Inside Rocky Mountian Soap - How Soap is Made

Interested in how hand-made, natural soap is created? Watch the mixing process and learn the science behind making Rocky Mountain Soap's famous organic soap bars.

Steve Kelly of TALKCalgary finds out how natural, organic soap is made when he visits The Rocky Mountain Soap Company, Canadas leader in 100% Natural Bath and Body products.

Soap v Detergent – What’s In Those Bubbles?

Earth Mama Angel Baby's Blog - "Mama's Herb Garden" - posted a great article about what goes into soap. Interesting stuff!


Soap v Detergent – What’s In Those Bubbles?

If you’re a parent you’d probably love a dime for every time you’ve prodded your kids to wash their hands, WITH soap! Since washing hands with soap is the best way to prevent spreading germs and disease, you’d think we’d all be clear about what that simple thing called “soap” is. But bar or liquid, your soap may not be so simple. And before you find out “you’re soaking in it” you may want to find out why!

Soap is pretty cool stuff. And it’s very simply made. In fact, the very first soaps were made by boiling oils, blending them with ashes and, voila! Cave mamas could clean their pelts! Soap is the end product of blending pure fats or oils with an alkaline (like potassium or sodium hydroxide) solution. That’s it. The oils are acids, the alkali is a base. Allow this acid/base solution to sit and stew for a while and the acids and bases neutralize each other. The oils are saponified, the scary-sounding stuff no longer exists, leaving a balanced, sudsy soap, with a natural pH high enough that it doesn’t require the addition of synthetic preservatives.
Detergent, on the other hand, is a synthetic surfactant originally made to do a better job of cleaning laundry and dishes than natural soap. Detergents started being used in some personal care products like shampoos and body washes because the blend of synthetic chemicals is a less costly way to achieve lathering and cleaning properties. Some detergents are benign and useful, but some can add up to a worrisome toxic soup!

What Is a Surfactant?
Stay with us, it’s simple. Natural soap is a surfactant, or surface acting agent. When you put a drop of water on a counter, it holds its shape. If you add a surfactant to it and reduce the surface tension, the water spreads out evenly and the droplet disappears. Surfactants help break surface tension, making water more effective at washing the dirt away. Soap acts as a surfactant – detergents contain synthetic surfactants.

Are All Synthetic Surfactants Toxic?
No! But many of the synthetic surfactants found in detergent personal care products are under scrutiny for their toxicity to humans. These include common surfactants and emulsifiers like cocomidopropyl betaine, sodium laureth sulfate, cocamide DEA, TEA (Triethanolamine), and ethoxylated alcohols like ceteareth-12 alcohol, many of which are responsible for releasing carcinogenic formaldehyde and 1,4 Dioxane. On the other hand, decyl glucoside may sound scary, but is a gentle surfactant produced from a reaction between glucose (aka: sugar) from cornstarch and a fatty alcohol from coconuts.
How can you not be confused?! Sometimes something that sounds suspicious will be safe, and sometimes something that sounds natural will prove scary. A great resource is the Environmental Working Group’s Skin Deep database, where you can look up products by name, or look up individual ingredients.

What Else is in Detergents?
Detergents usually also contain thickening agents like Polyethylene glycol (PEG) that make the detergent feel thick, even with the addition of up to 90% water. This group of agents has some of the highest toxicity ratings on the Skin Deep site, and carry serious concerns about organ system toxicity and carcinogenic cell mutation. And to help detergent shampoos “moisturize” many contain humectants or additives such as propylene glycol. Propylene glycol is a very common additive in personal care products and skin and respiratory irritant which can cause liver and kidney damage and is also found in paint, wallpaper removers and de-greasers. Yikes!

Does Soap or Detergent Need a Preservative?
Because soap has a high enough pH to deter bacterial or mold growth, it does not need to be preserved. But detergent type shampoos and body washes do need to be preserved to keep them free of mold, bacteria and other goo. Common preservatives include methyl-, butyl-, ethyl- and proply- parabens, methylisothiazolinone, phenoxyethanol, diazolidinyl urea, Quaternium 15 and even formaldehyde, all of which have serious safety concerns.

