Products
Medicinal potash soap is available in pharmacies and drugstores. Specialty retailers can either make the soap themselves or purchase it from specialized suppliers.
Definition and properties
Potash soap is a soft soap consisting of a mixture of potassium salts of linseed oil fatty acids. It contains a minimum of 44 and a maximum of 48% fatty acids. It is a yellowish to brownish, soft, slippery mass that becomes translucent when standing. It has a characteristic odor reminiscent of linseed oil. Potash soap is soluble in two parts water and four parts ethanol 96%. The solutions foam when shaken. Alcoholic solutions are called potash soap spirit. What is the difference between potash soap and a soft soap? Soft soap (Sapo kalinus venalis, Sapo viridis, Green soap) is the general name for a liquid or semi-solid soap obtained by saponification with potassium hydroxide usually from a vegetable oil. Potash soap PH is a special and high quality soft soap defined by the pharmacopoeia and used medicinally.
Production
Potash soap is prepared according to the prescription in Pharmacopoea Helvetica with linseed oil, potassium hydroxide, ethanol and purified water and water free of carbon dioxide. The linseed oil is saponified with the potassium hydroxide solution under heating until no more oil droplets are visible.
Effects
Potassium soap (ATC D02A) has cleansing, irritating, lubricating, emollient, crust dissolving, antiparasitic, and conditioning properties.
Indications for use
Potash soap is mainly used for local medicinal baths for example to soften abscesses, to dissolve crusts in a psoriasis and for injuries and wounds. In the garden, the aqueous solution is used against lice and other insects, and in the household soft soap serves as a versatile cleaning agent.
Undesirable effects
The drug may irritate the skin and mucous membranes.
