Burt’s Bees Body Wash: It Bees Purty Good

Got me some skin issues.  The older I get, the harder it is for me to find soap or body wash that doesn’t dry me up, break me out, cause me to get all itchy, or all three.  And unfortunately, my 3-year-old has inherited this problem from me, and it’s manifesting itself pretty early, because she itches too. 

So I’ve once again been on the prowl for a soap we both can use and not want to climb directly out of the tub or shower and start begging someone to please rub us down with our hairbrushes. 

I just wanna feel clean.  That’s all.  Just clean.  Is that so wrong?

And I’ve been seeing more and more information about phthalates and the potential harm they can do to young children and unborn babies, so while I was searching for a new body wash, I decided I’d make sure I got one that was all natural and didn’t contain them. 

I don’t know about y’all, but I’m seriously not interested in having either of my two kids go through puberty any earlier than they have to, and certainly not because I washed them with the wrong thing when they were little.  I’ve been through one puberty and it’s still fresh enough in my mind that I’m in no rush to go through another one any time soon, even as a bystander.  So, no phthalates for us, thankyouverymuch. 

So I did a little research on phthalate-free products and discovered Burt’s Bees ® whole line is phthalate-free and apparently always has been.  So I picked up a somewhat-pricey-for-a-bottle-of-body-wash Burt’s Bees Citrus & Ginger Root Body Wash about two weeks ago so Bean and I could give it a whirl.  The body wash comes in other scents, too, but I liked the clean fragrance of the citrus and ginger together and knew it’d make my snootily pregnant and picky (not like I PICK it, picky, but CHOOSY picky) nose happy while it was hopefully making my skin happy too.

I looked at the label and saw some -yls and -ides and immediately became incensed and huffy about this so-called natural product (grumble grumble), but was humbly put in my place when I read on to determine that those icky-sounding ingredients were basically coconut oil, cornstarch and sugar.  Well, okay then. 

There’s a bounty, an outright full HARVEST of other oils, too, from the mundane, like sunflower oil, all the way to something called litsea cubeba oil.  By the end of the label, I was beginning to think ol’ Burt was just showin’ off, stuffing all those oils in one little body wash.  But you know me.  I am a sucker for anything that might convince me even for a minute that I’m at the spa.  So I bit.

We’ve been washing with the Burt’s Bees ® Body Wash now for going on two weeks.  It smells super yummy, although not so good I want to eat it, like I do Burt’s Foot Creme.  It lathers nicely enough for me, though I must say the lather is not particularly rich or thick or creamy – it’s more like the lather of a dish washing soap than that of a really luxurious body wash.  But I don’t really care about that.  A small amount of it lathers plenty, and does so easily.  It’s fine in that department.  And it rinses away clean and leaves my skin residue-free.  Not dry or tight.  Bean likes it and hasn’t complained quite as often about itching.  In fact as the two weeks have worn on she’s said less and less about itching.   Me?  I still itch, so I reckon that may just be my cross to bear. 

Overall, I’m happy to have found a product that has a nice, fresh, but not overwhelming scent, leaves me clean and soft, and doesn’t contain any chemicals that may be harmful to my little pea-in-the-pod or my sweet Bean.  I wish it were a little less pricey – I think it was a little under $8 for 12 ounces – and I may still look for a less expensive alternative, but I’m finding Burt’s Bees ® line of products to be worth the hype so far.  I’ll be reviewing one more product next week, and if that one gets a thumbs up, Burt’s gonna have himself a nice trifecta going, and he may just earn himself a little slice of brand loyalty in my household.