What body safe actually means

Body safe is the phrase this whole category leans on, and it is used loosely enough to be worth pinning down. It is not a certification and nobody awards it. It describes one property, and once you know which property it is you can tell in a few seconds whether a product page is being straight with you.

The property is non porous

A porous material has microscopic openings in its surface. They are far too small to see, and they are large enough to hold moisture and bacteria that washing does not reach. That is the whole problem. A porous item cannot be fully cleaned, only cleaned on the outside, so it degrades with use and there is no amount of care that fixes it.

A non porous material has no such openings. What is on the surface stays on the surface, which means washing genuinely removes it. That is why the same four materials come up again and again, and why we will name the material on any product where it matters.

The four you will see here

Body safe silicone. Soft, slightly grippy, warms to the touch. The usual choice for anything flexible. Firmness varies a great deal between products, so a silicone item is not one thing.

Borosilicate glass. Hard, smooth, and much stronger than ordinary glass, which is why it is used rather than the glass in your kitchen. It holds temperature, so it can be warmed or cooled in water before use. Check it for chips before each use and stop using it if you find one.

Stainless steel. Heavy, entirely rigid, and the easiest of the four to clean. The weight is the point for some people and the reason others do not get on with it.

ABS plastic. Hard and smooth, common in handles, casings and the working parts of vibrators. Perfectly good where a rigid surface is what is wanted.

What a vague description usually means

If a page will not tell you what something is made of, assume there is a reason. Jelly, rubber, and anything sold as a blend are usually porous. So is TPE and TPR, which are elastomers rather than silicone despite feeling similar, and which are common because they are cheap. Some of these carry a softener that gives them a distinct smell, and a strong chemical smell out of the packet is worth taking seriously.

None of that makes a product illegal to sell, and plenty of it is sold. It does mean the item has a short life and cannot be shared, and it should be priced accordingly rather than described in a way that avoids the subject.

Lubricant, which is where most damage happens

Water based lubricant is safe with everything we sell. It is the answer when you are not sure.

Silicone based lubricant can degrade a silicone surface over time, leaving it tacky or pitted, so keep those two apart unless the maker specifically says otherwise. Silicone lubricant is fine on glass and steel.

Oil based lubricant damages latex condoms. If a condom is involved, oil is out.

Cleaning, and storing

Follow the instructions that came with the product first, because they beat any general rule including this one. As a rule, warm water and a mild unscented soap suits silicone, glass and steel. Rinse properly, because residue left on a surface is the thing you will feel next time.

Let everything dry fully before it goes away, and store pieces apart from each other rather than loose in a drawer where they touch. Two silicone items pressed together for months can mark each other. Do not boil anything and do not put it in a dishwasher unless the maker says you can, and never put anything with a motor or a charging port in water unless it is rated for it.

The short version

Ask what it is made of. If the answer is silicone, glass, steel or ABS, it can be cleaned properly and it will last. If there is no answer on the page, that is the answer.