Although hygiene is the basis of a healthy life, not everywhere it is possible to use its basic elements and, for this reason, biodegradable disposable soap was born. Designed in bamboo fibers, the same is in fact dedicated to those who do not have water.
Too often we forget that everything we have is actually a privilege that not everyone is allowed. It is enough to think that, cwhat can be normal for us and which is part of the daily routine, from other parts of the world it is a privilege for a few.
The same wash, a gesture that we perform several times in a day and which allows us to have good personal hygiene, but also of the house, it is not a foregone conclusion. In the Global South, the absence of waterprevents this so common and natural practice, also essential for health.
Thus was born the first biodegradable disposable soapa discovery of the researchers at Imperial College London arrived after several searches in Tarzania. The goal is in fact to provide a solution to those who do not have access to a water supply.
Biodegradable disposable soap: the origin of the discovery
The discovery came after a long time research period carried out by scientists in a small town in Tanzania since 2020. During this period they found that sonly 13% of households had access to water, or in any case to facilities that allow hand washing. They therefore involved some families from the regions of Morogoro and Dar es Salaam.
In these places there is no private water attachment or traditional water pipes. For this reason the residents they had to go to the wells to collect water or pay for delivery, which they can’t always afford to do. It is precisely from these bases that the researchers therefore thought of starting for design a new hand washing system. The solution not only had to be practical, but also easy to accept.
Since it is in fact a purely Western product, soap was not well accepted, in fact it was seen as something “contaminated” precisely due to its characteristic of coming into contact with something dirty. Hence the idea of inventing one disposable and biodegradable solution that could meet the needs of the people to whom it is addressed e increase the level of hygiene by simple hand washing.
Lots of prototypes
The presented disposable soap solution is called Tab Soap and it’s just about one of five prototypes that the researchers worked on. In fact, strengthened by the resistance encountered, but also by the needs that arise in the face of those who do not have water, they have taken various paths before finding the most suitable solution for the case.
The tablet is composed of fully biodegradable bamboo fabric and this allows, once used, to be thrown into any pit where it can decompose without polluting.
The goal that you want to achieve with Tab Soap biodegradable disposable soap is to improve living conditions and health of all those countries where access to water is still limited.