What is a surfactant?
Explanations ...
In life, we always say "who looks alike, assembles". It's the same in the world of chemistry, you need "fat" to dissolve the "fat".
Indeed, oils are excellent when it comes to dissolving and eliminating dirt and fats from our skin and hair.
On the other hand, the problem is that the oil is not soluble in water, so it is difficult to rinse it. Above all, for your hair, imagine you wash your hair in oil!
We all want our freshly washed hair to be silky, light and not fatty. To solve this problem, all skin cleaning products and hair such as shampoo, shower gel and soap are formulated with cleaning compounds called surfactants (TA).
How does it work?
In terms of chemical structure, TA resembles a match. They have a head that loves water and a tail that likes fat.
When you wash your hands with a product that contains surfactants, the tail of the TA which likes fats ‘between‘ in fat and dirt. Then when you rinse with water, the heads that like water meet and form a protective wall around the tails, which avoids contact with water.
Together, they form small balls, and the dissolved fat is trapped in the middle. These balls then rinse easily with water and hands are clean.
The family of the surfactants:
Almost all cleaning products contain TA to eliminate fats and dirt.
TA dissolve all fats, only, there are also good fats on the surface of our skin.
Indeed, and they are there to protect us, so we should not eliminate them all.
Some groups of the family of TA are very striking and are the cause of drought and skin irritation.
For a chemist, the family of TA is divided into 4 groups according to their charge in their chemical structure: the anionics, cationic, amphotères and non-ionic.
Did we lose? Go, we're going to be simpler, we can classify TA simply in solid and liquid.
Solid surfactants
Solid products are fashionable.
Because they are in solid form, they require less packaging.
Therefore, brands can easily claim values such as ‘plastic free‘ or ‘zero waste‘.
On the other hand, solid products generally contain a family of your aggressive and poor reputation:
The soaps:
The "real soaps" such as Marseille soap or solid Aleppo soap are 100 % of natural origin. They are obtained by a green chemical reaction resulting from saponification between vegetable oils and a very strong alkaline agent (soda for solid flavors and potash for liquid soaps).
The vegetable oils most often used in France are: olive oil for Marseille soap and bay oil for Aleppo soap.
Indeed, soaps are very detergent products, especially perfect for the maintenance of the house.
Nevertheless, they are not suitable for the hygiene of the hands and body of our little ones. From the 1960s, scientists revealed that soap was not an ideal product for washing our children.
Indeed, frequent use of soap is responsible for dermatitis, redness and itching, not only because of the aggressive they contain, but also because of the pH of natural soaps.
Did you know that the skin does not have a neutral pH?
Indeed, it is slightly acidic (pH of 5), this acid coat maintains the balance of the skin.
Therefore, it gives an environment favorable to good microbes and prevents bad microbes from settling down and spreading on our skin. The natural soaps are very alkaline (pH located between 8 and 10) and can disturb the skin balance.
This can be the cause of many discomforts and skin pathologies such as psoriasis, verneuil disease and/or atopic dermatitis (Skin PH article).
Sulfates:
Now the most harmful group of TA.
Indeed, from this year, more than 17 k scientific studies have shown their undesirable effects. The group of organic cosmetics thinks of banning them in the new version of the Cosmos V4 Standard (organic label).
We wrote an article To explain to you why avoid products containing sulfate for our children.
The SCI
You can find the famous cocoyl isethionate sodium (SCI) in almost all solid shampoos. It is sulfate without, inexpensive, and offers good tolerance for the scalp. In addition, it rinses very well and leaves the hair silky.
Until then, this ingredient seems very correct. Only, it is not authorized in organic repository by the certification organization such as Ecocert, but why?
The problem with the SCI: this is its manufacturing process.
Coming from heavy chemistry, it is obtained as a result of several reactions, including one using ethylene oxide, an extremely reactive, flammable and harmful gas. You have surely heard of it during the contaminated sesame scandal imported from India in France.
Ethylene oxide is on the one hand, polluting for the planet, but also classified toxic by inhalation and carcinogen. It therefore implies a significant risk for staff during manufacture, but it is also potentially toxic to aquatic organizations if it is poured into nature.
Also note that to make solid shampoos, you need a concentration of you much higher than that of liquid shampoos. Solid shampoos can then contain up to 75 % of SCI. Thus, wondering about its manufacturing process is not trivial!
A solid shampoo that is sold with a beautiful image of the sea or forest that makes you dream? Wake up, it would rather be a nightmare!
Good students of your solid: glutamates
There is an exception in this family of your solids: sodium cocoyl glutamates, sodium lauroyl glutamates from vegetable oils and amino acids. Super soft, 100 % natural and biodegradable origin, semi-synthesized from ultra-soft amino acids for the body and hair.
Only downside: it does not foam well, and costs ultra expensive compared to other TAs. It requires investing about 20 times more compared to a cleaning product containing sulfates.
Liquid surfactants
Glucosides
APG family, Coco Glucosids, DECYL CLUCOSIDES.
100 % natural origin, they foam properly and is 100 % biodegradable!
They cost expensive, but a little less than glutamates.
The bad student of your liquid: betaine
Betaïnes come from synthetic graft. That is to say: part of this molecule comes from petrochemicals, the other part is of natural origin.
This family of molecule is authorized in organic cosmetics. The problem with betaine is that they have a strong allergenic provision.
Especially the betaine cocamidopropyl, the most commonly used, there are too many cases of reported allergies.
Tips: How to choose the right TA for my child?
Children's skin is ultra delicate and fragile and has its own particularity (article, the children's skin barrier).
Don't be fashionable. You have to protect their skins. Let us choose the liquid cleansing products that contain the right TAs.
In summary, flee when you see the words ‘sulfate‘, ‘isothionate‘ and ‘Betaine‘ in the ingredients (INCI list) of products for your children.
Prefer a product containing only ingredients ending with ‘glutamate‘ and 'glucoside ‘.
If you have a question, especially do not hesitate to contact us, and we will be happy to chat with you and advise you.