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From: linden@positive.eng.sun.com (Peter van der Linden)
Newsgroups: alt.folklore.urban
Subject: Head-So-Soft: a mystery explained.
Date: 21 Jun 1994 18:43:10 GMT

Some questions have arisen concerning the efficacy of the Avon cosmetic "Skin So Soft" in repelling insects. I pointed out that a Consumer Reports test in July 1993 concluded it was essentially useless for this.

People are asking "how then can it be advertised for this?"

A good question! Indeed, a question so good, that I decided to pose it myself to the Avon consumer products hotline, at 1-800 367-2866. I spoke to agent "Buffy", and she gave me this information:

1. Skin So Soft is not one product, but a family of moisturizers
2. Avon gets a lot of enquiries from the clueless, about using SSS lotions as bug repellents
3. Avon finally got a clue, and formulated a new SSS product within the last two months. This contains sunscreen, and...
4. Insect repellent! Yay!
5. It has been tested and approved by the FDA as a bug repellent and so can be advertised as such.

However, the new SSS lotion uses oil of citronella as the active ingredient, rather than, as Buffy quaintly put it "chemicals". So I assume that, like the earlier formulation, it will be essentially uneffective against insects. It is only the repellents containing DEET (a known carcinogen) that appears efficacious. If Consumer Reports were to repeat their experiment with the new formula, I predict that they would get similar results.

Note, to tie in with the other thread about how science is done, if they repeated the experiment and it showed that SSS *was* effective, then I would change my view. But it is emphatically *not* science, for me to say "let's settle the matter by going looking for things that show SSS is not effective."

I think this clears a few things up, like the breakfast dishes and that strange rash on your hindquarters, and good luck to Avon for listening to what their customers asked for!

Peter