“Fragrance” is no Bed of Roses
You’ll often see the word “fragrance” or “fragrance oil” in soaps and shampoos (and lotions, and oils). If an ingredient list includes the word “fragrance” it is not disclosing the source of the artificial fragrance. Avoid products that list the word “fragrance” in their ingredient panel because “fragrance” can contain carcinogenic phthalates and mask the addition of undisclosed and potentially toxic preservatives.

Read the Labels!
Click on at least a few of the above links – or better yet, for your health and well being, read the labels of the personal care products you use on yourself, your babies and your whole family. Look up the brand, the product, or the ingredients on the Skin Deep database. If you see something that makes you worried, don’t use it. If you want to let the company know why you aren’t using it, write them a letter. That’s how change happens. The consumer is queen, and knowledge is power!

So that’s the dirt on Soap vs. Detergent. We like to keep it simple, and save the detergent for the dirty diapers!

New Online Store Address

Ezentials' online store keeps growing and growing, so we decided to give it a better web address. You can still follow the same link from http://www.ezentials.ca/, or you can go to http://www.ezentials-natural-products.com/.

We've also made a few improvements to make it easier to navigate around the categories. We now have over 1000 natural and organic health products available online. Even if there is something you don't see, let us know and we can order it for you!

Benefits of Mineral Makeup

A fabulous alternative to traditional make-up products, La Bella Donna Mineral Makeup not only looks good, but it is truely good for your skin!

Mineral pigments are derived from rock, micro-pulverized and jet milled for an incredibly smooth consistency. La Bella Donna Loose Mineral Foundation applies with the flawless finish of a cream base. Mineral pigments, a natural alternative to chemical makeup, do not contain any FD&C dyes, oils, talc, alcohol or fragrance.

The Benefits of Minerals

• Minerals are natural
• Ideal for all ages and skin types
• Waterproof
• Covers, corrects, colours, and beautifies better than chemical cosmetics
• Long-lasting colour that does not crease, fade or wear away
• Lightweight like you are not wearing makeup at all
• Light-refractive quality that diminishes the appearance of fine lines and wrinkles
• Superior natural-looking coverage that allows skin to breathe
• Does not clog pores
• Nearly zero allergy rate
• Natural sun protection
• Balances moisture content in the skin
• Ideal for sensitive, acne, or problem skin
• Soothing, does not irritate
• Safe for post-op coverage
• Anti-aging

What Minerals are used and why?

• Micronized Titanium Dioxide is used as a non-chemical sun block (SPF 20)
• Iron Oxides provide the source of colour
• Bismuth Oxychloride & Zinc Oxide contain anti-inflammatory properties, making the makeup soothing to the skin.

Minerals as Sun Protection?

Micronized titanium dioxide is the key. It is found naturally in minerals and does not clog pores or dry out the skin. Basically, it allows light to pass through the visible ray region (light that is needed for healthy development of skin) while intercepting the ultraviolet rays. Micronized titanium dioxide guards against the damaging effects of ultraviolet rays, yet gives the skin a natural looking finish. Reasearch shows micronized titanium dioxide provides a natural barrier to UVA and UVB radiation without irritation, burning or stinging.

The La Bella Donna line of mineral make-up includes Lip Sheer, Mascara, Eye Shadow, Foundation, Brushes and much more. Visit Ezentials Online Store to learn more.

Source: www.labelladonna.com

Vision Therapy and the Bates Method

For forty years since 1891, Dr. William Bates, a renowned ophthalmologist, researched deeply into the root causes of vision problems such as myopia, hyperopia, presbyopia, astigmatism, and strabismus (lazy eye).

Dr. Bates, stopped prescribing glasses to his clients after noticing that their eye problems got progressively worse after wearing glasses. He discovered that the glasses actually prevent the eyes from healing itself naturally. Inn his research, Dr. Bates discovered that vision fluctuates. The eyes, just like any part of the body, are subjected to stress, emotions, mind-body interaction, and physical habits.

The Pinhole Scientific Principle

Vision Therapy Eyewear, or pinhole glasses, uses the scientific principle that light travels in straight lines to create the pin-hole effect. Images are sharpened without the use of lenses or prescription glasses.

