Are YOU Washing With Corn?

How many times have you seen the ingredient decyl glucoside in your “natural organic” body wash or cleanser?

Decyl glucoside is the new sexy “natural” cleanser in the cosmetic industry. It is the ingredient of choice for “natural” cosmetic body washes and/or cleansers. You will find this ingredient in Burt’s Bees, Nature’s Gate, Hugo’s Naturals and the list goes on.

Decyl glucoside is a surfactant. Natural soaps –a mixture of oils and an alkali – are also surfactants. Surfactants reduce the surface tension of water allowing dirt to be easily lifted off a surface. Decyl glucoside is considered one of the new generation of surfactants produced by the oleo-chemical conglomerates to replace sodium laurel sulfates which were derived from coconut oil.

The production of alkyl glucosides requires alcohols and corn for a base which are then exposed to strong acid catalysts and high heat to break apart the original molecules. The catalyst used may include sulfuric, para-toluenesulfonic-, sulfosuccinic-, dodecylbezenesulfonic-, or dinonyinapthhalenesulfonic acids. This method of breaking down a natural product into isolated ingredients creates a large waste problem for our waterways as components of the process such as the toxic catalysts must be disposed of. The degree of processing and use of intermediate reagents like sulfates negates the claim that decyl glucoside is a natural body product.

So why do cosmetic companies want to sell deconstructed products (cleansers and body washes) instead of the real thing like castile soaps? Well, for the same reasons many people prefer Wonder Bread to a whole wheat artisan handmade loaf.
Deconstructed and chemically re-engineered products such as decyl glucosides are created to fulfill the consumer demand for a high foaming product that can be pumped from a bottle. In one word- it is convenience. Authentic castile soaps are not thickened with corn sugars and may appear more liquid but the concentration of surfactant ability is greater in a castile soap.

High foaming has been engineered into the properties of corn sugar soaps like the fluffy attributes in Wonder Bread.

Corn is highly subsidized by the US government and petrochemical companies. Corn relies on heavy petroleum inputs and growing corn is part of the vicious cycle of petrochemical dependency for agricultural products. Because corn is such a cheap commodity, a whole array of deconstructed foods and cosmetics are now produced from it.

If you want Fluffy White Bread buy decyl glucoside products. If you prefer whole wheat artisan bread, then buy authentic castile soaps.

Mountain Sky’s natural authentic castile soap is produced with simple natural oils, essential oils and an alkali- soap created using the same processes as our ancestors. Mountain Sky soaps retains its natural glycerin to create a milder natural authentic soap. You can find Mountain Sky’s products in quality health food stores, grocery and gift stores.