How Does Soap Work to Help You Stay Healthy and Clean?


Over the past few months, soap has become one of the most sought-after solutions worldwide. The antigerm properties of soaps make them very effective for combating the spread of fungi, protozoa, bacteria, and viruses such as COVID-19. By simply washing your hands with soap, you can easily get rid of germs that causes various diseases, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). 

So, how does soap work to get rid of viruses, bacteria, and other disease-causing germs on your skin? 

How Does Soap Work to Keep You Healthy? 

There are germs on almost every surface you touch including dirt, grease, and oil. Germs can easily stick to the grease, dirt, and oil on your skin. While you can easily wash your hands with water alone, it won’t get rid of the bacteria, viruses, protozoa, or fungi on your hands, because water doesn’t mix well with oil. 

This is because oils contain hydrophobic molecules which means they can’t mix with water. Molecules that can mix with water are called hydrophilic. Also, solutions that contain polar compounds can dissolve in water. In contrast, the ones that contain nonpolar compounds such as oil and grease cannot dissolve in water.  

How Does Soap Work

That means water alone cannot get rid of the germs attached to the oil on your skin because they don’t mix well and it cannot dissolve them. But soaps can easily get rid of germs because they contain molecules known as surfactant (a combination of hydrophobic and hydrophilic molecules). This means soap can mix well with oil, grease, dirt, and water. Thankfully, you can choose from a wide-variety of soaps to wash your hands and stay germ-free. 

So, whenever you’re washing your hands with soap like the Island Mango Glycerine Soap, the surfactant attracts the water and oil molecules and sticks to both simultaneously. When you start rinsing your hands after washing, the soap gets rid of the grease, oil, and dirt -- they flow away with the water. The same process occurs when you wash your face, clothes, towels or any surface, or bathe with a soap like our Coconut Soothing Soap

Why Wash Your Hands with Soap Regularly? 

Since your hands come in contact with more things and surfaces than every other part of your body, washing your hands with soap and water regularly can keep germs away from you. So, whenever you wash your hands with a soap such as the Island Mango Confetti Soap, do so thoroughly. Start by working up a lather to eradicate, dirt, oil, and grease from your skin. 

The CDC recommends that you scrub your hands for at least 20 seconds and scrub underneath your fingernails thoroughly. Underneath your fingernails is one of the hotspots for germs. So, trim your nails regularly. 

Once you’re done washing your hands with soap, don’t forget to towel-dry or air-dry it. While there’s no known best method of drying hands, make sure you dry yours by any hygienic means possible. Wet hands are known for spreading germs faster than dry ones, according to the CDC.