go to a dermatologist.

 

[lionprincess00]

Well, I see it as milk allergies can cause a systemic reaction, and not just a gut problem. There's been instances where children around peanuts, just getting the oils onto their skin, can cause anaphylactic reaction (in the most extreme cases). Since its the casein in dairy, a protein, that causes allergies and not the fats which would be saponified, I'd be severely reluctant to let a sensitive dairy person rub the protein onto their body.

I'm not talking about lactose, the sugar, sensitive within the gut nor the fats which are turned into a salt, but rather the protein that I have zero idea what becomes of it after saponification. So I'd say be safe rather than sorry.

Casein sensitivity was my youngest child's problem as I nursed and any dairy ingested on my part caused reactions onto her. A dairy casein issue from breastmilk after I injested it. I had to cut out all dairy and such.

 

[JayJay]

Thanks lionprincess00! That is definitely good to know. I wasn't going to put it in my soap because I am allergic to milk proteins. But I didn't think about it being an irritant to others.

 

[Dahila]

I consider myself a newbie too, However is already two years of making soaps and I started from lotions , scrubs, creams........... My grandchild and son suffer with awful eczema and they react very well to lard soaps. I use OO infused with calendula or camomile. It seem to help too. Lotion or cream is more important than soap. Make a gentle soap, I agree with Efficacious Gentleman
Add sugar to your water Before lye. Sugar must be dissolved completely. You must lower Coconut oil to 15 , it is known to dry the skin, With eczema it is important to keep skin moisturized.
BTW do not make this soap for baby, no one should experiment on babies. I think they need lower PH than the cp soap offers. Then allergies ...........
Make the soap for your family take a year or so. Then you will know a lot and you can gift it to friends or sell.

 

[Luv2Soap]

I'm a newbie too and I have rosacea which has similar issues that those with eczema have. I am so excited to see this thread because I have been wanting to eventually create a facial soap for myself that will cleanse while not stripping all of the oils from my skin and inflaming my rosacea. I really appreciate all the sharing you guys do with your recipe knowledge and knowledge of how certain ingredient affect the skin. If you don't mind, I think I'm going to try out a few of the suggestions here and see if I can't come up with something that might finally help me. *HUGS* to all!