Soap 🚫 Toxic Ingredients in Body Soaps: An Overlooked Health Risk Most people think of the skin as a shield — something that protects us from the outside world. In reality, the skin is highly absorptive. Research shows that up to 60% of what you apply to your skin can be absorbed into the bloodstream , and roughly 30% of metabolic waste is meant to exit through the skin . That makes skin care and body care products far more than cosmetic choices — they are biological inputs.