How Activated Charcoal Soap Helps Your Skin

If you’re asked to think of a perfect pair, you’d likely say ice-cream and jelly, Batman and Robin, or shoes and socks. What you are less likely to think of is the unusual pairing of charcoal and soap. But activated charcoal soap, with its superior deep cleansing properties, might be exactly what your skincare routine needs.

Activated charcoal is one of the latest ingredients to find its way into beauty and skincare products (think skin cleansers, face masks, pore strips, soap bars and even shampoos) but the black powder that’s used in a variety of ways, is no recent discovery. Activated charcoal was used by ancient Egyptians to cure intestinal illnesses, the ancient Greeks used it to cure food poisoning and the ancient Hindus used activated charcoal to purify water, thanks to its antifungal and antiseptic properties.

What it is not, is the stuff you use to make a braai. Activated charcoal is made by heating a material like coal or wood to a very high temperature – far higher than that of ordinary charcoal - and then activating it with a gas. The resulting powder is extremely porous and therefore exceptionally absorbent. Just a tiny amount of activated charcoal can absorb thousands of times its weight in toxins. Today it is used in cleansers and soaps across the world, as well as medicinally, in wellness products, and to fight pollution

Activated charcoal is so effective where fast absorption is necessary that it is routinely used:

• To clean water that has been polluted by heavy metals or toxins
• In emergency situations when someone has overdosed. Activated charcoal stops the digestion of poisons and drugs into the bloodstream
• To treat diarrhoea
• As a deodorant
• To help draw micro-particles like dirt or toxins to the skin’s surface, allowing for easy removal

Activated charcoal traps and clears toxins from the body, which is likely why it has become a trend in skincare. It acts like a magnet, attracting the dirt and oil that blocks pores resulting in pimples, dark spots, and blemishes. Activated charcoal soaps deep cleanse your skin, leaving it oil-free and clear.

Activated charcoal used as an ingredient in a skincare product is good for:

• treating oily skin
• removing dead skin cells
• clearing skin blemishes
• reducing pore size
• inhibiting skin disorders like eczema

Activated charcoal is the key ingredient in Lifebuoy’s Activated Charcoal and Mint soap. This new addition to the Lifebuoy soap range not only deep cleanses and detoxifies your skin, but fights the germs that cause blemishes and spots. It also contains hydrating ingredients which moisturise the skin, leaving it feeling soft and healthy. Altogether Lifebuoy’s Activated Charcoal and Mint Soap offers a superior deep cleanse, leaving your skin looking more even-toned and clear.

Lifebuoy Activated Charcoal and Mint soap soothes, moisturises and protects with:

•  Mint oil, known for germ protection properties that cool the skin, leaving it feeling refreshed.
  
• Vegetable glycerine which hydrates the skin, leaving it feeling soft and healthy.
  
• Natural germ protection actives, offer 99.9% germ protection which can help in preventing blemishes and spots, leaving skin more even-toned.

Because activated charcoal also has exfoliating properties, it’s important that the bar you choose for daily use has hydrating ingredients. Lifebuoy Activated Charcoal and Mint soap contains high levels of moisturising vegetable glycerine which allows you to safely use it every day, in the same way you would any other bar of soap.

Moderate exercise is an excellent way to support your immune system. Popular guidance says to aim for 30 minutes per day, five days per week but any opportunity to move your body, at your own pace, is a positive step. Include a mix of cardio and strength training exercises. If you are not a gym fan, there are many other ways to get active. Other than taking part in sports, a hike in nature, a bicycle ride, a daily stroll or jog around your suburb are all activities that will benefit you.

Although activated charcoal soap has no known side effects, it’s always a good idea to test a little on your inner arm to check for any possible sensitivity.

When you use any of Lifebuoy’s germ protection soaps, you have the added assurance that it has been tested and is proven effective by an internationally accredited laboratory against the SARS COV-2 Virus. Results from a study - published in Infection, Disease & Health, the official journal of the Australasian College for Infection Prevention and Control – prove it is over 99.9% effective against COVID-19.

• The physical nature and manufacture of activated carbon
• Charcoal is one of the most important substances ever discovered
• The History of Activated Charcoal 3750B.C. to 21st century