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Episode 31: The Lowdown on Lube

Joy Noble • February 27, 2024

Welcome to Pints & Pelvic Floors: The Podcast. In Episode 31, I took a deep dive into the different types of personal lubricants and how to pick the right one for you based on how you plan to use it.

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The different types of personal lubricants:

  • Water-based
  • Pros: great for sensitive skin; safe with dilators, wands & sex toys; easy to clean and does not stain the sheets/couch/etc; safe to use with condoms
  • Cons: not great for water play; need to reapply due to it being absorbed quickly
  • Silicone-based
  • Pros: long lasting making it ideal for marathon sex; able to last in water (shower, pool, etc); hypoallergenic; safe to use with condoms
  • Cons: can damage silicone-based toys and dilators as it will break down the material over time creating places for bacteria to hide
  • Oil-based
  • Pros: longer lasting; can use with silicone based toys and tools
  • Cons: will stain the sheets/couch/etc.; can trap bacteria so you need to be sure to clean them well; can cause damage to the latex in condoms making them more likely to break
  • Other considerations
  • Additives to avoid: flavored, edible, sensitizing, and numbing lubricants
  • Household products not to use as lube: baby oil, mineral oil, vaseline or petroleum jelly products, vegetable or canola oil, essential oils, or lotion
  • With water-based products it is important to consider pH and osmolality
  • pH: ideally use a product with a pH around 4.5 for vaginal use and 5.5 to 7 for anal use
  • Osmolality: this means how much one substance is dissolved into another water-based substance. In this case, if a lube has an osmolality that is too high it will draw water from your vaginal or anal tissue creating itchy or irritated feeling in the skin. 
  • The World Health Organization (WHO) recommends lube with an osmolality of less than 1200 mOsm/kg. 
  • KY Jelly - O: 2007, pH: 4.55 (that osmolality is too high!)
  • Slippery Stuff - O: 26, pH: 6.8
  • Good Clean Love Almost Naked - O: 282, pH: 4.5
  • Good Clean Love BioNude - O: 276, pH: 4.4
  • Sliquid H2O - O: 144, pH: 4.2
  • Some Pelvic Pride favorites:
  • Silicone: Uberlube (no parabens, glycerine, or flavors) and you can use if for chafe protection too
  • Water: Slippery Stuff (no parabens, glycerin, or flavor) or Good Clean Love Almost Naked (no parabens or glycerin), vegan and gluten free - use PELVICPRIDE20 for 20% off

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