Benefits of Vision Therapy Eyewear:

1. Vision Therapy Eyewear helps you go without glasses (if lens diopter is less than 3.0) painlessly for far or near work such as reading, computer, movies or copying notes off the board or slides.

2. Since there are no glasses or prescription, there is no 20 times over-powered lenses to worry about.

3. Now you can read your papers (presbyopia or longsighted) or watch your favourite movies (myopia, shortsighted) without glasses!

4. There is no strain or headaches caused by over-powered glasses especially when performing near work such as reading, computer or writing.

5. You grow to be less dependent on your eye-crutches.

6. You are using your natural vision ability to see, an ability you have forgotten or neglected to use for a long time.

7. It even helps you to develop good vision habits – relaxed central vision which is a key to natural eyesight improvement.

Vision Therapy Eyewear is available in store and online at http://www.ezentials.ca/

Source: www.naturalvisiontherapy.com/batesmethod.html

Grocery shopping for the health of it

Naturopathic doctors Tracy Gilbert, Carine Lafrance and Sylvia Marasco, all from Ezentials Natural Health Centre and Spa,
offer guided grocery tours to help shoppers make healthier choices. Photo by Jenny Jelen.

By: Jenny Jelen - Sudbury Northern Life Staff

If your cupboards are filled with processed foods and you are lacking energy, it may be time to reconsider how you shop at the grocery store.Tips from the naturopathic doctors at Ezentials Natural Health Centre and Spa might be able to help.

Guided grocery store tours are one of the services offered at the health centre. "The tour is really about education," Tracy Gilbert, owner of Ezentials and a naturopathic doctor, said. "It's really to help (shoppers) become more aware of what they're buying." During tours, Gilbert or another naturopathic doctor from the clinic, Carine Lafrance or Sylvia Marasco, will take clients to a grocery store, and spend time going through the aisles with them, picking out the healthiest options for their lifestyle.

Lafrance said most shoppers she takes on tours are introduced to new foods that they haven't bought before.
Since Lafrance and the other naturopathic doctors eat the way they tell others to, they are able to point out the best-tasting foods that still meet their health standards. "Having experience eating (healthy foods) ourselves, its nice to be able to say, 'this is a really good tasting alternative,'" Gilbert said. Although each tour is designed to meet the individual shopper's needs, Gilbert said there are some things everyone can benefit from. "We're recommending people follow a whole foods diet." Gilbert said. "If (food) no longer resembles how it grew in the ground, it's probably not the best choice."

She suggested people concentrate on filling their shopping carts with fruits, veggies, whole grains, beans, lentils and raw nuts and seeds. Filling a cart with goods from the perimeter of a grocery store helps people stock up on more of the foods they should be eating. Making a stop in the health food section helps too. Lafrance said this doesn't mean you can't go through all the aisles though. "I don't necessarily skip any aisles," she said. "I might point at some aisles and say, 'there probably aren't a lot of good options here, but let's go through it quickly.'"
Paying attention to labels can help shoppers pick healthier food too. The naturopathic doctors help people learn what to look for on labels.

"Once people understand how to read the labels, it makes it much easier for them to make informed decisions about their food choices," Gilbert said. "People are looking for natural and organic alternatives. A lot of times, companies use those types of words in their product names, so it will lead people to think they are better choices."
It's not always the case though. Gilbert recommended customers be aware of marketing techniques some companies use to make their products more appealing. She suggested reading all the information in the ingredient list.

Some shoppers may be concerned that eating healthy will cost more, but Gilbert dispelled the myth that healthy food is more expensive. "If you eat whole foods, its actually cheaper than a lot of your pre-packaged foods," she said. "One of the biggest items, in terms of your grocery bill, is meat. If you start to reduce some of your meat intake, and replace it more with your fresh fruits and vegetables, there's not a price difference."

She said as far as organic food goes, she has seen it cost the same, more, or less than non-organic food, depending on the grocery store and season.

For more information about guided grocery store tours, phone 969-0043 or visit http://www.ezentials.ca/.