This is the place to ask beginner and simple questions. Some examples include:

  • Soap, scent, or gear recommendations
  • Favorite scents, bases, etc
  • Where to buy certain items
  • Identification of a razor you just bought
  • Troubleshooting shaving issues such as cuts, poor lather, and technique

Please note these are examples and any questions for the sub should be posted here.

  • iamsms@sub.wetshaving.social
    0·
    1 year ago

    EDIT - link to post downstream with links and such

    Alum does a thing called Vasoconstriction (google or ask your doctor what it is) that a splash or balm doesn’t. It repairs/closes the small cuts (even invisible ones) we get from shaving. Alcohol or which hazel aren’t as good a vasoconstrictor as alum is.

    Do you need it? Depends. It is all about how much you want to treat your face - even aftershave isn’t mandatory. You can skip the tylenol if you have a little fever - does it mean tylenol doesn’t do anything? No.

    But you guys really should look up this a bit before saying alum doesn’t do anything, we are at the point of spreading misinformation here.

      • iamsms@sub.wetshaving.social
        0·
        1 year ago

        the links I can give you are the ones can be found on google (alum + vasoconstriction). Better to talk to some folks on the sub like u/rdthedo and such who are actual doctors, and my original source.

        • gfdoto@sub.wetshaving.social
          0·
          1 year ago

          I googled and I couldn’t find anything that relevant. I just don’t think it’s fair to say people are spreading misinformation when what you said isn’t backed by scientific data either. It’s not good enough for me to hear, “Oh, a doctor told me this so it must be true”. I’ve never heard of alum blocks being used in a medical setting and Google isn’t turning up any results either. To me this is the same as the videos going around at the beginning of COVID where a doctor put out YouTube videos telling people how to disinfect all their groceries and he was called out by a actual food microbiologist for spreading misinformation.

          I’m in the camp of alum doesn’t do much for me (and yes, I have Osma), but I’m happy to be proven otherwise. So far everything I’ve seen has been anecdotal. It might have some effect at stopping minor bleeding, but in my experience it doesn’t work as well as styptic. To me, alum is just one of those things that you try and you use if you like the way it feels, don’t use it if you don’t like it or if it irritates your skin. Definitely don’t use it just because someone tells you it’s great.