Whats the difference between oil-based and water-based lubricants?
The only lubricant you should use with latex condoms is water-based lubricant. Oil-based products such as Vaseline, mineral oil, baby oil, vegetable oil, cold creams and most hand creams have oil in them that degrades and weakens latex. Mineral oil, a common ingredient of hand lotions, can cause a 90% decrease in condom strength after as little as 60 seconds of exposure, dramatically increasing the chance of leakage or breakage. Water-based lubricants such as Astroglide, KY, Probe, and Wet have no oil and don’t react with latex. An easy way to tell the two apart is that oil-based lubricants bead water and are difficult to wash off. Water-based lubricants rinse off easily in plain water. If you’re not sure, read the label. If you’re still not sure, don’t use it as a lubricant with latex.
