Posted by red on March 1st, 2005 in Articles

Continued from Part 1 – Greasy Lubricants

Section 2 – Water Based Lubes.

Water based lubes are a completely different beast from oil based lubes. The slipperiness from water based lubes is based on the presence of water. As the lube dries, the slipperiness dwindles. Addition of more water will essentially recharge the lube, whereas oily lubes just dissipate and need to be reapplied when they die out.

The formula is the same however:

Slippery Stuff + Thickeners + “Style” Stuff = Lube

Slippery Stuff = Humectants

Water based lubes are chalk full of compounds which act as humectants. Simply said, they mix will water and form a slippery gel. Think of water based lubes as very thin gelatin – they stop the water from evaporating by catching it up in a gel.

The main ingredient in water-based lubes is in many cases, glycerin. Glycerin is a small molecule that can be thought of as half of a sugar molecule (sugar in this case technically being something like fruit sugar, fructose, and not your table sugar, sucrose). When sugar mixes with water, you get a syrup, right? When you taste sugar syrup, it tastes sweet, right? Glycerin has the same properties – it tastes sweet like an artificial sweetener, and it gets very, very sticky – like sugar syrup – when it is in a concentrated syrup. Glycerin additionally, however, has the ability to “hold onto” even more water than sugar can – making it a slippery gel like substance when dissolved in sufficient liquid (you know, that snotty, slippery texture of astroglide). This is a good place to note that it is thought by some that glycerin can bring on yeast infections in those prone.

There are a number of different lube ingredients that basically work like glycerin.

· Glyceryl Polymethacrylate is a polymer of glycerin. A polymer is just a bunch glycerin molecules attached together. Due to the increased size, it makes a thicker gel than glycerin would.

· Ethoxydiglycol is again very similar to glycerin in structure, but it is not sticky and does not “hold onto” water that well. It produces a thinner lube. Glucano delta lactone is similar.

Some water based contain no glycerin, and avoid that nasty stickyness problem. Propylene Glycol is very similar structurally to glycerin; to the layperson they would seem pretty much the same. However, because of a small change in the molecular structure from glycerin, its lube properties are a bit different. Propylene glycol has less ability to “hold onto” water as compared to glycerin; it is also, essentially, not sticky. Additionally, it is not really sweet as it no longer really “looks” like half a sugar. Because it doesn’t hold onto water quite as well, lubes based on propylene glycol undoubtedly contain thickening agents, and do dry out faster than glycerin-based lubes. But there’s no stickiness when they do dry out…

· Polyethylene oxide is a long chain made of many propylene glycol molecules linked together. It makes for a ticker lube than propylene glycol.

· PEG-45M is essentially the same as polyethylene oxide.

· Hydroxyethylcellulose is different from glycerin. Cellulose (the last part of the name) what makes trees and plants fibrous. Hydroxyethylcellulose is refined cellulose that has been broken down somewhat and chemically modified. The end resultant is a product that functions like glycerin – it holds onto water and forms a gel. Hydroxyethylcellulose acts to thin out lubricants; it is interestingly the main ingredient in most eye drops.

· Hydroxypropylcellulose is essentially the same as hydroxyethylcellulose.

· Panthenol is pro-vitamin B5. It holds onto water reasonably well, but it would definitely act to thin out a lubricant. Its presence on a list of ingredients is more a style thing.

Thickeners

Now that you’re familiar with the concepts behind the slippery water based lube ingredients, you can probably appreciate that thickeners are a must in many different formulations. Some use waxy fatty acids like cetearyl alcohol that have the ability to form an emulsion when mixed with water. And emulsion certainly thickens the mix – think of it as adding a tablespoon full of mustard to a couple of cups of oil and vinegar. That thick foamy like salad dressing that forms upon whisking is called an emulsion. Sorbitan Searate, PEG 32 and PEG 8 also play the same sort of role.

Other thickeners include Cellulose polymerase, which also acts to give the mix a “white look” (as opposed to clear) and Guar Hydroxypropyltrimonium Chloride, which sounds scary, but is totally non-toxic and barely different from Guar gum, a natural thickener.

Style Stuff

Water based lubes fall prey to the whims of the cosmetic industry. One says hemp seed oil is a must, others, grapefruit seed oil. Natural vanilla, aloe vera, seaweed extract �?? what does it all mean?

That, my friends, is beyond the scope that I am willing to research. I’d hate to put forth untrue claims from the lube company, and there’s so much variety in the special ingredients listed in various water-based lubes, that it would be a giant endeavor to properly categorize them. Suffice to say, just because there’s a huge list of natural ingredients, doesn’t mean the lube is so great. There is such a thing as overkill, and that applies to plant extracts as well as preservatives.

Preservatives

Speaking of which, the same list applies as the one I listed in Part 1. Preservatives are a MUST in water-based lubes. Don’t kid yourself – you don’t want anything living in your lube; you’re smearing that stuff into very intimate places. And unfortunately, those slippery ingredients are really similar to sugars, which bacteria and fungus love to eat. Never use lube that looks like it has changed consistency or has developed a color or smell. Common sense really.

That said, there is such a thing as too much – do not use lubes, such as anal ease, that contain Benzocain. Benzocain is a topical anesthetic; it numbs you. Why anyone thinks that is a good idea is beyond me. If it hurts, you’re doing it wrong.

· Benzyl Alcohol

· Disodium EDTA

· Tetrasodium EDTA

· BHT

· Butyl Paraben

· Chlorhexidine Gluconate

· Citric Acid

· Diazolindyl Urea

· DMDM hydantoin

· Ethyl Paraben

· Imidazolinidyl Urea

· Methylchloroisothialinone

· Methylisothiazolinone

· Methyl Paraben

· Phenoxyethanol

· Potassium Sorbate

· Propyl Paraben

· Sodium Benzoate

· Sodium Hydroxide

Continued shortly in Part 3- Silicone Lubricants