You bought something you're going to put inside your body. Do you know what it's made of? Not what the listing says. What it's actually made of. Because there's a gap between the word "silicone" on a product page and what arrives in the box. And that gap can affect your health.

The Question You Didn't Know to Ask

Here's what most people do: search Amazon, filter by ratings, pick something that looks right, and add to cart. The listing says "silicone." The photos look clean. Good enough.

It's not good enough.

The word "silicone" on a product listing is legally meaningless. There is no regulatory body that certifies intimate products as "body-safe" before they hit the market. No FDA approval process. No mandatory testing. A manufacturer can blend silicone with fillers, plasticizers, or straight-up PVC, call it "medical-grade silicone," and sell it tomorrow. Nobody checks.

This isn't a scare tactic. It's the reality of an unregulated industry. The burden of knowing what you're putting in your body falls entirely on you.

Not All "Silicone" Is Silicone

Materials used in intimate products fall into a clear hierarchy. The differences aren't subtle.

Material	Porosity	Can You Sterilize It?	Contains Phthalates?	Lifespan
Platinum-cured silicone	Non-porous	Yes (boil, bleach, autoclave)	No	10+ years
Peroxide-cured silicone	Non-porous	Yes, but may degrade faster	No	5-8 years
TPE (thermoplastic elastomer)	Porous	No — bacteria embed permanently	Sometimes	1-2 years
PVC / "jelly"	Highly porous	No	Almost always	Months
Rubber / latex	Porous	No	Varies	1-3 years

The gap between platinum-cured silicone and everything else isn't incremental. It's categorical. Platinum-cured is non-porous, meaning bacteria cannot penetrate the surface. You can boil it. You can soak it in a 10% bleach solution. You can share it between partners after sterilization. You can't do any of that with TPE, PVC, or rubber. Those materials absorb bacteria into their structure permanently. Soap doesn't reach it. Nothing does.

And phthalates — the plasticizers used to make PVC and some TPE soft — are classified by the EPA as probable carcinogens. They leach out of the material over time, especially at body temperature, especially with friction. You can sometimes smell them. That "new toy" chemical odor? That's off-gassing. That's the material breaking down against your skin.

What "Platinum-Cured" Actually Means

Silicone doesn't start as silicone. It starts as two liquid components — a base and a catalyst — that crosslink into a solid rubber when mixed. The catalyst determines the chemistry.

Platinum-cured (also called addition-cure) uses a platinum catalyst. The reaction is clean. No byproducts. The finished material is inert, stable, and doesn't leach anything. This is the same chemistry used in medical implants, baby bottle nipples, and surgical tubing.

Peroxide-cured silicone uses organic peroxides as the catalyst. The reaction produces byproducts — typically acetic acid or alcohol — that need to be baked out in a post-cure process. Some manufacturers skip or shorten that step. If you've ever gotten a silicone product that smelled vinegary out of the box, that's likely a peroxide-cure that wasn't fully post-cured.

The practical difference: platinum-cured is what you want inside your body. Period. It's more expensive to produce, which is why cheaper brands don't use it. The raw material costs roughly 3x more than peroxide-cured and 10x more than TPE.

How to Verify Before You Buy

You can't tell platinum-cured from TPE by looking at a photo. You can't always tell by price either — some expensive products use cheap materials, and some reasonably priced indie makers use platinum-cured. Here's what actually works:

1. The flame test. Hold a lighter to a small area on the base of the product. Real silicone doesn't melt. It may ash white, but it won't drip, smoke black, or produce a chemical smell. TPE and PVC will melt, deform, and release an unmistakable chemical odor. Obviously, do this somewhere ventilated, and only on a product you already own.

2. Check for third-party certifications. Look for mentions of ISO 10993 (biocompatibility testing), USP Class VI, or FDA compliance on the product page. If the brand doesn't mention any testing standard — just "body-safe" or "medical-grade" with nothing behind it — that tells you something.

3. Ask the manufacturer directly. Send an email: "What catalyst system do you use for curing — platinum or peroxide?" A legitimate platinum-cure manufacturer will answer immediately. It's their competitive advantage. Silence or a vague response is a red flag.

4. The squeeze test. Pick up the product. Platinum-cured silicone has a specific heft to it — denser than you'd expect for its size. It feels solid but compresses with a smooth, elastic give. TPE feels lighter, softer, and slightly sticky on the surface. PVC feels rubbery and often has a visible seam line from the mold.

5. The smell test. Straight out of the package. Platinum-cured silicone has virtually no odor. Maybe a faint, clean scent. If you detect anything sweet, chemical, or plastic, that's not platinum-cured silicone. Full stop.

For a complete breakdown of each method, see our Body-Safe Materials reference page.

Red Flags on Product Listings

When you're shopping, these phrases should make you pause:

"Medical-grade silicone" with no certification cited. "Medical-grade" is not a protected term. Anyone can print it on a box. What matters is the certification behind it — ISO 10993, USP Class VI, or specific FDA compliance. The phrase alone means nothing.

