We are independent & ad-supported. We may earn a commission for purchases made through our links.
Advertiser Disclosure
Our website is an independent, advertising-supported platform. We provide our content free of charge to our readers, and to keep it that way, we rely on revenue generated through advertisements and affiliate partnerships. This means that when you click on certain links on our site and make a purchase, we may earn a commission. Learn more.
How We Make Money
We sustain our operations through affiliate commissions and advertising. If you click on an affiliate link and make a purchase, we may receive a commission from the merchant at no additional cost to you. We also display advertisements on our website, which help generate revenue to support our work and keep our content free for readers. Our editorial team operates independently of our advertising and affiliate partnerships to ensure that our content remains unbiased and focused on providing you with the best information and recommendations based on thorough research and honest evaluations. To remain transparent, we’ve provided a list of our current affiliate partners here.
Beauty

Our Promise to you

Founded in 2002, our company has been a trusted resource for readers seeking informative and engaging content. Our dedication to quality remains unwavering—and will never change. We follow a strict editorial policy, ensuring that our content is authored by highly qualified professionals and edited by subject matter experts. This guarantees that everything we publish is objective, accurate, and trustworthy.

Over the years, we've refined our approach to cover a wide range of topics, providing readers with reliable and practical advice to enhance their knowledge and skills. That's why millions of readers turn to us each year. Join us in celebrating the joy of learning, guided by standards you can trust.

What is a Natural Body Scrub?

Tricia Christensen
By
Updated: May 17, 2024
Views: 5,493
Share

A body scrub is a product used to scrub the skin, usually distinguished from facial scrubs, which tend to be a little gentler. Scrubbing tends to imply products harsh enough to encourage exfoliation or sloughing away of dead skin cells. Natural is a term in dispute depending on the regional agency that regulates it, but in places like the US it tends to mean that it's absent of dyes or chemically produced ingredients with minimal processing. Thus natural body scrub is an exfoliative scrub for the skin that may lack certain chemicals or dyes.

Within that definition there are many natural body scrub types on the market. Many of them rely on familiar substances such as sugar, sea salt and even chocolate. Each of these ingredients do have properties that can help exfoliate the skin, and a number of them are tempting due to their appealing scents that make showering or bathing pleasurable.

While exfoliation is often a good thing, it can still be too rough on very sensitive skin, and even without many chemicals, some people may have skin reactions to different products in scrubs. Those with sensitive skin should definitely look for scrubs that are advertised specifically for them, or that are approved for all skin types. People with known allergies should read labels, and search for body scrubs that have very few ingredients and that especially don’t contain any ingredients that might cause skin reaction. Second, those with allergic reactions should probably test a product on a small area of the skin before coating the self from neck to feet in it. Lastly, most people should not exfoliate the legs after shaving since this may cause rash.

Another thing people can do to get a great natural body scrub while exercising control over ingredients is to make one at home. There are many online recipes for these and people may also find suggestions in women’s magazines or in books. Since a lot of these scrubs are food based, storage of the natural body scrub does need to be considered. It might be necessary to make only enough for each use, to refrigerate in between showers, or to discard after a few weeks.

There’s a lot of question about whether people should use a cleansing agent after using a natural body scrub. This can depend on the scrub, but often it’s not a bad idea to use a light soap, particularly if the body has just been coated in food ingredients. It should be noted there are arguments on this. A lot of scrubs do utilize some degree of oil though, so people should be heedful when they walk in the shower, and they may want to wash off this excess oil too.

A popular word in skincare is exfoliation. Getting rid of dead skin helps accomplish this, and may have an anti-aging effect. While exfoliation is important, a natural body scrub alone may not be enough, and people will need to consider daily moisturizer and a good sunscreen to create the healthiest appearing skin.

Share
WiseGeek is dedicated to providing accurate and trustworthy information. We carefully select reputable sources and employ a rigorous fact-checking process to maintain the highest standards. To learn more about our commitment to accuracy, read our editorial process.
Tricia Christensen
By Tricia Christensen
With a Literature degree from Sonoma State University and years of experience as a WiseGeek contributor, Tricia Christensen is based in Northern California and brings a wealth of knowledge and passion to her writing. Her wide-ranging interests include reading, writing, medicine, art, film, history, politics, ethics, and religion, all of which she incorporates into her informative articles. Tricia is currently working on her first novel.

Editors' Picks

Discussion Comments
By anon200096 — On Jul 25, 2011

This is an excellent article. A great body scrub is Mikios Natural Body Scrub. It leaves your body smooth, soft, and beautiful. It is gentle enough for the face (yes, this is true). It is excellent for dry skin because of the olive oil that is used in the product. Thanks for posting this excellent information for readers.

Tricia Christensen
Tricia Christensen
With a Literature degree from Sonoma State University and years of experience as a WiseGeek contributor, Tricia...
Learn more
Share
https://www.wisegeek.net/what-is-a-natural-body-scrub.htm
Copy this link
WiseGeek, in your inbox

Our latest articles, guides, and more, delivered daily.

WiseGeek, in your inbox

Our latest articles, guides, and more, delivered daily.