Add it Up: A formula for choosing body wash
Apr 14 '01
The Bottom Line Consider your three main factors: scent, cleaning power, and moisture, then think about the extras.
There are three main factors that you need to consider in your body wash: scent, cleaning power, and moisturizing power.
SCENT
For many the first and only factor when deciding which body wash to buy is the scent. A lot of people buy a fragrance gift set that includes a body wash and choose to "layer" their signature fragrance by using many products with that fragrance. If that's your perogative, go for it, but be aware that this often means sacraficing the two other factors. Body washes formulated espeically to smell like a fragrance often focus on just that, leaving out the power to clean very well or moisturize the skin. Body washes that focus too much on fragrance often don't do much for your skin.
CLEANING POWER
If you get covered in mud every day you need to choose a straight-up soap lever 2000 style body wash. For everyone else a simple fragranced body wash will probably do. Be aware of how "clean" you like to feel. Some people are not satisfied until they can feel a tingly, squeaky clean all over their body. Some just want a light foam that rinses off whatever little bit of sweat or grime has gotten on them that day. Most people are a medium between these two. If a body wash claims to be extra-moisturizing it usually means it will leave a residue and not leave you with much of a "clean" fealing. Very cleansing formulas often have a more soapy as opposed to fomany lather, and leave no residue.
MOISTURE
This one is the easiest to determine, it's fairly obvious to most people wether they have dry skin or not. If your skin feels itchy, flaky, and well . . . dry, it probably is! If you have normal skin you can go with a formula that is moisturizing or not, whichever you prefer. As was stated before, cleansing and moisturizing often have an inverse relationship, meaning that when one goes up the other goes down. Moisturizing formulas usually have a thick creamy lather, and leave a bit of residue.
EXTRAS
There are countless extras that companies have thrown into body washes. Some of these extras include skin firming formulas, skin rejuvinating formulas, body washes that exfoliate a bit, and extra lather to name a few. A body wash can contain one or many of these "extras", though as a general rule of thumb for ANY product, you should be leery of any "miracle-in-a-bottle" that claims to do anything and everything.
ADD IT UP
The way to choose the best body wash for you is to decide to what degree each of these factors is important to you. Almost everyone buys a body wash that smells pleasing to them, but is it important for you to have a body wash that is a matching fragrance to your favorite perfume? Do you need a body wash that moisturizes but cleanses well at the same time? Then consider body washes that are moisturizing but don't say that they are for very dry skin. Also combine these 3 factors with any extras you might desire. Keep in mind that it may be neccesary for you to have a different body wash depending on the season, as some people's skin has different needs at different times of the year.
DON'T EXPECT TOO MUCH
Most people can't find a body wash that matches PERFECTLY the exact level of all these factors that you desire, along with every extra that they want for the right price. Keep trying things until you find something that you love, and above all don't expect a miracle in a bottle. when you find a body wash that you love and works well for you, consider it a keeper despite the fact that it may not match exactly the "perfect body wash" criteria that you had in your head. However keep your "perfect body wash" ideal in your head when you are shopping for a new one, or you may end up with an impulse buy that you could have known would be bad for you if only you'd done a bit of thinking at the store.
RECCOMENDATIONS FOR EACH CATEGORY:
Scent: this one is very objective of course, but bath and body works, the body shop, and garden botanika all have a wide selection of scented body wash.
Cleansing: lever 2000
Moisture: for dry skin try nuetrogena rainbath or biotherm eau vitaminee
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