A bar of soap sitting wet on the ledge invites a thought into one’s mind: is bar soap unsanitary? You rub the bar all over your face and/or body, and then put it back to dry out (if it dries out, that is). Then you repeat the ritual at night or the next day. Does the dirt, skin, and other gunk live on that bar permanently?
We see this question come up a lot. And it’s fair. But decades of clinical evidence confirms it’s not the concern you may imagine it to be. Bar soap doesn’t transfer any meaningful amount of bacteria from one use to the next.
Now, there are caveats. Are you sharing the bar with another person? Are you applying the bar directly to your skin, or working a lather between your hands and then applying the soap that way? How well are you allowing the bar to dry out between uses?
We’ll share tips on how to keep bar soap clean and hygienic below, but more importantly, we’re honored to introduce you to the ritual your skin has been craving all this time - Oshun’s one-of-a-kind goat milk soap.
Key Takeaways
- A study found that even bars contaminated at 70x normal levels didn’t transfer bacteria.
- The CDC has confirmed that bar soap removes germs as effectively as liquid soap.
- Even sharing bar soap with loved ones in your home is entirely safe.
- It may surprise you to learn that liquid soap dispensers are actually more contaminated than bar soap.
- Proper soap storage goes a long way in enhancing the daily cleansing ritual.
Is Bar Soap Unsanitary in Itself?
We can understand the concern itself. A bar of soap sits out in the open where any germs can crawl onto it. You see the water dripping off the bar onto the tray it rests on, the softened edges of the soap, and wonder - is bar soap unsanitary? You’ve probably heard people say so.
But the truth is a lot more nuanced. While liquid soap is able to hide behind a bottle, what’s invisible only feels cleaner. It may not be any more hygienic than a bar of soap left out in the open.
We See the Same Misconceptions Over and Over Again
People who assume bar soap is unsanitary are almost always reacting to instinct rather than any real evidence. Since your hands are dirty when you first grab the bar of soap, surely the bar harbors all those germs and pathogens when you put it back down. Right? Not at all, actually.
There’s a reason bar soap is still around centuries later, even in spite of liquid soap becoming so popular in our modern world. We wanted to give you the most transparent answer possible, so we took a look at some studies and were caught off guard ourselves with what we discovered.
Researchers purposefully contaminated bars of soap with E. coli and Pseudomonas at 70 times the levels found on normally used soap. But the participants had zero detectable bacteria on their hands after washing.1
In contrast, a separate study from 2011 unearthed something we think is really alarming: 1 in 4 refillable liquid soap dispensers are contaminated, and washing with those increased bacteria on hands by 26-fold.2 As if that wasn’t bad enough, it appears personal hygiene has only gotten worse over the years. A follow-up study just a few years ago found that 70% of refillable pump dispensers harbored bacterial contamination.3
So, is bar soap unsanitary? We’d argue the opposite - it’s more sanitary than liquid soap!
How Long Do Germs Actually Live on a Bar of Soap?
The fear everyone has is that the bacteria they wash off their skin gets transferred onto the bar of soap. But the truth is germs don’t actually survive the washing process. They go down the drain with the lather.
Good bar soap has a fairly alkaline pH level, somewhere between 8-10. This is not the ideal range for bacteria to thrive. All you have to do is rinse under water for a few seconds before lathering to clear what little remains. The lather itself does all the heavy lifting of getting microbes off your skin.
This is something we’ve seen board-certified dermatologist Dr. Rachel Nazarian talk about, and we think it’s important for you to hear what she had to say. “Bars of soap can harbour bacteria and viruses but these organisms are washed away as soon as you combine the soap with water and lather.”4
Is Sharing Bar Soap Unsanitary?
Some people aren’t worried bar soap in itself is unsanitary. They are hesitant to share their bar with others, though - even their own family. We get it. But even germaphobes have nothing to worry about. The science backs this up.
That same study we talked about earlier that showed bar soap didn’t lead to bacteria on people’s hands actually involved shared use. The experts concluded that, “little hazard exists in routine handwashing with previously used soap bars.”1
This comes with one key caveat, of course: the household as a whole should be healthy. Anyone who has a skin infection, open wound, or otherwise contagious condition should probably use their own soap.
And, for what it’s worth, there’s nothing wrong with owning multiple bars of soap for different purposes. You can keep a bar of Oshun in the powder room for guests to wash their hands with, one in your bathroom just for your face, and a separate one in the shower for your body. This eliminates a lot of the heebie-jeebies you might have about supposed “cross-contamination.”
Why Bar Soap Provides a Better Ritual Than Anything Else
We’re clearly big on bar soap. You will be too once you realize your skin has always preferred it. Hygiene aside, it’s the best way to cleanse your skin. Because cleansing is just the tip of the iceberg.
A really good skin-nourishing soap is loaded with Mother Earth’s finest ingredients - ingredients your skin remembers. Oshun, for instance, features goat milk, manuka honey, shea butter, olive oil, pearl powder, and more. Each is chosen for a very specific reason:
- Cleansing
- Exfoliating
- Hydrating
- Repairing
Adding Oshun to your ritual means removing impurities from your skin and bringing out the best in it - all while eliminating so much clutter from your skincare routine. You may not need a separate moisturizer anymore. You won’t have to follow up with a toner.
There’s just something about the ritual itself, too. You work a lather between your hands and feel a more intentional sense of care that a plastic pump could never provide. There’s no plastic waste either, for that matter.
We have a separate resource diving deep into the bar soap vs body wash debate if you want to learn more. But we think the choice is obvious.
How to Keep Bar Soap Clean and Hygienic
Bar soap can be completely hygienic. Here are just a few tips on how to keep bar soap clean if you’re still feeling skeptical, though:
- Get a really good soap dish that lets the bar dry out all the way between uses.
- Rinse the bar under running water for just a second or two before each use.
- Make sure the soap is all the way dry before packing it for travel.
That’s all there is to it. The soap does the rest. You don’t have to overthink something that’s this simple.
Elevate Your Cleansing Ritual With Oshun
It’s time to indulge in the best soap for sensitive skin and see for yourself what has been missing from your ritual all this time. Every bar is handcrafted from 11 intentionally selected ingredients from across Mother Earth, all there for a reason, including:
- Nubian goat milk for lush nourishment and hydration
- Manuka Honey +20 UMF to help restore your skin
- First cold-pressed olive oil to help improve skin resilience
- White willow bark to gently exfoliate the skin and leave it supple
- Shea butter for intense hydration and smoothing
- Kaolin clay to draw out impurities and soften your skin’s texture
Notice what you don’t see. Anything that doesn’t serve your skin - fragrance, synthetic additives, chemical preservatives. Just ingredients your skin recognizes and responds to with softness. All brought together and left to cure for 8 weeks.
Bar soap is anything but unsanitary. And once you experience the Oshun difference, you’ll never go back.
References
- Heinze JE, Yackovich F. Washing with contaminated bar soap is unlikely to transfer bacteria. Epidemiol Infect. 1988;101(1):135-142. PubMed Central
- Zapka CA, Campbell EJ, Maxwell SL, et al. Bacterial hand contamination and transfer after use of contaminated bulk-soap-refillable dispensers. Appl Environ Microbiol. 2011;77(9):2898-2904. PubMed
- Lucassen R, et al. A loophole in soap dispensers mediates contamination with Gram-negative bacteria. MicrobiologyOpen. 2023;12:e1384. PubMed Central
- Nazarian R, MD. Should You Use Bar Soap To Wash Your Hands During Coronavirus? Refinery29. Refinery29
