Allergen-Free Skincare – Gluten-Free Savonnerie

Before Christmas I wrote a blog post titled Why Am I Itchy? where I told the story of the rashes I had been having, and how I discovered (almost by accident) that the haircare products I had been using contained wheat.

After carefully scanning all labels, I discovered that almost all of the shampoos and conditioners in my bathroom, and many of the moisturizers, had wheat ingredients (or questionable ingredients at best). So it was time to start over, and I engaged on a quest to find great bath and haircare products.

I asked for help on Facebook and Twitter, and got a bunch of great suggestions to try. One of the most helpful responses was from Karen, founder of the site Avoiding Milk Protein and the Avoiding Milk blog. She pointed me to a terrific list of gluten-free (and in some cases allergen-free) non-food items (haircare, skincare, toothpaste, etc.)

I honestly had never thought about whether there were food allergens in my toothpaste, did you?

The first brand I tried was Gluten-Free Savonnerie. I have been using it for a little over a week. The products have no gluten, casein, soy, corn, fragrances, or colorants. In fact, the ingredient list is very short and readable, a very good sign.

The good news is… (drumroll)… my rashes have almost completely cleared, and I am no longer feeling constantly itchy. Yeah!

But I’m sure you want to know how the products work, and my response is that I am really pleased with them. My hair is clean and shinier than it's been with the fancy shampoos. I can get a comb through after conditioning (but not with just the shampoo). I would describe the shampoo and conditioner as very similar to what you would think of in a baby shampoo – light and mild. I’m used to thick conditioning products and find this one to be very runny – I presume that’s because they didn’t add any of the proteins that I might be allergic to, and that’s just fine with me! There is no scent that could cause an allergic reaction, also just fine with me!

The real surprise in the products I tried was the moisturizer. This goes on very light and absorbs quickly, but it really does the job. My hands were very dry (from all the baking and washing dishes over the holidays) and this took care of it in a jiffy! I even use this on my face, and it’s really terrific!

I also want to note (because customer service is sooooo important) that I had a small problem with my order which was fixed pronto!

I’ll keep you posted on more allergen-free skincare products as I try them over the next few months. If you have a suggestion for one to try, let me know!