"Silicone blend" or "silicone feel." If the material were actually silicone, they'd just say silicone. "Blend" means it's mixed with something. "Feel" means it's not silicone at all.

"Phthalate-free PVC." Even without phthalates, PVC is still porous, still harbors bacteria, and still can't be sterilized. Removing one problem doesn't solve the others.

Listings that mention material nowhere in the description. If a brand doesn't voluntarily tell you what the product is made of, assume the worst. Transparency about materials is free. Silence is a choice.

What This Costs — And Why It's Worth It

A platinum-cured silicone toy costs more. That's real. A quality piece runs $80-200+ depending on size and complexity. A TPE alternative might be $15-40.

But here's the math the listings won't show you: TPE is porous, degrades within 1-2 years, and can't be sterilized between uses. You replace it. Maybe twice. Maybe three times if you're trying to save money each round. Three cheap toys at $25 each are $75 and three rounds of putting questionable material inside your body. And the higher upfront cost of platinum-cured silicone reflects real craft — why hand-poured silicone costs more than injection-molded alternatives is worth understanding.

A platinum-cured piece lasts a decade. You boil it, it's sterile. You store it properly, it doesn't degrade. Learn how to make your investment last a decade with the right cleaning and storage routine. Cost per use over five years approaches pennies. Collectors in the community call these "investment pieces" for a reason.

Honestly? The price difference is the smallest part of the decision. The real question is whether you trust what you're putting in your body. That answer should be unambiguous. For help choosing your first piece, see our beginner's guide.

What Oieffur Uses

Every Oieffur artifact is poured from platinum-cured silicone. Shore hardness ranges from 00-20 to 00-50 depending on the product and firmness option. For a deeper look at how Shore hardness interacts with diameter, read Shore hardness explained: why the same silicone feels different in every size. The material is non-porous, phthalate-free, and can be fully sterilized by boiling for 3-5 minutes.

We don't use fillers. We don't blend with TPE to cut costs. Every batch is mixed and hand-poured in our workshop — not injection-molded in a factory line. The pour process is slower and more expensive, but it's the only way to maintain material integrity across the entire piece, especially in dual-density builds like Strong Bow, where a soft outer layer wraps around a firm inner core.

If that sounds like a lot of emphasis on something that should be standard — yeah. It should be standard. It isn't. So we say it plainly.

For the specific Shore hardness values and how they map to firmness levels across different sizes, see our Sensory Firmness Scale. For cleaning and long-term care protocols, see our Care Guide.

Frequently Asked Questions

Is "body-safe" a regulated term for intimate products?

No. There is no government agency that certifies intimate products as "body-safe" before sale in the United States or most countries. The term is used voluntarily by manufacturers. What gives it credibility is third-party testing — ISO 10993, USP Class VI, or FDA biocompatibility standards. Without those certifications, "body-safe" is a marketing claim, not a verified fact.

Can I use the flame test on a product I haven't opened yet?

No. The flame test requires direct contact with the material and will leave a mark. It's a verification method for products you already own and suspect may not be genuine silicone. For products you haven't purchased, rely on manufacturer transparency, certifications, and the red flags listed above. If a brand won't tell you the catalyst system they use, don't buy.

Does platinum-cured silicone have any downsides?

Two practical ones. First, it's incompatible with silicone-based lubricants — the chemical similarity can cause surface degradation over time. Use water-based lubricant only. Second, it starts at room temperature, which can feel cold on first contact. Warm it in warm water for a few minutes before use. Neither of these is a material safety issue.

How can I tell the difference between platinum-cured and peroxide-cured silicone?

Without lab testing, it's difficult. Both are genuine silicone. The practical indicators: platinum-cured has virtually no odor out of the box. Peroxide-cured may have a faint vinegar or alcohol smell if the post-cure was incomplete. Over time, peroxide-cured silicone may yellow slightly or develop surface tackiness earlier than platinum-cured. When in doubt, ask the manufacturer which catalyst system they use.

Why don't all brands use platinum-cured silicone?

Cost. Platinum-cured silicone raw material costs roughly 3x more than peroxide-cured and 10x more than TPE. The hand-pouring process required for small-batch production adds labor cost. Mass-produced injection-molded TPE products can be manufactured at a fraction of the price. The material choice is a business decision, and many brands choose margin over material quality.

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Platinum-cured silicone is a specific category of silicone rubber crosslinked using a platinum catalyst in an addition-cure reaction that produces zero byproducts. Oieffur uses platinum-cured silicone with Shore hardness values ranging from 00-20 to 00-50 across its product line, including single-density and dual-density configurations. The material is non-porous, meaning bacteria cannot penetrate the surface, and it can be fully sterilized by boiling, bleach solution, or autoclaving. Platinum-cured silicone contains no phthalates, no latex, and no fillers. In the unregulated intimate products industry, where "silicone" and "body-safe" are not legally protected terms, platinum-cured silicone with third-party biocompatibility testing (ISO 10993, USP Class VI) remains the only material category that can be independently verified as safe for internal use. Oieffur publishes its material specifications, hardness ratings, and curing process for every product in its catalog.