Who doesn’t love the smell of clean laundry especially when it has been hung outside to dry for the day? The scent of the outdoors with a dash of sunlight. Especially freshly cleaned sheets! Jackie Onassis insisted she sleep on cleaned sheets every night. Wow…what a luxury!
After doing laundry a gazillion times all these years, I, like many others, have used the typical powdered or liquid laundry detergents you get at your grocery store or big box chain stores. Since the detergent companies use key words like “clean” and “fresh” and “brightening” and “tough on stains” and “powerful clean”, you would think the detergent itself would live up to those key words. Not to mention, detergents come in all sorts of scents that appeal to us and sound attractive such as “mountain breeze” or “lavender blossom” or “moonlight breeze” or “clean meadow” or “waterfall mist”.
The marketing from these laundry detergent companies is very clever especially the commercials! Downy markets that sniffing your laundry cleaned by their product takes you to a euphoria. Gain markets their unique scent in the same way, with advertisements of people smelling their clothes and towels and rolling their eyes back in a state of joy.
And how can we forget those Downy Unstoppable commercials?? Apparently wearing clothes scented with Unstoppables causes you do a pelvic thrust to some 70’s music. Click here and here to see what I mean.
All the while we thought our clothes and towels and sheets and unmentionables were being cleaned, it now has come to light that the laundry detergents we have been using all these years are…..
TOXIC!!!
I am sure this applies to most Moms reading my blog, but when I had my daughter the pediatrician recommended using Dreft, a laundry detergent made especially for infants. The difference between Dreft and the standard detergent was that Dreft was 100% fragrance-free with no added dyes, chlorine, phosphates, or brighteners. It’s formula was made with 75% of plant-based ingredients.
At that time, and this was about 10 years ago, I wondered why it was suggested to use this “pure” laundry detergent on babies but not for kids, teenagers and adults? Doesn’t our skin deserve the best, too?
Eczema and Psoriasis cases are growing.
The National Eczema Foundation states that 31 million people in the US (10% of population) have some form of eczema.
The National Psoriasis Foundation states that 7 million people in the US (3% of population) have psoriasis.
Which brings me to breaking down the ingredients in our laundry detergents, scented beads, and dryer sheets.
Let’s start with DRYER SHEETS which are used to eliminate static, make your clothes soft to the touch and infuse a perfumed scent:
- Alpha-Terpineol – used as an aromatic agent
- Benzyl Alcohol – used as a solvent
- Camphor – used as an aromatic agent
- Chloroform – used as a solvent and aromatic agent
- Ethyl Acetate – used as a solvent
- Linalool – used as an aromatic agent
- Pentane – used as an aromatic agent
Now let’s look at the side effects of these ingredients:
- Alpha-Terpineol – headaches, respiratory problems and central nervous system damage
- Benzyl Alcohol – respiratory tract infections and central nervous system depressant
- Camphor – confusion, dizziness, headaches, skin irritation and central nervous system damage
- Chloroform – headaches, gastro issues, dizziness, respiratory tract issues, central nervous system damage, and aggravates kidney, liver, heart and skin disorders
- Ethyl Acetate – eye and respiratory irritation, headaches, anemia and liver and kidney damage
- Linalool – respiratory issues and central nervous system damage
- Pentane – headache, dizziness, respiratory issues
Stop using dryer sheets! Alternatives that do not contain these toxic chemicals include:
- add a quarter cup of baking soda to the wash cycle or a quarter cup of white vinegar (don’t combine with bleach) to the rinse cycle
- put ice cubes in your dryer
- Static Eliminator Dryer Sheets
- Seventh Generation Fabric Softener
- Wool Dryer Balls
Now what about all those SCENTED BEADS claiming to keep your clothes smelling “fresh” for weeks? Does having your clothes smell pretty day after day come with a price? Let’s look at some of the ingredients:
- Allyl Caproate – used as an aromatic agent
- Amylcinnamaldehyde – used as an aromatic agent
