Are you sensitive to scents?  May is MCS Awareness Month.  MCS stands for Multiple Chemical Sensitivity, a disorder that affects one in 4 Americans, according to a recent study.  So, if you are sensitive to scents, you are not alone.  Fragrance sensitivity is on the rise, and so are fragrances used in many marketing campaigns.  How do you know if you are sensitive to scents?

• You walk by the candle shop at the mall and suddenly get a headache.
• You’re in a close environment (elevator, public transportation) and someone’s cologne or after shave sends you into a sneezing fit
• The soap in your company’s washroom makes your hands break out in a rash
• Passing the fragrance counter in a department store makes you sick to your stomach
• Magazines with scented flyers make you dizzy

If this sounds like you, or someone in your household, here are 3 things you can do today to reduce or eliminate your symptoms.

Steps You Can Take Today

• Read the labels of your household and personal care products.  Start by getting rid of anything with an artificial scent.  If symptoms persist, get rid of anything scented.
• When buying products, especially personal care products, look for ones that are chemical and scent free.
• Keep a travel size bottle of liquid unscented chemical free soap with you and avoid using soaps in public washrooms.

Read Your Labels

If your sensitivity goes beyond scented products, it could be caused by chemicals that are commonly used in personal care and cleaning products.  You will be shocked at the lengthy list of chemicals you are exposed to once you get in the habit of reading labels.  Rule of thumb – if you can’t pronounce it, question it!  Here are 3 common (and unnecessary) chemicals found in many personal care and cleaning products:

• Sodium Lauryl Sulfate is a detergent added to create a rich lather or bubbles.  This might look appealing but it does nothing to aid cleaning.  Detergent strips the skin of protective natural oils.  Who wants that?
• Triclosan is an antibacterial additive.  Recent studies show it may cause bacteria resistant to antibacterial agents to thrive.  Natural soap is antibacterial.  It’s been used for centuries as first aid to clean wounds.
• Parabens are preservatives.  They are chemicals that mimic estrogens.  If they get into the bloodstream, they could disrupt normal hormonal balance and cause health problems.

Your Best Defense

The best way to protect yourself from chemical and/or scent sensitivity is knowledge of what you are buying or using.  Penns Hill Organic Soap Company is committed to making soap products that are pure, clean and natural.  You will find unscented liquid and bar soap that is made from 2 ingredients – saponified certified organic extra virgin olive oil and water.  It can’t get much simpler!

To honor MCS Awareness Month, all our unscented products are 10% off!  The discount will apply to unscented liquid soap, unscented bar soap and unscented bar soap made with organic oats.  Use the coupon MCSAWARE in your shopping cart!

Are Parabens Really Bad?

Why Organic?
We get asked if we think a product has to be organic to be good.  When we got into the soap business, we decided as a company to use organic ingredients.  In our opinion, organic ingredients align with our mission of producing high quality products that are good for the environment and good for the consumer.  As we traveled down the entrepreneur path, we realized there is a demand for handmade soap made with organic oils.  We were overwhelmed (and surprised) by the popularity of our handmade organic unscented soaps.  People are looking to make their personal environment as pure, clean and natural as possible. Detergent free soap isn’t enough. Now scent-free non-toxic products are in demand.

So, as long as you keep wanting them, we will keep making them.  We don’t just make castile soap, we make castile soap better!