Over the past few years many new products have emerged touting antibacterial and antimicrobial  properties – liquid hand soaps, bar soaps, disposable wipes, laundry detergents, even floor cleaners!

In light of the recent concerns about H1N1 flu and other flus and viruses of the season, more and more people (including myself) have become almost fanatical about hand washing. This is not a bad thing, but  I am skeptical and concerned about commercial antibacterial soaps created with chemicals that have been proven to be harmful to our health.  Is killing the bacteria helping anybody?  The reality is that bacteria is necessary for proper health. I feed my body every day with probiotics – good bacteria to help my digestive system stay healthy. So, is eliminating bacteria necessary or even possible? And what are they doing to our water supply! The fact is that we could be even more susceptible to illness by using these soaps.

For myself and my family I choose to use hand soaps that contain ingredients with  natural antiseptic properties – like Tea Tree oil or Thyme.  My favorite at the moment is from Jason called Tea Tree Melaleuca. Others that I plan to try try this season include sanitizers from CleanWell, which utilizes the antiseptic properties of the herb Thyme and staSAFE Hand Sanitizer which uses a unique silver-zinc complex to coat the hands providing ongoing protection.  These are other examples of all-natural, biodegradable, non-alcohol and non-toxic (do not contain benzalkonium chloride or Triclosan) soaps that kill germs and do not harm you or the environment.  Check them out! — In peace and good health – Green Diva Jen

This is some special soap. From humble beginnings, Further Soap started as a by-product of biofuel and ended up as some pretty fancy, healthy and sustainable soap.

Marshall Dostal swept Megan off her feet, by riding his bike over 80 blocks in Manhattan for their first date. Before long, the created a life that included their own chickens and a biofuel workshop in the garage for their vintage diesel Mercedes.

After moving to Los Angeles, where driving is not really optional, Marshall taught himself to make biofuel from waste grease he gathered from local restaurants. As it turns out, glycerin is a by-product of biofuel distillation process. Not ones to waste anything, they got creative. 

Hence, Further Soap was born.

The scent was the first thing that grabbed me. They developed a signature scent made from essential oils of bergamot, olive, and exotic grasses. yum.

This soap is biodegradable and of course is never tested on animals. With a remarkable life cycle – consider that it came from restaurant kitchen waste grease that was headed for god knows where – this is soap to feel great about.

Not cheap, but worth a try.

eat. blog. be merry!
GD Meg