5 Tips for Finding a Soap or Body Wash That Won't Irritate Skin

Answer:

All soaps can irritate the skin, but some contain ingredients that make them more likely to cause irritation than others, especially among people with sensitive skin.

Here are five important tips to help you select a soap that is less likely to cause skin irritation:

1. Look for a fragrance-free product
2. Be wary of products containing certain surfactants
3. Avoid certain preservatives
4. Skip "antibacterial" soaps
5. Don't consider "natural" or "organic" cleansers to be safer

Sign in for details, as well as to see our Top Picks for the best body washes and bar soaps to avoid irritation and examples of other soaps that meet some of these requirements and those that don't, including tallow soap and goat's milk soap. Brands reviewed are Aveeno, Basis, Cetaphil, Dial, Dove (including Dove Sensitive Skin Beauty Bar), Dr. Bronner's, Honest, Irish Spring, Lever 2000, Method, Native, Olay, Purpose, Seventh Generation, Sunny Sunday, Tom's of Maine, Vanicream, and Zest.