Many people have heard about castile soap, which is a fat-based soap made from olive oil or other vegetable oils. It has been around for centuries and is often used as a gentle cleanser for sensitive skin. Some people also use it as a shampoo, body wash, and to make homemade cleaning solutions. The most common question we get from people that are new to real soap is: Is your soap tear free?

Due to the very definition of soap, the answer is a hard no. Most of the products that sits on store shelves isn't technically soap at all. Tear-free soaps are synthetic products marketed specifically for babies and toddlers.

To understand why castile soap isn't tear-free, first you need to understand the concept of pH. pH stands for “potential hydrogen” and is a measure of how acidic or alkaline something is on a scale of 0 to 14. A solution can be considered neutral if it has a pH of 7; any solution below 7 is considered acidic and anything above 7 is alkaline.

Real soap needs to have a pH higher than 8 in order to be considered soap.

Although castile soaps come with many benefits due to their natural ingredients, it's important for those who use them regularly (especially around the eyes) to remember that these products are not tear-free. One solution to is pour 1-2 tablespoons into the bath water and just wash baby from the water. This is more than enough soap to wash their hair and skin. A quick rinse and you're done!