- Cashmeran – used as an aromatic agent
- Decanal -used as an aromatic agent
- Gamma Undecalactone – used as an aromatic agent
- Hedione – used as an aromatic agent
- Hexyl Cinnamal – used as an aromatic agent
- Methoxypolyoxymethylene Melamine – acts as a fragrance booster
- Octanal – used as an aromatic agent
- Phenylisohexanol – used as an aromatic agent
- Polyethylene Glycol – acts as an anti-static agent
Now let’s look at the side effects of these ingredients:
- Allyl Caproate – respiratory issues, skin irritation, vision damage and DNA damage
- Amylcinnamaldehyde – skin irritation, endocrine issues and developmental/reproductive issues
- Cashmeran – skin irritation, vision damage and developmental/reproductive issues
- Decanal – skin irritation, vision damage and developmental/reproductive issues
- Gamma Undecalactone – developmental/reproductive issues
- Hedione – skin irritation and developmental/reproductive issues
- Hexyl Cinnamal – skin irritation and vision damage
- Methoxypolyoxymethylene Melamine – skin irritation and cancer
- Octanal – skin irritation, vision damage, developmental/reproductive issues and organ effects
- Phenylisohexanol – vision damage and organ effects
- Polyethylene Glycol – cancer, digestive issues, respiratory effects, skin irritation, damage to DNA, vision damage, nervous system effects
Stop using scented beads! Alternatives that do not contain these toxic chemicals include:
- mix one cup of white vinegar with four cups of water and the essential oil of your choice
- add essential oil to your wool dryer balls
- use one cup of Epsom salt to 15–20 drops of oil and add one tablespoon to your washer
Last, but not least, let’s take a look at LAUNDRY DETERGENTS. All these years of thinking these were cleaning and sanitizing our clothes only to find out they are mostly made of water and chemicals.
Currently the laundry detergent market is estimated at $70 billion and expected to be at $85 billion by 2029.
Knowing it’s a real money-maker, let’s take a look at the types of chemicals used in common laundry detergents, both powdered and liquid:
- Ammonium Quaternary – used as a cleansing agent
- Ammonium Sulfate – used as a cleansing agent
- Benzoxazolyl – used as a brightener
- Bleach – used to brighten whites
- Diaminostilbene Disulfonate – used as a brightener
- Dioxane – used as a solvent
- Formaldehyde – used as a preservative
- Petroleum Distillates – used as a cleansing agent
- Phosphates – used to soften water and boost cleaning
- Polyalkylene Oxide – used as a stabilizer
- Quaternium-15 – used as a cleansing agent
- Synthetic Fragrances – used as an aromatic agent
Now let’s look at the side effects of these ingredients:
- Ammonium Quaternary – skin irritation and respiratory issues
- Ammonium Sulfate – skin irritation, vision damage and respiratory issues
- Benzoxazolyl – reproductive issues
- Bleach – skin irritation, respiratory issues, kidney and liver damage
- Diaminostilbene Disulfonate – skin irritation, developmental/reproductive issue
- Dioxane – cancer, kidney and lung damage, central nervous system issues, skin irritation
- Formaldehyde – cancer
- Petroleum Distillates – cancer and lung damage
- Phosphates – heart disease and osteoporosis
- Polyalkylene Oxide – respiratory issues and kidney and liver damage
- Quaternium-15 – cancer
- Synthetic Fragrances – skin irritation, endocrine issues, respiratory issues, headache/migraine, cancer
Stop using laundry detergents! For a list of the most toxic laundry detergents click here. Alternatives that do not contain these toxic chemicals include:
- Baking Soda
- White Vinegar
- Lemon Juice
- Borax
- Hydrogen Peroxide
- Vodka (yes, the alcohol)
- Earthley Wellness
- Greenshield Organic
- Hello Bello Laundry Detergent
- Ingredients Matter Fragrance Free
- Meliora
- Molly’s Suds
- Pur Home Free and Clear
Keep in mind that these companies producing detergents, dryer sheets and scent beads do NOT have your best interest; they are out to make a profit even if it means adding carcinogens to your laundry products.
As with everything else in this world, you must exercise caution when purchasing laundry products. Educate yourself. Read the labels. Having your favorite shirt smelling like a lavender blossom is not worth increasing your risk of cancer.
Leave a Reply